Ona’s Celebration Service: May 3rd, 2009
Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father;
There is no shadow of turning with Thee;
Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not;
As Thou hast been, Thou forever will be.
Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth
Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide;
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow,
Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside!
Hebrews 2: 14 & 15
14 Because God’s children are human beings—made of flesh and blood—the Son also became flesh and blood. For only as a human being could he die, and only by dying could he break the power of the devil, who had the power of death. 15 Only in this way could he set free all who have lived their lives as slaves to the fear of dying.
I John 3: 16-19
16 This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for others. 17 If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person? 18 Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth. 19 This then is how we know that we belong to the truth, and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence.
I have known Gary and Ona for something over 10 years now. We met in Virginia at a Children’s Home where I was serving at the time and we became friends. As the years have passed we have grown closer and gotten to know each other better. It was almost 4 years ago that we received the call from Gary and Ona that Ona had cancer. Through the past 4 years we have spoken from time to time about this event. The funeral and I have thought about what would be the legacy that Ona would leave to her family and friends and I believe this is it.
Jesus Christ laid down His life in order that we might have life.
Jesus laid down his life, became a servant!
Jesus paid the untimate price by laying down His life physically!
Ona became a servant that others might come to know her Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Ona laid down her life and became a servant in her ministry as a Wife!
Genesis 2: 18-22
18 The Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.”
19 Now the Lord God had formed out of the ground all the beasts of the field and all the birds of the air. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. 20 So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds of the air and all the beasts of the field.
But for Adam no suitable helper was found. 21 So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs and closed up the place with flesh. 22 Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man.
Allow me the liberty to re-read vs. 22 as follows:
Then the Lord God made Ona, and he brought her to Gary.
Ona laid down her life to be Gary’s helper, his help mate.
Ona completed Gary.
Ona complimented Gary.
Ona supported Gary.
Ona was Gary’s dearest and best friend.
Proverbs 31:Selected verses
A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than rubies.
11 Her husband has full confidence in her and lacks nothing of value.
12 She brings him good, not harm, all the days of her life.
17 She sets about her work vigorously; her arms are strong for her tasks.
20 She opens her arms to the poor and extends her hands to the needy.
23 Her husband is respected at the city gate, where he takes his seat among the elders of the land.
25 She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come.
26 She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her tongue.
27 She watches over the affairs of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness.
28 Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her:
29 “Many women do noble things, but you surpass them all.”
30 Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.
31 Give her the reward she has earned, and let her works bring her praise at the city gate.
Ona laid down her life and became a servant in her ministry as a mother and a grandmother.
Ona is the mother of 4 wonderful children. Jessica, Chris, Sissy and Chuck and 10 awesome grandchildren.
Ona provided for her children’s physical needs but she also provided for their spiritual needs as well.
Proverbs 31:28
28 Her children arise and call her blessed;
around her children which she loved with all her heart.
Ona laid down her life and became a servant in her ministry as a sister, sister in-law and a friend.
Anyone who knew Ona, knew that she was a servant.
Ona is going to be greatly missed! But not for very long!
Consider death with me for just for a moment.
For it is death that has caused us this loss and grief. But death is an over rated event for the Christian. It is not an enemy but a friend. You see, death delivers the key that lets the Christian out of the sufferings of this life into the presence of the living Savior and into a land where there is no sorrow, no more separation, no sighing. To that place not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. Where eye has not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of mankind the things which God has prepared for those that love Him.
When a person like Ona, has a personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ, then death is an event that we wait for. Ona had no fear of death!
It is the fulfilling of our hopes and dreams. It is only the beginning. This is not goodbye, this is simply see you again real soon.
Calvin Miller says,
“Death is not the terror that we suppose. Jesus, dying in the most excruciating way, was not dead for long. In the chronicles of God, no death has ever lasted long. We fall asleep on this cruel planet and wake up a world away. It is amazing just how often the New Testament speaks of death as sleep. John Chrysostom in the fourth century said,
What is death at most?
It is a journey for a season:
A sleep longer than usual,
If thou fearest death,
Thou shouldst also fear sleep.
