Jesus Feeds the 5000 (Matthew 14:13-21)

 

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“Jesus Feeds the 5000” (Matthew 14:13-21) – Audio recording of my Sunday evening sermon at Bellevue Church of Christ in Nashville, TN on January 6, 2013.

This sermon looks at the text of Jesus feeding the 5000 from Matthew 14 and the insight we can gain into the nature and character of our savior from this great story.

Matthew 14:13–21 (ESV)

13 Now when Jesus heard this, he withdrew from there in a boat to a desolate place by himself. But when the crowds heard it, they followed him on foot from the towns. 14 When he went ashore he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them and healed their sick. 15 Now when it was evening, the disciples came to him and said, “This is a desolate place, and the day is now over; send the crowds away to go into the villages and buy food for themselves.” 16 But Jesus said, “They need not go away; you give them something to eat.” 17 They said to him, “We have only five loaves here and two fish.” 18 And he said, “Bring them here to me.” 19 Then he ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass, and taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven and said a blessing. Then he broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. 20 And they all ate and were satisfied. And they took up twelve baskets full of the broken pieces left over. 21 And those who ate were about five thousand men, besides women and children.

Quest for Boston – Solid Week of Training

This has been a very solid week of training, and has helped to greatly improve my confidence that was starting to wane. Things have been going well since coming back from the stress fracture, and my endurance has been terrific, however I just didn’t feel like my speed was coming along.

Well there have been several things this week that have made me feel a LOT better about my speed, including:

  • A solid tempo effort on Tuesday with Nathan and Paxton. I was able to hold a 7:08 pace for 40 minutes in the middle of a 10-mile run.
  • A solid track workout on Thursday with over 6k of intervals. Here’s the rundown of the repeats:

    -6 x 100m Stride Outs – 6:05 pace
    -1600m fresh (400m Recovery) – 6:17 pace
    -3 x 200m fresh (400m Recovery) – 5:50 pace
    -1000m fresh (300m Recovery) – 6:09 pace
    -800m Straights and Curves* (300m Recovery) – 7:20 pace
    -800m fresh – 5:54 pace

    *Run the straights, jog the curves 

  • A solid 20-miler today on tired legs and a challenging route (over 1,400 ft. of elevation gain – see below). My average pace for the total run was 8:28, and I ended up with 4-miles under 8:00, including a 7:07 split for mile 11. My legs felt strong all the way to the end.

When combined with easy runs on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, my total mileage for this week was just over 52-miles. This also puts me at just over 145-miles for the month of January.

Beast Mode…ON!

Quest for Boston – The Reunion Tour Continues (Tempo Run)

The Bellevue Trio Reunion Tour continued today with a tempo run through the streets of Bellevue on a cold and overcast morning. Nathan, Paxton and I started at the Bellevue Church of Christ parking lot with a 20-minute warmup loop back to the cars, and then we did a 40-minute tempo run at just under goal marathon pace.

Since Paxton has just started back running again, we split up a bit for this section to allow for different paces. My goal marathon pace is 7:14, so Nathan and I tried to hold our pace for the tempo segment between 7:05 and 7:10. While I could definitely feel some fatigue in my legs, especially after doing P90X Legs and Back last night, overall I felt really good. We ended up doing 4 different out-and-back segments during the 40-minutes, mostly in River Plantation, and ended up with an average pace of 7:08. I still doubt I’ll be ready to hold this pace for 26.2 at NOLA, but it was relatively comfortable for 40-minutes this morning.

We arrived back at the cars at almost exactly the same time as Paxton, and then ran another 20-minute loop as a cool down. In total, I finished right at 10-miles in approximately 80-minutes of work.

Beast Mode…ON!

Quest for Boston – Recap From the Last Two Weeks

Other than one post-run picture, I don’t think I’ve made a single running post in 2013. Well, I am still running, and things are going well in training for the 2013 Rock n’ Roll NOLA Marathon on February 24th.

The weather here in Middle Tennessee has been crazy for the past couple of weeks. For example, last Thursday, Friday, and Saturday it was around 65º for my runs, and I wore shorts and a singlet. This morning it was 27º and windy, and I wore tights, a jacket, and two pair of gloves. It has been sleeting since early afternoon, so we may end up ice skating instead of running in the morning.

Highlights of the last two weeks:

The Return of Paxton – The best thing that has happened over the past couple of weeks is that Paxton has started running with Nathan and I again. He took a break from running during the second half of 2012, and joined us back on January 4th. It is good to have him back.

