Ecclesiastes 9.7-12
7 Go, eat your food with gladness, and drink your wine with a joyful heart, for it is now that God favors what you do. 8Always be clothed in white, and always anoint your head with oil. 9 Enjoy life with your wife, whom you love, all the days of this meaningless life that God has given you under the sun—all your meaningless days. For this is your lot in life and in your toilsome labor under the sun. 10 Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the grave, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom.
11 I have seen something else under the sun:
The race is not to the swift
or the battle to the strong,
nor does food come to the wise
or wealth to the brilliant
or favor to the learned;
but time and chance happen to them all.
12 Moreover, no man knows when his hour will come:
Judges 18:6
The priest answered them, “Go in peace. Your journey has the LORD’s approval.”
My hour had come…my time to finish the 2012 Boston Marathon. My journey or next mailbox was getting ready to be complete. The Lord paved the way with His approval. He had given me a peace early on that day that I was ready for the 26.2 miles. My training was under my belt and I would do this!
Joshua 24:17
It was the LORD our God himself who brought us and our fathers up out of Egypt, from that land of slavery, and performed those great signs before our eyes. He protected us on our entire journey and among all the nations through which we traveled.
The Lord brought me here. He provided amazing signs along the way. As I approached the Citgo sign, I knew this journey was coming close to completion…I also knew I was close to my family. He had protected me this far and would protect me to the end.
As I approached the Citgo sign and the 1 mile to go sign I saw my niece, Lane and my adopted niece, Amanda. They were taking photos of everyone running through the fire hydrant spray. It felt soooo good! I was so excited to see them! I yelled at Lane where are they(meaning Mike and the rest of the family)…she said “down there!” She pointed and took off running to them. I am sure she was running faster than me. 🙂 I found them and made a quick B-line to hug and kiss my family. This was the extra juice I needed to push the final mile. 🙂 It was priceless. I had a kiss from my honey and hugs from my family…I was ready. Off I went.
The last mile was truly the sweetest. After seeing my family, I knew I could and would finish. I took it all in. The people cheering “Go Trish!”, “You are almost there!”, “Yes, You Can – Go Team Hoyt!” These cheers from the crowd truly put me on cloud nine. Overwhelmed by emotion, I put one foot in front of the other. I was headed to Boylston Street…to the FINISH of the 2012 Boston Marathon. God was with me in every step. He was behind every cheer. He was truly the wind beneath my wings as I floated to the finish.
Once I turned on to Boylston Street and could see the actual Finish Line…time almost stopped. I couldn’t believe I was actually here. So many months of hoping, praying and waiting led to this very moment on April 16. It was about to be finished. In a way, I was ready because I was hot and tired. But on the other hand, I had been working for this moment since I signed up for my first qualifying race on April 13, 2011…one year earlier. Did I really want it to be done? (We will get back to this in a bit.)
For the moment, I ran ready to finish…ready to complete God’s journey to Boston…ready to complete my journey to the next mailbox. He brought me this far…let’s finish strong. 🙂 So, that is what I did! I was so excited and so happy to be fulfilling His purpose for me. One He started orchestrating many, many years. 🙂
Deuteronomy 2:7
The LORD your God has blessed you in all the work of your hands. He has watched over your journey through this vast desert. These forty years the LORD your God has been with you, and you have not lacked anything.
My prayers were answered that day. I was able to run THE Boston Marathon. Not alone…but with a Team! Team Hoyt and Team Trish(if you are reading this…you are part of Team Trish!) The Yes, You Can attitude was all around. My Team Hoyt members were phenomenal. Their stories inspiring. Their attitudes contagious. They hearts open. Their love never-ending. Their finishes unbelievable! It was truly magical! My Team Trish members were unbelievable. Their prayers felt. Their love unconditional. Their arms open. Their faith real. Their friendship priceless.
All I can say is WOW! Blessing abound! I was blessed to have a team of friends/family that helped pray me and fund me to Boston. I was blessed with an inspirational team that helped me run a HOT and brutal Boston. Blessing also came from my team of family who met me at the end to pick me up(literally) and celebrate after my joyous finish, 20 minute crash and burn and then my return to a joyous celebration.
Mark 11.24
24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.
God was with me every step of the way. I really can’t put into words the emotion that I experienced once I crossed the finish line. Relief, thankfulness, humbled, grateful, awe, disbelief, shock, pain, excitement, and the list goes on! God is so good! He had me on this journey for a reason. It is not over! He planted seeds along the way. I may never know what this journey has meant to others…but, I truly hope you know what has meant to me. He has changed me. He has opened my eyes to the power of a team of believers. He has renewed my faith in others…friends, family and strangers alike. He has shown me the power of prayer. He has shown me that without a doubt I am a better person because of HIM and because of you!
Proverbs 27.17
17 As iron sharpens iron,
so one person sharpens another.
I am still learning from the journey and will truly never know its impact until I am in His presence. God is so good…all the time! Thanks for joining me on the journey to Boston. This is not the last of the mailboxes He has out there for me. I will continue to write and continue to enjoy how God is working in everyday life. Thanks to this journey everyday life is sweeter! The next mailbox is yet to be determined. 🙂
Project Mailbox will be detailed in another post…but here is their website if you are interested: www.projectmailbox.org
thenextmailboxboston 