Death is not only sleep; it is a sleep of transformation. Paul said, “We will not all sleep (or die), but we will al be changed” We all look forward to sleeping, the wonderful sleep of transformation”.
Jesus taught us how to live well and also how to die well, Ona fulfilled both.
When we came out of the church after the family meal we saw two things that peaked our interest. There was a blue bird of some kind sitting on the electrical wire, in the rain and the bird was singing and that seems strange in the rain.
The other thing we saw was this double rainbow and one of them was a complete rainbow of which I had never seen before.
Obituary of Ona Burns Smith
| Ona Burns Smith |
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Ona Burns Smith, 62, “Best All Around” superlative of the 1964 class of Grady High School in Atlanta, leaves a legacy of a life lived in service. The Atlanta native dedicated her life to promoting understanding and appreciation of cultural diversity and equal access to educational services through quiet activism in the field of homeschooling. A National Merit Finalist, Stetson University honor graduate, beauty queen and a beautiful steel magnolia who chose the humble path of servant all the way into eternity. Our culture would collapse without women such as Ona. Her radiant, “wily-coyote” approach to life has propped up the high profile activities of those around her. During her life, she was a devoted wife, mother, and grandmother who pioneered the concept of homeschooling in Georgia as she sought an appropriate education for each of her four children. With no existing homeschool curriculum, Ona developed a “lived curriculum” that incorporated global learning experiences through extensive national and international travel. History was brought to life by travels to Washington D.C. and Philadelphia. Economics and cultural awareness were experienced through visits to many of the beautiful cities of Europe as well as several third world countries. Ona always insisted that her children embrace these diverse cultural experiences by incorporating hands-on service activities as a part of their travels. In the community, Ona was a Sunday School Teacher, deacon’s wife and a recipient of Yard of the Month from the Avondale Estates Garden Club. Ona and Gary participated in several international mission trips, especially to Latin America. Ona was a loving wife, who supported her husband of 38 years, as he took a leap of faith to leave his lucrative law practice to follow their calling to pastor churches in the Southern Baptist Convention. Like all dedicated servants, Ona’s constant devotion, support, and love endured to the end when she lost her courageous battle with breast cancer on May 1, 2009. She is survived by her husband, Gary W. Smith; her children, Jessica and Andy Norman, Christopher R. and Amanda Smith, Cicely and Pablo Quintana, and Charles G. and Julie Smith; her sisters, Ellen and Michael Hurst, Jacqueline and Gordon Scullion, and ten grandchildren. Funeral services will be held on Sunday, May 3, 2009 at 3:00 PM at Avondale Estates First Baptist Church, 47 Covington Road, Avondale Estates, GA 30002. The family will receive family and friends for visitation on Saturday, May 2 from 4 to 9 p.m. at A. S. Turner & Sons Funeral Home, 2773 North Decatur Rd and on Sunday, May 3, from 2:00 to 2:45 p.m. at Avondale Estates First Baptist Church. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Southwest Christian Care 7225 Lester Road, Union City, GA 30291. A. S. Turner & Sons |
Service Schedule for Ona Smith
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| Remembering | |
| Ona Burns Smith | |
| Visitation | |
| Date | Time |
| May 2, 2009 | 4:00 – 9:00 PM |
| Visitation Location | |
| A. S. Turner and Sons | |
| Service | |
| Date | Time |
| May 3, 2009 | 3:00 PM |
| Service Location | |
| Avondale First Baptist Church | |
Our Friend Ona is with Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ
Following is a note from the family that Ona has died and her battle on earth is done. She has won the victory. Plans are being made for the funeral services and I will update those here as I receive them. I am sharing a few more pictures and mementos. Our hearts are broken but we are comforted knowing that we will be with Ona again and it will only be a little while.
