Author Archives: Seth Grotzke

Canada 2015

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I was able to take a quick trip up to Canada with family members, Bernie and Cody. We camped from Monday-Friday in Ontario near Kenora. You can read the hunting part of the trip over here, but I would like to share some of the pictures from our time. At some point I may post some of my own observations of a first time bear hunt. Currently I am still trying to process through the whole deal. However, I will say, the facial expression of a seasoned hunter running from a skunk is an almost humorous cocktail of fear and agony.

Lessons from Deputation

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We have been on deputation for 13 months now. Here is a compilation of some of my favorite lessons learned this deputation:

  • Tonight we asked the kids, “where do you think a missionary might live?” One answer from the 4-5 year olds was “the zoo.” Thank you.
  • A packed car for a week at camp is like a tube of toothpaste. Once the stuff is out, there is no way you are getting it all back in.
  • Even if I keep smiling a fake smile, Crystal knows when we come inches from a car accident on wet highways…mostly because of my screaming.
  • Apparently Iowa has no cell reception…anywhere. 
  • While people may think your tears mean that you are emotionally moved by your own missions presentation, it is generally best not to get a mosquito in the eye right before you speak.
  • A gentleman came up to me yesterday afternoon, smiled, quoted the points of the other speaker at the event, and then said, “I only remember the good ones!” Ummm, thanks?
  • When you promise people candy for answering questions correctly during your presentation, some will demand it as their pound of flesh.
  • Sometimes it seems like the whole world is out to get you during a meal with church members who wanted to eat with you. At that point, we have to just laugh at the foibles.
  • The best way to finish off a missions conference is not by having your toddler throwing up in the middle of the night, and then screaming when you have to give her a shower while your hosts are trying to sleep. I think there are better ways.
  • Missionary display tables, specifically bright colored flags draped across it, make excellent napkins for cleaning up chocolate cake.
  • You never know who you will meet when you walk down to breakfast in a hotel. Make sure you are fit to converse.
  • Toddlers possess the superpower of being able to extract cookies and candy from any grandparent in the room.
  • Mondays are bad days to make big decisions.
  • It is so refreshing to be in a church that knows you well, and still likes you.
  • People want to give to God and his work more than I could have guessed.
  • Contentment is not found in circumstances, but in Christ.

Superior 100

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I thought I would answer a few of the FAQ’s which have been circling:

  • How long was it? 103.3 miles, but it is called a 100 miler. I don’t know why either.
  • Why did you run a race that long? I was in it for the money.11206115_10153656547214136_9027901889223931754_n
  • Did you win? Yes. A finish is a win. I was the 66th person to win this year. Unfortunately they ran out of all prize money by the time I finished. Out of the 250 entrants, only 161 were able to finish.
  • How long did it take you? 32 hours and 50 minutes. We started at 8 am on Friday morning and I ended at 4:50 on Saturday afternoon. The cutoff was 10 pm.
  • What do you get if you finish? I received a metal belt buckle, a customized sweatshirt, a finishers medal, and as many blisters as I could handle.
  • Didn’t it hurt to run over 100 miles? Yes…Yes it did.
  • I have a sibling/parent/cousin/fake relative who has run a marathon. Isn’t this the same thing, only longer? Yes, in the same way that Peewee Herman and Mike Tyson punch the same, but one is just a little bigger.
  • Where was the race held? It was held in the Sawtooth Mountains of the North Shore, following the Superior Hiking Trail from Gooseberry Falls to Lutsen.
  • Did you ever stop? Yes, normally just to curl up and cry by a fire while the aid station attendants tried to figure out how to get me moving again. There were aid stations every 5.5-10 miles.
  • Did you sleep at all? Only once, on accident, while I was running at night. I learned my lesson after stumbling off the trail.
  • Did you run with anyone? I had several running partners.

I started with Chris Hanson who is a skilled veteran at this race. He has finished 11 timesST100pals (which basically means he is “awesome” personified). I realized early on in our 25 miles together that he is the Captain America of ultra running. He knows, talks to, and cares about everyone on the trail. Even at mile 20 he was busy moving rocks and sticks off the trail for everyone coming behind him. Without Chris’ knowledge and encouragement, there would have been no way I would have attempted the race. Thank you…I guess…

I ran the next 25 miles with different people I met on the trail, sticking with them as long as I could bum snacks or tips off of them.

