INSPIRASUNS

If you have been a follower of this little blog for very long, you know that when we lived up north I was part of an amazing workout group made up of women. Chix in Training is a tight-knit group of women, who became family to me, and they still are for that matter. We stay in touch via social media, text messages, and such, and when I make my way back up north, I drop in to surprise them and enjoy one of the familiar workouts.

One of our Chix family was a wonderful young lady named Alyson. She was a friend of my youngest daughter, but I got to know her through our Chix group. It didn’t take long to become friends, and we would joke with each other every workout. We’d moan and groan about burpees, squats, or my personal least favorite exercise, the mountain climbers. We’d grind our way through AMRAPS, (as many rounds as possible), and at the end of it all Aly would remind us all “Embrace the suck Ladies”. This was her way of saying, “We got this, let’s just do it and get it done”. It was also her way of saying, “We’ll be stronger and better on the other side”.

I was thinking about this phrase that Alyson used to say this morning. I realized that there are times in this life when we have to “embrace the suck” and just get the task at hand completed. An exercise workout, a project at work, or worse, going through medical treatments, saying goodbye to a loved one, there are times in this life when we have to do things we don’t want to do. However, we don’t have to do it alone. Father is there to help us through those times we dread. Those times when we aren’t sure if we are going to be able to do what we have to do, times when we feel like we won’t make it through, He is right there. Those times when we feel so alone, that is the very time we need to reach out to God, to ask him to sit next to us and let us know that He is there. Ask Him to help us feel his presence.

Alyson was an “old soul”, she had wisdom and an outlook on life that always made me smile. Aly’s mom wrote a comment on my little blog from yesterday when I encouraged everyone to “eat the cake”. Her comment was this,:
“My favorite! Alyson’s motto was
Eat the cake
Buy the shoes
Take the trip
Embrace the suck
I learned a lot of life things from her, my little old soul!”

You see, Aly passed away unexpectedly four years ago. There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t think of her. I hear her when I do my workouts of course, but there are times when I will remember our chats and her simple take on life. She was a true joy and is missed so much. I also know that Father was there with her, and her family through everything that happened. He was the strength that came to help us all through and continues to be there.

So today friends, if you have a task, a situation, or a challenge in front of you that is daunting or difficult, “embrace the suck”, and lean into Father to help you through. As Aly would remind us, we will be stronger on the other side. We’ll be stronger because Father has given us that strength. Remember, God is always with us, He will never, ever forsake us.

Oh, and “eat the cake, buy the shoes and take the trip” too 🙂 .

Joshua 1:9
Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”