Ronnie
Ronnie
Friday, May 1, 2009 9:45 AM, EDT
Update on Gary and Ona April 28th
If you read the blog then you know Gary and Ona, our friends in Atlanta. As you know Ona is in the last stages of cancer and has been moved to a Hospice Home in the Atlanta Area. She and Gary are able to be together, Gary has a bed in the room with Ona, the family is also able to be by their side as much as possible. All of the children are there walking with Gary and Ona through this difficult time in their lives. The update today from Jessica is as follows:
“Moms heart is, as many of you know, strong from years of running. She is in a “coma-like” state. One nurse told Dad last night that if nothing changes she could make it through the weekend. She is very peaceful. We continue to appreciate your prayers, they are definitely felt by our family.”
I am including a previous blog post here because so many of you have asked about Gary and Ona and so many have read and prayed for friends of ours. You are a true family that hurts and feels our pain even when you don’t know Gary and Ona.
Ronnie
John 12:24 (The Message)
24-25“Listen carefully: Unless a grain of wheat is buried in the ground, dead to the world, it is never any more than a grain of wheat. But if it is buried, it sprouts and reproduces itself many times over. In the same way, anyone who holds on to life just as it is destroys that life. But if you let it go, reckless in your love, you’ll have it forever, real and eternal.
Death truly is the Engine to Life
We had an awesome time in Atlanta visiting with our good friends Gary and Ona Smith. Wow, we packed a lot in but the point of the trip was to be with Gary, Ona, the extended family and just fellowship and enjoy each others company. As you know if you read the blog or know me through church, Ona has cancer and has been battling for several years to fight this disease.
When we arrived in Atlanta on Thursday afternoon and got settled in, Gary reminded me that the ING Marathon was this weekend and that Ona and he had ran the Half Marathon in 2008, did I want to run this weekend? Well of course with my love of running it was tempting but I have not been training so I didn’t know.
To make a long story short, we went to the Expo at the Georgia Dome on Friday and got registered and I was in. This is when the praying and moaning started. Moaning that I was out of shape and hadn’t been training and praying that I could at least finish in 3 hours. I knew I could finish in 3 hours, I can walk that fast.
Gary and Ona live near Piedmont Park so I went for a 3 mile run/walk/drag on Thursday evening in the park. I was very sore on Friday because I haven’t been training. This was just another thing for me to moan about, knowing that I have 13. 1 to do early Sunday morning. We were able to be with Gary and Ona’s two daughter’s and their oldest son during the weekend as well as their children and families and you will see some of the pictures of them here.
They have/had this great “Little Jumping Bean” place for children just around the block from Gary and Ona’s and we spent some time there letting Samuel and the grand-kids jump in these big blow up things. It is great, the kids can fall and still not get hurt. I think each one of them were stepped on several times but they didn’t get hurt and it was a lot of fun for the little ones. I say had because the place was closing down this weekend so we won’t have the convenience of it being so close by when we visit.
As Gary and I had the kids away jumping there was time for Ona and Misty as well as Jessica and Misty to have some good conversation and not have to run the kids around. With Samuel the running was constant because he wanted to climb the stairs. Gary, Justin, Samuel and I did the grocery shopping for our meals and we ate lots of “Skinny Cows” over the weekend. I didn’t know those things existed but I will be looking for them in Cana Virginia.
It is funny and amazing at the same time, Gary, Justin and I went to the Ga. Dome to register for the race and after looking for a parking spot where we didn’t have to pay $10 we pulled up to ask someone where a certain gate was and they directed us through the service entrance of the Dome and we drove right up to the door and didn’t pay any fees at all. While we were there Gary and I each bought a pair of running shoes and I left my debit card at the booth. Needless to say when we went to the grocery store I discovered the missing card and we had to go back to the Dome and believe it or not we received permission to go back through the service entrance to pick up the card. They did check us out this time to make sure were weren’t up to anything bad.
On Saturday evening we were blessed to prepare and have dinner with Chris, Amanda and Cole. Chris is Gary’s oldest son, we enjoyed preparing the meal together and then eating steak together. Ona is not allowed to have very much steak but she did get to enjoy it on Saturday night with the rest of us.
There are pictures here of the home that Gary and Ona live in, it is where Gary grew up with his mom, dad and siblings. Ona grew up on a street close by and they have been together for 41 years. When they found out that Ona had cancer they decided it was time to fix the home place up and enjoy it. What a beautiful place, inside and out. It is more like a work of art, more than just a house. The most awesome thing is that anywhere Gary and Ona live it is a place where everyone is welcome. For the past 10 years I have been in their home many times and I have always been made to feel like it was my home away from home.
