Showers of Blessings...

It's so hard to even know where to begin in this post. I've experienced such a flood of emotions in the last week and I come away from race day so grateful, so humbled, so amazed, so full of joy, and....very tired! For those of you who don't know, but can tell from the picture, it RAINED. Not only did it rain, but at about 7:20-7:30 am, it started thundering and lightening, and I couldn't believe what I was hearing and seeing. At just the time that those people who had not yet registered should be arriving, the sky was opening up, my heart began to sink and I just felt sick to my stomach! I knew that God had called me to plan this race and after so many months of hard work and planning, I didn't want it all to go down the drain. I was looking forward to watching God's plan unfold, seeing friends, family, and total strangers gather together to help make a difference in the lives of children. We had planned a fun morning involving the whole family and I wanted it to go EXACTLY as planned! The tents that were supposed to protect us from the hot sun were now protecting us from getting completely drenched! People were texting me, calling me, asking me what we were going to do. I truly just wanted to cry! But God was still in control b/c those people standing under that tent with me were just the ones who I needed to be there with me. Guys (John, Jim, & Tim), making jokes about wishing they were stuck under the bagel tent - they kept things humorous. Sherry, my "right-hand man" who had helped me so much in preparing for race day, remained calm and started helping me put another plan in motion. And Tracey, Julia & Susan - their smiles & reassurance kept me from losing it! And of course, I was in constant contact via phone with my husband,Jimmy, aka my "weather-man" about what the radar was showing. If he had been with me under that tent, I probably would have cried! He reassured me that the worst was passing, it might still rain a little, but that we could go ahead with the race! And sure enough, Praise God, He moved the storms out, the people began to get out of their cars, come into the park, and I felt the love and support of friends and family in such a powerful way! Instead of just rain, I now saw showers of blessings! The scripture for our race, Romans 10:15, "...how beautiful are the feet of those who bring the Good News.", took on an even greater meaning for me. I stood at the start line and as the runners and walkers began to pass by, their feet pounding the pavement with a little extra "squishy-ness" from their water logged shoes, I watched the faces of friends, family and people I didn't even know go by, and I was so moved. Despite the weather, they still came out to use their feet as a voice, to support children in need, to put aside their own comfort so that instead they can soon give comfort to the children in Haiti. Families were walking together, having fun. Kids' were cheering each other on and enjoying a few splashes in the puddles. I was so proud as I saw those people cross the finish line of their first 5K! The race didn't go exactly as I had planned, but God's plan was still accomplished, which is all that really matters. When God began to place this burden on my heart and began calling me to organize a 5K, it seemed like such an impossible task for me. I struggled with the courage and strength to surrender. But, as I was studying Nehemiah at the time, the study notes in my Bible said this, "God's men and women, joined together for special tasks, can solve huge problems and accomplish great goals. Don't let the size or the length of time needed to accomplish it keep you from doing it. With God's help, it can be done." So, here we are months later and the race that I couldn't even imagine organizing, is over. So many of you were used as God's instruments to help me in organizing it and funding it. You encouraged me and supported me and truly blessed me. And most importantly, YOU HAVE MADE A DIFFERENCE - you've helped me with a very important task to fund the construction of a children's home in an orphanage (village) in Haiti. You're helping to solve a huge problem facing so many orphans today and your FEET will bring

life's basic necessities to 10-12 children. Your FEET will help bring a message of hope to the hopeless and your FEET will make a lasting imprint in the lives of sweet children. I can't thank you enough!! I wish I could name off each and every person who used their time, talents and resources, but there's simply too many! But please know how truly grateful and appreciative I am to ALL of you! You have no idea how much you have blessed me through this process.

I'll be posting pictures & sharing more details from the race soon.