Living life bigger, healthier and friendlier are some of the blessings of imagination. This short video message, shot in Penrith, Australia, uses the backdrop of Imagine Nations Church to identify these powerful truths that apply to all areas of life. Enjoy and pass it on. For more check out twitter.com/pjhburns and youtube.com/johnhburns
This was one of the toughest things I have ever done. I really didn’t think it would be that hard. My training was to jog the course one time in the morning 3 or 4 days a week, but I had been away in Australia the 2 weeks prior… getting home on Saturday and playing the 100 holes 2 days later on Monday so I think even that was a little washed out.
My plan was to get to the course really early so that I could finish the first round and get onto the second before anyone else started playing (from then on I would have to play through the normal golfers and there were lots of them that day). I started about 4:45 AM (in the dark) and ran the first two rounds with no interruptions. When I went to start my 3rd round, the first tee was backed up and players were plentiful so I went to the back 9 which was still open… that too I ran, bringing my total to 45 holes and I was very soar and very tired.
One of the greatest unexpected blessings was my wife bringing me a change of clothes (mine were soaked with sweat) and finding a shower in the dressing room… that was the best shower I had ever taken!!! After that I felt like a new man. Another great blessing was a young man, Jose, who showed up at 5:00 AM saying he was going to walk with me every step of the way and help me. He wanted to carry my clubs for me but I had told all my sponsors that I would walk the course carrying my clubs so I wouldn’t let him. He had no knowledge of golf but after a few holes of learning, he became a great blessing. My back was very stiff and bending over was almost impossible so Jose would bend down and put my ball on the tee… that was a huge blessing!
The part I disliked the most was playing through other groups. The pressure of hitting good shots so as to not disrupt their game any more than needed, was not fun! I hit some of my worst shots then. It was great to have Jose along because in times like that he would preach to me… he preached my messages back at me… “Pastor John Jesus love you”, “Pastor John, the joy of the Lord is your strength”…
The best part of the day was hearing the reports coming in of the sponsorship continuing to rise. My goal was to raise 20K to pay for the construction of the classroom for our first Canadian Mercy Home. We started the day with about 15K in pledges but as the updates kept going out on twitter and facebook, the pledges kept coming in and the final total was over 30K!!!
My message on Sunday was on how not to lose heart (you can download it from itunes podcast at “Relate Church”)… this was what I learnt as I survived this marathon. I am very grateful to all that sponsored me (and they are still coming in… go to relatechurch.ca to continue the miracle), to all that prayed for me, to all that helped me on the day, and mostly, to God for health to accomplish it. Here’s a short glimpse of it http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9BMPXP9rw50
Thanks for your sponsorship,
John