This trip was not unlike the many others that I have enjoyed at Gary and Ona’s. I have been many times before I was married and several times since Misty and I were married, along with Samuel, Kyle and at times other friends have been with us. Gary and Ona love to be active, we ran in the Atlanta Peach Tree Road Race together in 2007. In July 2008 Ona was not able to run the 6.2 miles and I ran in Ona’s place along with Gary. We have often walked around Stone Mountain Park together as well as taking walks with Skippy the family dog in Piedmont Park. We all also like to eat so we have enjoyed places like the Speghatti Factory in Atlanta, the famous Varsity Restaurant and of course we have been to Krispy Kreme many times.
There are so many great memories and this trip was one of the best in it’s own way. Ona is not able to get out and run with us anymore, we ate all our meals together at home because Ona is not able to run around town anymore but the thing we did was just enjoy each others company. Gary and Ona have taught us so much and we will be forever grateful for their friendship.
Ona’s time on this earth is beginning to come to a close but we will never say goodbye. We will never say goodbye because Ona will leave this body and immediately be with Jesus and one day and it will not be that long for any of us, we will be with Jesus and Ona again.
When a loved one leaves us in this world there is an emptiness, a void that no one can fill. However, as in this world, when a person leaves to go on a journey, as they go out of sight, we say, there they go!
We don’t question that their departure means they will be arriving at some other place in a short time. When they arrive at that other place they say, here they come! Likewise when someone we love who knows Jesus as Lord and Savior leaves this world, we say they have departed! But, in heaven, they say, here they come! They are absent from these frail bodies and they are absent from us but they are present with Our Lord.
Death causes us loss and grief to be sure but death is overrated for the Christian. Death is not our enemy but our friend. Death is the gateway that leads to Eternal Life. Death is the key that opens the gate and relieves us from this pain and suffering, this groaning to be with Our Creator. Death is the gateway to our being in the actual Eternal Presence of our Living Savior. Death is the gate into a land where there is no sorrow, no more separation, no more pain and no more tears. It is a place not made with human hands but with Our Creator’s Hands.
No eye here has ever seen nor can our minds imagine the things that Our Lord has for us when we meet with him in that Eternal Home.
This is not goodbye, this is only the beginning. This is simply a time that we can rest assured that we will see each other again. This is a time where we say everything that needs to be said but we rest assured on the promise of Our God that we will be together again.
Calvin Miller says, “Death is not the terror that we suppose. Jesus dying the most excruciating way, He was not dead for long. In the chronicles of God, no death has ever lasted long. We fall asleep on this cruel planet and wake up a world away. It is amazing just how often the New Testament speaks of death as sleep.
What is death at most?
It is a journey for a season.
A sleep longer than usual.
If thou fearest death, thou shouldst also fear sleep.
Ronnie
P.S. I had several friends encourage me that I would do much better than 3hours in the half marathon because I was running in honor of Ona. I finished in 2 hours, 16 minutes. To God be all Glory!
You may also want to sign Ona’s guest book. Eventhough you may not know them here, you will meet them in heaven one day soon.
Update on our friends Gary and Ona
First I would like to thank all of you who have been praying for Gary and Ona. Many of you do not know them and have never met them and yet you pray because of our friendship.
Ona has now been moved into a Hospice House where she and Gary can be together and the best of care is provided around the clock.
Here is a note from their daughter, Jessica. “Mom and Dad had a very restful night in their “new home”. When the doctor came to visit Mom told him she was concerned about all of her “new” visitors. The Dr pulled Dad aside to address this concern. Turns out the DOCTOR and staff ARE the NEW visitors. Mom is very comfortable and the staff is wonderful. It’s great that Dad is able to not only stay in the room but he has an ACTUAL BED…right now. This has truly been a blessing.”
We appreciate your continued prayers for the Smith Family.
