Today marks Day 1 of the challenge to walk 60km in 10 days. I went to bed a bit earlier the night before, hoping to feel more rested and ready for this morning's walk. I woke up in the middle of the night...again. I have been having really poor sleep for the last few months. Every morning, I wake up exhausted and just don't want to get up. This morning was a huge struggle. My monthly 'friend' just happened to arrive last night and caused me so much pain this morning. My whole body ached like I had already run a marathon. I forced myself out of bed and poured a bowl of cereal for breakfast. My upstairs neighbour is doing renovations and the drilling began at 10 a.m. That loud drilling really helped to get me out of the apartment!
I turned on my Strava app to start tracking my kms and headed out into the sun. As I started walking, I kept looking up at the blue sky and admiring the clouds. Clouds had always fascinated me - the way they move and transform, and how you will never look at the same cloud or sky twice.
I thought about turning on Audible to listen to some audiobooks, but then I realised it'd been weeks since I last did my Bible in One Year plan. I'm sooooo behind! I love listening to Nicky Gumbel's devotionals and the prayers at the end. It felt great to spend time with God again like this, breathe in that fresh air - even if it was through a mask - and bask in His wonderful creation.
The devotionals today covered some pretty deep topics and they really made me think and reflect. One of the devotionals was about How to Cope with the Challenges of Life. I do not think I have a lot of serious challenges in life to face, but I have a lot of worries and fears that become my problems and my challenges. It's so hard to let go of my worries and fears and lay them down before God. It seems like I am clinging on to them, even though I so desperately want to get rid of them. I often forget that I can actually personally talk to God about all my problems. There is a part of me that still thinks I can handle it on my own, when I really feel like I am drowning. God actually wants us to go to him with all our problems. He wants us to seek and ask him. And he wants to help us. But we need to bring our troubles to him in prayer. We need to trust that God is in control and that even if things go wrong, God knows what he is doing because he only works for the good of those who love him and have been called according to his purpose (Romans 8:28). There is nothing that God can't do, no problem that he can't solve. So when we decide to go to God in prayer with our problems, we need to trust that he will fight our battles for us.
I am glad that I got the opportunity to listen to this very important and powerful message during the first day of the challenge. It really helped me to put things into perspective. I went into this challenge thinking it was a way for me to start a healthier lifestyle and get into the habit of exercising. It turned into an opportunity for me to reconnect and spend time with God!
I managed to walk 6.7km on this first day, even though I never went over 4km during my 'training' days! Even though I started walking while having pain, cramps and body aches, I managed to push past 6km! I didn't even realise until I checked the app! I felt so calm and peaceful during the walk, and it felt like a weight had been lifted off. The heat felt a little more bearable and my legs felt a bit lighter. It wasn't until I was walking the last 100 metres back into the lobby of my building that I felt my legs begin to ache. I'm very pleased that I crushed my 6km goal on the first day! I hope tomorrow will get easier and I can keep up the momentum!
Here are some photos I snapped during my walk:
That's all for Day 1! Until tomorrow!
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