Marathon Workout – On January 5th, our group began their bi-weekly marathon workouts in preparation for spring marathons. While NOLA is much earlier than most of the races that everyone else is training for, it was still good to get in a tempo workout with the group. Here’s a rundown:

  • 10-Minute Warmup
  • 20-Minute Marathon Pace + 30sec
  • 10-Minute Marathon Pace
  • 5-Minute Recovery
  • 10-Minute Marathon Pace (negative split)
  • 12-Minute Marathon Pace
  • 18-Minute Recovery

My goal for the marathon pace intervals was to land between 7:05 and 7:10, since my goal pace is 7:14 for a 3:09:59 marathon. Nathan and I ended up running most of the repeats slightly faster than this, but overall I felt fantastic. Nathan even joined me early (and stayed after) to turn the workout into a 20-mile run as I ramp up for NOLA.

Track with JSRC – My splits are slowly coming down to times much closer to my peak last summer. Two weeks ago I ran the entire workout with Robert (who is 15, and fast), and felt great. The planned workout was a ladder:

  • Warmup
  • 6 x 100m Stride Outs
  • 400m (200m recovery)
  • 800m (300m recovery)
  • 1200m (400m recovery)
  • 800m (300m recovery)
  • 400m
  • Cool down

When Robert and I finished the first 1200m, and the recovery, John instructed us to add another 1200m before going back down the ladder. Even with this extra repeat, I felt really, really good during this workout.

Last Thursday night, I didn’t feel great, but still had good times on most of the repeats.

Long Run Deluge – Last Saturday our group started on Belmont Boulevard, ran downtown, and then across the Cumberland River through East Nashville and into Shelby Park before heading back. Most of the group got 10 to 12 miles, however Nathan and I met early for 3-miles on Belmont Boulevard and then ran an extra loop on the Shelby Bottoms Greenway to end with a total of 17-miles. The “highlight” of this run was that most of it was completed in a steady downpour. It was raining so hard as we were on our way back that a van stopped and asked us if we needed a ride.

So far I’ve completed 99.9-miles for 2013, and hoping to get in around 200-miles for January. Good start to the new year!

Beast Mode….ON!

Saucony Kinvara 4 Sneak Peak (RunningWarehouse.com)

The Saucony Kinvara has been my training and racing shoe of choice since its introduction in 2010. I’ve loved every version so far, and we got our first look at the upcoming Kinvara 4 (K4) last month on the Saucony blog. Today Running Warehouse posted some new pics along with a rundown of changes and color options for the shoe that will drop in May.

Per Running Warehouse…The K4 retains many of the design elements of its successful predecessor, though a few tweaks (such as an improved upper and the addition of a PowerGrid heel insert) should make for a more enjoyable running experience. Saucony claims weights of 7.7 oz in a Men’s size 9 and 6.7 oz for a Women’s size 8.

Changes from the K3

  • Revisited Upper: Overlays around the forefoot have been stripped down to increase breathability without sacrificing security, and a redesigned heel collar should reduce rubbing on the Achilles.
  • Upgraded Cushioning: We expect that the switch from ProGrid to PowerGrid in the heel will deliver a smoother and more plush transition from heel to toe.
  • Color Variety: The May 2013 release will consist of five colorways on both the Men’s and Women’s sides, so there should be something to suit everyone’s tastes.

Men’s Colors

  • Citron/Black/Green
  • White/Navy/Orange
  • Blue/Black/Slime
  • Red/Black/Citron
  • Grey/Yellow/Black

Women’s Colors

  • Purple/Pink/Citron
  • White/Grey/Vizipro Coral
  • Citron/Black/Pink
  • Blue/Orange
  • Black/Pink

What do you think? Personally, I’m excited about the changes, though I do think the new overlay pattern results in a less attractive shoe than the K3.

2013 Running Goals

I believe that 2012 was the first time I had ever written down my running goals, and I ended up with a pretty successful year in spite of my stress fracture. For 2013 I’m doing away with all goals related to total mileage or running a certain number of races, and instead focusing on racing achievements.

  • Stay Healthy – This first one is a direct result of missing 6-weeks of training with a femoral stress fracture in 2012. While this could mean a lot of different things, I’m going to try and put a quantifiable measurement on it. My goal is to avoid any running injury that would cause me to miss more than a week of training. To work toward this goal I’m going to try and be smarter than I was in 2012, however I still plan on pushing the envelope as it relates to my capabilities.
  • Qualify for the 2014 Boston Marathon – After completing my “Quest for 3:15” last year, my attention immediately shifted to qualifying for Boston. In order to qualify for 2014, I will have to run a sub-3:10 marathon (7:14 average pace) between now and early October (most likely). My current PR is 3:12:28, but I’m still trying to regain my speed and endurance after coming back from the stress fracture. My first chance at this will be on February 24 at the 2013 Rock n’ Roll NOLA Marathon, which is also the site of my current PR. It’s probably unrealistic that I’ll be ready for a BQ by then, but I do think it is achievable in 2013.
  • Run a Sub-1:29 Half Marathon – My current PR of 1:29:52 was set on one of the hardest courses that I’ve ever run at the 2012 Oak Barrel Half Marathon. I’ve had a lot of bad luck In other races with much faster courses, and I do not feel that my PR is indicative of my capabilities, especially at their peak in 2012. To that end, I want to break 1:29 (or better) in 2013. That will require maintaining an average pace of 6:47, which is a bit daunting.
  • Finish in the Top 500 at the 2013 500 Festival Mini Marathon – This is one of my absolute favorite races, and I’m registered to participate for my 5th consecutive year in 2013. The Mini is the largest half marathon in the US with 35,000 runners. To go along with the “Indy 500” theme, the first 500 finishers get a special medal in addition to the normal medal that all finishers receive. I got one of these for the first time in 2012 with a finish time of 1:31, but this was aided by the oppressive humidity for last year’s race. In previous years, it required a finish time of 1:28 or better to achieve this mark.