Ronnie
Information about Southwest Christian Care
http://www.swchospice.org/common/content.asp
Purpose Statement
Our purpose is to glorify God as guardians of the sanctity and dignity of life by providing physical, emotional, social, and spiritual care to our patients and their families and offer hope based on faith in Jesus Christ as Lord of life and death.
Official Results ING Atlanta Half Marathon
ING Georgia Marathon and Half Marathon – Half Marathon
Our Friends Gary and Ona
We had an awesome time in Atlanta visiting with our good friends Gary and Ona Smith. Wow, we packed a lot in but the point of the trip was to be with Gary, Ona, the extended family and just fellowship and enjoy each others company. As you know if you read the blog or know me through church, Ona has cancer and has been battling for several years to fight this disease.
When we arrived in Atlanta on Thursday afternoon and got settled in, Gary reminded me that the ING Marathon was this weekend and that Ona and he had ran the Half Marathon in 2008, did I want to run this weekend? Well of course with my love of running it was tempting but I have not been training so I didn’t know.
To make a long story short, we went to the Expo at the Georgia Dome on Friday and got registered and I was in. This is when the praying and moaning started. Moaning that I was out of shape and hadn’t been training and praying that I could at least finish in 3 hours. I knew I could finish in 3 hours, I can walk that fast.
Gary and Ona live near Piedmont Park so I went for a 3 mile run/walk/drag on Thursday evening in the park. I was very sore on Friday because I haven’t been training. This was just another thing for me to moan about, knowing that I have 13. 1 to do early Sunday morning. We were able to be with Gary and Ona’s two daughter’s and their oldest son during the weekend as well as their children and families and you will see some of the pictures of them here.
They have/had this great “Little Jumping Bean” place for children just around the block from Gary and Ona’s and we spent some time there letting Samuel and the grand-kids jump in these big blow up things. It is great, the kids can fall and still not get hurt. I think each one of them were stepped on several times but they didn’t get hurt and it was a lot of fun for the little ones. I say had because the place was closing down this weekend so we won’t have the convenience of it being so close by when we visit.
As Gary and I had the kids away jumping there was time for Ona and Misty as well as Jessica and Misty to have some good conversation and not have to run the kids around. With Samuel the running was constant because he wanted to climb the stairs. Gary, Justin, Samuel and I did the grocery shopping for our meals and we ate lots of “Skinny Cows” over the weekend. I didn’t know those things existed but I will be looking for them in Cana Virginia.
It is funny and amazing at the same time, Gary, Justin and I went to the Ga. Dome to register for the race and after looking for a parking spot where we didn’t have to pay $10 we pulled up to ask someone where a certain gate was and they directed us through the service entrance of the Dome and we drove right up to the door and didn’t pay any fees at all. While we were there Gary and I each bought a pair of running shoes and I left my debit card at the booth. Needless to say when we went to the grocery store I discovered the missing card and we had to go back to the Dome and believe it or not we received permission to go back through the service entrance to pick up the card. They did check us out this time to make sure were weren’t up to anything bad.
On Saturday evening we were blessed to prepare and have dinner with Chris, Amanda and Cole. Chris is Gary’s oldest son, we enjoyed preparing the meal together and then eating steak together. Ona is not allowed to have very much steak but she did get to enjoy it on Saturday night with the rest of us.
There are pictures here of the home that Gary and Ona live in, it is where Gary grew up with his mom, dad and siblings. Ona grew up on a street close by and they have been together for 41 years. When they found out that Ona had cancer they decided it was time to fix the home place up and enjoy it. What a beautiful place, inside and out. It is more like a work of art, more than just a house. The most awesome thing is that anywhere Gary and Ona live it is a place where everyone is welcome. For the past 10 years I have been in their home many times and I have always been made to feel like it was my home away from home.
This trip was not unlike the many others that I have enjoyed at Gary and Ona’s. I have been many times before I was married and several times since Misty and I were married, along with Samuel, Kyle and at times other friends have been with us. Gary and Ona love to be active, we ran in the Atlanta Peach Tree Road Race together in 2007. In July 2008 Ona was not able to run the 6.2 miles and I ran in Ona’s place along with Gary. We have often walked around Stone Mountain Park together as well as taking walks with Skippy the family dog in Piedmont Park. We all also like to eat so we have enjoyed places like the Speghatti Factory in Atlanta, the famous Varsity Restaurant and of course we have been to Krispy Kreme many times.
