Run For Their Lives

8 runners. 240 miles. Run For Their Lives: a relay to rescue African children in captivity.

Sound crazy?!? Well, it's exactly what will be taking place 3 weeks from today. Chris organized this relay in an effort to raise money for the Touch A Life Foundation and particularly for The Mercy Project {a fundraising effort we have personally taken on}. Chris and seven other runners will leave from Lake Ray Hubbard here in Rowlett on Thursday evening and will run to Lake Conroe, arriving on Saturday mid-morning. It seems outlandish, dangerous maybe, but isn't that exactly what the slave children in Ghana experience every day? Their lives are crazy, unfathomable, to us, and the work they do is certainly dangerous. Each runner will run about 30 miles over the 40 hours, and just like the children, they will be there to support and encourage each other when the going gets tough. And, isn't this exactly what Jesus did? He went into "dangerous" places, where no one else wanted to go, and did things that were considered crazy, but he did it all because he wanted to rescue his people. Isn't that what he calls us to in our lives today? He calls us to live loving lives, with reckless abandon, all in an effort to continue his rescue and redemption of his children. Because, like Micah 6:8 reminds us, God wants us to act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with him.

There is no way we could ever understand what the trafficked children experience or what their lives are like, but we want to do what we can to change the world in which they live. This relay is one small way that we believe we can make a difference. The money that will be raised will go towards The Mercy Project, which is a fundraising effort to build a home in Ghana where rescued children can go to live and receive an education. We want them to experience hope, joy, and love.

These pictures are hanging on the wall in our living room, and they serve as a daily reminder that our world is much bigger than us.

These are the faces that the runners will carry with them on their journey. Faces of children that no longer have a childhood, but this relay can help them to have a second chance. Even when they get crazy looks, when family and friends don't "get it" and keep asking "why?", they will run for their lives.

So, if you think about it, say a little prayer for the runners--their safety and endurance--between now and particularly over October 29-31. But, more importantly, pray for the children.