4 Days, 75 Kilometres, 3300 meters of elevation and a medal to prove we did it!
All thanks be to God as I hold onto the truth and reality that my back has truly been healed.
It was a great blessing and privilege to be invited to participate in the Dryland Traverse. So many times, I have stood on the side-lines, cheering my husband on, as he approached the end of a long, arduous day of cycling during his many multi-stage mountain bike races.
Now it was our opportunity to do something together! My over-enthusiasm prompted me to say yes, yes yes, forgetting that only 3 years ago, I had slipped a disc in my back and had been strongly advised not to run over 10km ever again.
The thing is, I felt fine. I haven’t had any back pain in a very long time so it was hard to believe that an old injury could prevent me from taking part in this incredible adventure.
The excruciating pain of the injury was long forgotten and I had worked hard at maintaining a strong core which is essential in preventing any reoccurring incidents so I felt confident – maybe over-confident – that i could do it. But I did think that maybe I should get an official go ahead from my physiotherapist. After all, she had said that I should always live in the light of my accident.
And that is when it hit me.
I will not live in the light of my accident …. I will live in a different light. I will live in the light of my healing!
I had received prayer and a wonderful word of healing (complete healing) 3 days after arriving home from hospital, and I recovered to nearly normal within 6 short weeks – I was even able to run again. That is my miracle!
So now, I choose to live in the light of that miracle.
As we began training and our distances increased, I constantly prayed over my back. If I ever did feel the slightest niggle in my back, I would speak to the pain and declare it gone in Jesus name. I would verbally claim my miracle over and over again.
Eventually as the training became more rigorous, I no longer even thought of my back. The focus shifted to building up a mental capacity that would equip me to endure the distance.
On the Monday before the gruelling traverse, I met with my forum girls for our monthly prayer session. Perfect timing, I had thought. I would receive enough prayer to cover any and all of the aches and pains that my fatigued body may experience. But what I received was far more than what I could ever have asked for, or imagined. The Lord revealed that He had so much more in store for us than simply sparing me from a little back-pain. This quest would be a significant marker in the journey of my married life. It would be a quest that would fortify our faith, solidify our solidarity and enlarge our endurance.
And it did all of that and more!
We shared moments of resilience, we partnershipped in pain, we pressed into our faith and we accumulated ‘mountains of memories’. What an awesome opportunity.
To top it all off, I ran not only 10km’s but 7 times 10km, and some more, without even the slightest pain in my back. Interestingly, the race was actually increased from 69km to 75km, only weeks before the event.
There is great biblical significance in the number 7. It is the number of completeness and perfection (both physical and spiritual) and it derives much of its meaning from being tied directly to God’s creation of all things.
Isn’t that incredible.
God is always in the details.
God truly is a God of miracles and I will forever stand firm on the goodness of God and on my miracle healing of my back.