There are so many great memories and this trip was one of the best in it’s own way. Ona is not able to get out and run with us anymore, we ate all our meals together at home because Ona is not able to run around town anymore but the thing we did was just enjoy each others company. Gary and Ona have taught us so much and we will be forever grateful for their friendship.
Ona’s time on this earth is beginning to come to a close but we will never say goodbye. We will never say goodbye because Ona will leave this body and immediately be with Jesus and one day and it will not be that long for any of us, we will be with Jesus and Ona again.
When a loved one leaves us in this world there is an emptiness, a void that no one can fill. However, as in this world, when a person leaves to go on a journey, as they go out of sight, we say, there they go!
We don’t question that their departure means they will be arriving at some other place in a short time. When they arrive at that other place they say, here they come! Likewise when someone we love who knows Jesus as Lord and Savior leaves this world, we say they have departed! But, in heaven, they say, here they come! They are absent from these frail bodies and they are absent from us but they are present with Our Lord.
Death causes us loss and grief to be sure but death is overrated for the Christian. Death is not our enemy but our friend. Death is the gateway that leads to Eternal Life. Death is the key that opens the gate and relieves us from this pain and suffering, this groaning to be with Our Creator. Death is the gateway to our being in the actual Eternal Presence of our Living Savior. Death is the gate into a land where there is no sorrow, no more separation, no more pain and no more tears. It is a place not made with human hands but with Our Creator’s Hands.
No eye here has ever seen nor can our minds imagine the things that Our Lord has for us when we meet with him in that Eternal Home.
This is not goodbye, this is only the beginning. This is simply a time that we can rest assured that we will see each other again. This is a time where we say everything that needs to be said but we rest assured on the promise of Our God that we will be together again.
Calvin Miller says, “Death is not the terror that we suppose. Jesus dying the most excruciating way, He was not dead for long. In the chronicles of God, no death has ever lasted long. We fall asleep on this cruel planet and wake up a world away. It is amazing just how often the New Testament speaks of death as sleep.
What is death at most?
It is a journey for a season.
A sleep longer than usual.
If thou fearest death, thou shouldst also fear sleep.
Ronnie
P.S. I had several friends encourage me that I would do much better than 3hours in the half marathon because I was running in honor of Ona. I finished in 2 hours, 16 minutes. To God be all Glory!
ING Marathon Atlanta 2009
I woke up on Sunday morning wondering what in the world I had gotten myself into. To be honest my training has been next to nothing for the past 6 months and I just wasn’t ready to run 13.1 miles.I put my running gear on and headed off to the start line which was pretty nice. In a typical City the size of Atlanta when there is a run with 15,000 people you would have to get up hours before the start time to get to the run, find a place to park and then walk a good distance to the start line. It pays to have friends in the city, I got up at 5:30 and Gary drove me right to the start line and I only had to stand around and wait for about 30 minutes.
To say the least I told my family and friends not to expect me in less than 3 hours and I expected the run to take me that long. With 15,000 people, the race started at 7:04am. It was about 7:15 when I made it to the start line because it takes a long time to get that many people through the gate. The first mile felt good. Mile 2 and 3 felt OK but I thought at mile 3, I ‘ll do good to finish this race. I started feeling pretty good around mile 5 and I ran every step of the first 10.1 miles, I couldn’t believe it myself. For the last 3 miles I would run and then walk through the water stops. My feet were hurting and I could feel a blister but by the end of the race the blister was gone. While I was finishing my last half mile, 5 of the 26.2 mile Marathon finishers came around me. I would love to be able to run 26.2 miles with just over a 5 minute pace but I will be happy with my 2 hour 16 minute finish for 13.1 miles.
This race has reminded me once again why I love to run. I love the people, the challenge and just being outside enjoying God’s beautiful creation.