Well, there it is for what it’s worth. What are your running goals for 2013?

2012 Running Goals – A Year in Review

Since this is it for 2012, I wanted to talk a final look back at my running goals for the year. I was a little bit sidetracked by a femoral stress fracture in my right leg, which caused me to miss the entire month of September, along with 3 full marathons and 1 half marathon. However, in spite of this, I still consider 2012 to largely be a success from a running perspective with new PRs in both the half and full marathons. Here’s a rundown:

  • Goal #1: Complete 2,000 training miles. My total for 2011 was 1,763, so this will be a pretty big increase. Will take over 166 miles per month to reach this goal. I know it is attainable, but only if I stay healthy and disciplined.

    Achieved – Up until the last week of August, I was WELL ahead of pace for 2,000 miles in 2012, but not running for the entire month of September, and some of October, made this goal very questionable up until the end. However, my return to running program went so well that I ended up with just over 2,022-miles for the year, which is 259-miles ahead of my total for 2011.

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  • Goal #2: Complete my “Quest for 3:15” in a full marathon. This has been a very public goal for quite a while, and I hope to break through in 2012. I would also like to take this a step further in 2012 and break 3:10 which is my Boston qualifying time. I know this is pushing it, but I’m dreaming big. Really want to run my first Boston Marathon in 2013. To do this I will not only have to be disciplined to my running schedule, but will also have to be committed to quality runs, cross-training, diet, and sleep.

    Partially Achieved – The “Quest for 3:15” was officially completed at the Rock n’ Roll NOLA Marathon on March 4 with a finish time of 3:12:28. However, due to the stress fracture, my fall marathon season was wiped out, and with it the goal of running a BQ in 2012. I’m hoping that next year both Nathan and I can run a BQ so that we can both experience Boston together for the first time in 2014. That is unless Nathan decides to completely forego road marathons for trail ultras after finally finishing “Born to Run” (not kidding). 

    While not an official marathon, I did end up running 26.2-miles at the 26.4.26 event just over a week ago. This was a very special experience.

    My next scheduled marathon is the 2013 Rock n’ Roll NOLA Marathon at the end of February, but I’m having serious doubts about my ability to break 3:10 in this race. Coming back from the stress fracture has not allowed me to run the type of mileage I would like leading up to this race, so I might have to target a race in the fall.

  • Goal #3: Finish at least 5 full marathons. I ran my first 2 full marathons in the fall of 2009, and then completed 4 full marathons in both 2010 and 2011. As of now I’m only registered for the Rock N’ Roll New Orleans Marathon in March, but I have also submitted my request to be the 3:45 pacer in the St Jude Country Music Marathon in May and have my eye on a handful of other races. Whether it is as a pacer or participant, I want to do at least one marathon at a slower, conservative pace where I can enjoy it.

    Not Achieved – I completed two full marathons in the spring, and was registered for three more in the fall, but as mentioned above, the stress fracture wiped all of these out. As for running one at a slower, conservative pace…I was the official 4-hour pacer for the St Jude Country Music Marathon back in April and had a blast!
     

  • Goal #4: Officially break 1:30 in a half marathon. I had an unofficial 1:29 finish in the Murfreesboro Middle Half Marathon in 2011 (due to course misrouting), but want to have it in writing in 2012. My best opportunities will most likely come at the 500 Festival Mini Marathon in May or again at the Murfreesboro Middle Half Marathon in October.

    Achieved – I officially broke 1:30 for the first time at the Oak Barrel Half Marathon in Lynchburg, TN on April 7th with a 1:29:52. I was hoping to take it even lower at the 500 Festival Mini Marathon in May, but the 91% humidity throughout the race was a deal breaker on that front. As for the Middle Half mentioned in the goal, this race was also a casualty of the stress fracture. I ended up running the Chickamauga Battlefield Half Marathon in November as my first race back after the injury (I was originally registered for the full). This was obviously not the occasion to run really fast, but I was pleased to finish in 1:39:06 even though my longest run prior to the race was 8-miles, and I used a 10/1 run/walk strategy throughout.

Well, there it is…..2 1/2 out of 4 goals achieved. Not too bad, but room to improve for 2013. Beast Mode…ON!!
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