The joy of the Lord is my strength

Hey readers! Sorry for the lengthy delay in updating this. I suppose my procrastination has gotten the better of me with this blog. When I started this I wanted to write and now whenever I think of posting on the blog I think about what I could write about and what songs or verses I should put on and think "that's too much work" or "I don't have time for that" or the ever popular "I'll do that tomorrow" haha. Well it is 1am here and I decided to put the excuses aside and just write something quickly.
So last weekend on May 12th, I ran the Tough Mudder up at Mount St. Louie just north of Barrie, ON. Now for those of you who do not know what this is, the Tough Mudder is a 16-18 Km obstacle course challenge. The majority of the distance ran/walked is ski hills. At times it is almost a 90 degree slope (at least that is what it felt like). With hills that steep you were just as fast walking as you would be running. The obstacles in the challenge involve going in ice cold water, climbing over walls, jumping over trenches and fire, and crawling through mud and water avoiding barbed wire or electric shock wires. The finale of the challenge is called "Electroshock therapy" where you have to run through many strands of hanging wire that will shock you. Luckily for me the wind picked up and dodged a fair bit of them. The worse part of all this that definitely added to the challenge is the fact that the temperature was hovering close to 0 degrees Celsius and there was wind, snow, and even hail at times! So during the whole ordeal we had to deal with numb bodies and the possibility of hypothermia! This can easily have been the toughest Tough Mudder in the world since they are usually held in conditions that are more summer like and not winter like. Well I'm just glad that I got through it. Next time I would definitely need to train for it!! Every muscle in my legs was cramping by the end of it and I almost couldn't stand at times. I was impressed by some of the things I was able to do with a body that was trying to shut itself down.
Also, on a personal note, I am currently knee deep in sin. It is pathetic how I fall into old habits and continue to allow myself to sin. I sin as if it doesn't mean anything and I avoid thinking about how it is effecting me. I need prayer from all of you to help me fight the good fight. The sin i struggle with is so common among christian men and based on this stat i'm sure you can figure it out. In the secular world it is no big deal but as a christian I should consider pornography disgusting. It is but I always find myself going back to it like an idiot. It is a huge waste of time and attention. It ruins my relationship with God and it has ruined past relationships with friends. It has and will hinder my relationship with my future wife! Lord give me strength and wisdom to flee temptation went it enters into my life. For so long I had avoided it this year and now I'm back to where I started. Jesus already has victory over sin and I need to keep this in mind every waking hour to ensure that I do not slip up.

Song of the Post:
This song is a gem from Tenth Avenue North. The song begins with a person crying out to God knowing they need Him and the song does a flip into God replying back. It is a beautiful song and I hope you enjoy it!

God's grace and peace be with you all.
Your brother in Christ, John