It was a great race!
Ronnie
1 Hour to Race Time
I just looked at the ING Marathon Web Page and the count down clock says one hour to race time. If I were in Atlanta on my own I would already be there trying to find my way around. However I am here with friends who have lived their whole lives here so I am going to slide in there just about 20 minutes before start time and not have to wait around. I am excited and glad to be doing this race but I didn’t plan to do it. I didn’t train for it but then I have been training for this the past 10 years so I will be fine. I would like to have a very respectable clock time, we will see how it goes. I feel pretty good at the moment.
Ronnie
Another beautiful day in Atlanta
It is raining this morning but it is another beautiful day in Atlanta. Last night I looked out the window of Gary and Ona’s home where we are staying and I could see all these tall buildings all lit up and it was beautiful. Certainly not a sight I will ever see in Cana Virginia. There is something about Atlanta that I love and have for years now. I will never forget the first time I came to Atlanta, I was about 23. I was so frustrated trying to find my way around that I vowed never to return. Like many times making vows I have been back to Atlanta many times.
I know that part of what I love about this city is the fact that Gary and Ona are here and anytime we want to come then we have a place to stay with open arms and hot coffee. Gary and Ona are more than Christian Family they have become close Family to Misty and I. It is hard to explain but there is a closeness that God has placed in our lives and hearts that is rare it seems. Gary and Ona are 60 and 62, Misty and I are 34 and 43 and yet there is a close friendship. Part of the friendship is the fact that I see Gary as a Mentor. He is an intelligent and successful person whom I admire and like to learn from. Ona is the picture of a husbands best friend and I admire that in her so much. She is Gary’s greatest fan and his best friend. They can teach us so much about relationships.
Well, I don’t know what today will bring. It is a day of opportunities. It is a day to be with friends and family. It is a day to reflect on the blessing of the past 10 years of being near this family. I have made coffee and the rest of the house is quiet this morning. Misty and Samuel are still in Bed. Ona is resting and Gary and their grandson Justin are still sleeping. I haven’t even heard a siren fly through town and that is rare. I hope that we are going to take Skippy for a walk this morning and enjoy the Park. I believe that Samuel and Justin are headed back to the Jumping Bean this morning. I have to get mentally prepared for the 13.1 miles tomorrow morning. And in the midst of all this we will gather around Ona and love on her today. She is a special lady and I already feel the void in my heart that is coming.
Ronnie
ING Atlanta Marathon & Half Marathon
I had no idea the ING Marathon was being run in Atlanta this weekend and even when I found out I had no plans to run in it. However, plans have changed and I am signed up to run the 13.1 Half Marathon on Sunday morning. We are here visiting with our good friends Gary and Ona and they have both run in previous years so I am running in their honor.
I haven’t trained at all but I have run quite a few half and full marathons so I hope to have a respectable time.
Ronnie
About Ronnie G. Collins
I am the Planting Pastor of Out of the Box Worship Center and I also serve as the Associate Pastor of First United Methodist Church in Hillsville Virginia. We are a Multi Site Church, one church in multiple locations. Our 1st campus is located at 225 Fulcher Street in Hillsville Virginia. Our 2nd location is on Main Street in Hillsville, FUMC Downtown, Out of the Box Worship Center, and our 3rd location is 522 North Main Street in Hillsville and this is our Youth Ministry Center, FUMC Downtown “Out of the Box”, Youth Ministry. The most recent ministry we have is “Out Of The Box Worship Center” and we are located at 516 North Main Street Hillsville. This site is now my main focus, along with the Youth Ministry.
I have a Passion to see hurting people come to know Jesus Christ. I believe that we as Christians have to demonstrate God’s Love to the world, rather than just telling them they are loved. I am married and have 3 sons two very special nephews that are like sons, 2 grandchildren, 5 great nephews, and one great niece that are like grandchildren. I am a blessed man.
I attended school at Carroll County High School, Wytheville Community College, Liberty University, and Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary.
My passions are as follows:
God
Family
Others
Reading
Running
Facebook http://www.facebook.com/#!/ronnie24317
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