There’s a Celtic saying that heaven and earth are only three feet apart, but in the thin places that distance is even smaller.
In the final weeks leading up to the race, my life has been full of thin moments. Moments that give glimpses of heaven, Matthew 18:19-20 moments of community.
Moments that remove any doubt of acceptance, love, or favor. Moments that have taken my breath away and caused me to stop, say thank you Jesus, and savor the blessing. A little extra morning coffee time with my mom, a sacrificial gift of wisdom and grace from a friend…
These moments have been the sustaining joy of preparation for the race.
Yesterday, while surrounded by family, I found myself desperately wishing it were possible to bottle these moments. I would gladly trade out a piece of gear in my pack for a jar holding all the sweetness of memories and laughter shared around a dinner table. Bitter reality is that this is not possible, and no such jar exists.
Instead, these thin moments challenge me to love well in the moment. As temporary firsts and lasts make their ways into my life, it is only right to celebrate the blessings of each. The joy of having family who are painful to say goodbye to, the rarity of having a home I will long for at holidays… these things are worth giving praise and thanks.
Yesterday was a thin moment of reunion with those who have been there through it all, delighting together over promises fulfilled. These memories will be carried with me in my heart. These will be the stories I tell as I race; they will carry me through the travel days and the ump-teenth bowls of rice and mystery meals.
These thin moments bring me back to the cross. To a place humbled by the love of those around me, only to be reminded that this portion is only a fraction of the love Christ bestows on me. That He bestows to each of us from.
The thinnest of moments was receiving Holy Communion with my family. What more holy and sacred reminder could we have been blessed with than to experience the taking of bread and cup in remembrance of the gospel? What joy it gave me to be held in that moment by the One who loves me more than I ever dare imagine. The One I go seeking after. The One who has called me to these thin moments and more. Who promises only good things and who has called me to the race, so with joy I can follow.
Today, wherever you are…
Be it month three, seven, or twelve of your race… or if you are one who is preparing to leave, or practicing the obedience of entrusting your loved ones to Him… I pray you will experience a thin moment of your own. A moment, where God’s presence feels just a little closer than three feet away.
