I recently ran the Pittsburgh Half Marathon, and it was an amazing event. During the travel there and throughout the race weekend, a lot of thoughts crossed my mind for different articles. It was tough to pick just one, so I decided to do something a little different this week. I am going to highlight a few of those thoughts and combine them into one.

To start, I want to talk about parent love and support.

The original plan was for Lauren and me to take Beau with us and make it a family trip. But the weather changed, and we decided it would not be a good idea to have him out in the cold for that long. It was a tough decision, and Lauren and Beau stayed home.

After that, I had to decide if I even wanted to go.

Then my parents stepped in.

Without hesitation, they dropped their plans for the weekend. Both of them texted me and said, “We’ll go with you.”

That meant a lot.

It made me feel special, and I was so thankful to have them there with me. I ended up running a PR that I had been working really hard for, and being able to hug them after the race made it even more meaningful.

That is a moment I will never forget.

Thank you, Mom and Dad. I love you both so much. You are the best.

Next up is this.

God is alive.

Do not believe everything you see or hear. Do not buy into the idea that faith is fading or not important.

I saw it firsthand in Pittsburgh.

People traveled from all over the country, and even from around the world, to be there. The night before the race, we went to a Pirates game. They welcomed everyone to town and even hosted a “Faith Night” after the game. It gave people the opportunity to share their stories and talk about their faith journey. How cool is that?

Then during the race, I saw it again.

There were signs in the crowd with Bible verses. Some runners were carrying flags that said, “Jesus Won.” It was everywhere.

It was powerful.

Moments like that remind you that faith is alive and well, and there are a lot of people out there who believe and are not afraid to show it.

Nick Bare was also there. He is a well-known fitness influencer who is open about giving his life to Christ so he can be the best man and father he can be. I had really hoped to shake his hand and tell him how much of an inspiration he is, but I did not get the chance.

At first, I was a little disappointed.

But then I thought about it.

The reason I did not get to meet him was because the line was probably two hours long. That means that many people were there to meet him, likely to share how he impacted their lives.

He has helped bring that many people to fitness and to Christ.

When I looked at it that way, I realized something.

That is a pretty good reason not to get to meet someone.

And I can live with that.

Lastly, this one is simple.

Good for you.

If you were in Pittsburgh and you put it all on the line for race weekend, worked hard, and crossed that finish line, a tip of my “Go One More” Nick Bare hat to you.

Everyone has a story. Everyone has a reason.

But on race day, everyone had one goal.

Cross the finish line.

Seeing the pictures and videos of people finishing is special because you know how much work went into that moment.

There were more than 52,000 people who took part in race weekend.

That is 52,000 people choosing to do something hard and earn something meaningful.

Good for you.

“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” – Hebrews 12:1