I started mile 52 about 9 pm with a running friend from Brainerd, Mike Porter. He IMG_6716
graciously volunteered to run through the night with me, covering the hardest part of the trail while at my lowest emotional state. I think that qualifies him for sainthood, or psychological evaluation. He kept me moving through the middle of the night when I was convinced that I should lay down on the trail and let the wolves have my body. We covered 32 miles from 9 pm to around 11 am.

The last 20 miles I had Mark Barrett running behind me. When he wasn’t forcing gels down my throat, he was giving me constant affirmation of my hobbling run and encouragement to pass the next runner. Through his incredible coaching I knocked IMG_0873off over 2 hours from my estimated finish in those last miles. His mantra was, “If you throw this up, we can fill you up again. Take another one.” His promises of steak and the world’s greatest hamburgers lengthened my stride considerably.

The final running partners were with me the entire race. Crystal and Tanzen came to the pre-race meeting, the aid stations, and the finish line. They carried in gear, filled my hydration pack, gave me hugs and kisses, and constantly cheered me on with the shouts and smiles. With them, every aid station is like the finish line when I see them waiting.

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  • What do you think of the race? Rugged. Relentless. Remote.

A huge thank you to the race director, the many volunteers, and the friends who showed up to run with me, encourage me, and congratulate me at the end. I enjoyed the experience…at least the parts that I haven’t blocked out of my memory.

 

The Spirit and our Prayers

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One of my favorite devotional authors is Joe Thorn. Both of his books, Experiencing the Trinity and Note to Self, have been impacting. I would highly recommend them as they are Christ centered, short meditations for daily consumption.

This chapter from “Experiencing the Trinity” by Thorn was particularly impacting.

“The longer you follow Jesus, the better you understand yourself. And one thing continues to become clearer—you are weak. You now know that you do not have the strength you once thought you had. Weakness has become painfully evident in your loving, learning, and living. You aren’t incompetent or without gifts. But on your own you cannot be or do what God calls you to be or do. So, you pray. You pray because you know you need God’s grace to live, work, love, resist, overcome, and remain faithful. But even in the midst of praying you often sense your weakness. You do not know what to pray for, and you are tempted to quit. If you can’t even pray, then how can you find hope and help? One of the gospel blessings of the Holy Spirit is that you never pray alone…The Holy Spirit prays with and for you. His intercession is your assurance that God hears your heart whether you pray in words or groanings too deep for vocabulary” (Thorn, Trinity, kindle 897).

His comments reminded me of one of Tim Keller’s statement, “Don’t be afraid that you will ask for the wrong thing. Of course you will! God ‘tempers the outcome’ with his incomprehensible wisdom” (Keller, Prayer, kindle 1406).

What a relief! What a joy! What an opportunity!

Thorn’s books:

Thorn, Joe. Experiencing the Trinity: The Grace of God for the People of God. Crossway, 2015.
———. Note to Self. Crossway, 2011.

Top Shelf Book – Dispatches from the Front

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Book: Keesee, Tim. Dispatches from the Front: Stories of Gospel Advance in the World’s Difficult Places. Crossway, 2014.

Point: The person of Jesus Christ knows no boundaries, only fronts through which he confidently treads.

Path: Tim Keesee gives wartime correspondent information in a poetical and provoking narrative. He invites us to pick up the war cry of our King as he boldly leads his children in a victory of love. The stories which are written are meant to direct us to the task and revel in the Savior’s plan. In nature, they are both exciting and difficult, joyful and painful.

It would be worth another read and I would recommend it to someone who:

  1. Is interested in missions.
  2. Wants to get a global view of their local faith.
  3. Would like to hear what Christ is doing around the world.

For a full review, use the link above.

Running the Superior 50k

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In May we were able to take a quick trip up to Lutsen, MN to see some friends and run a race. I (Seth) was able to complete the Superior Spring 50k, which was meant to be a qualifying race for another ultra this fall (I ended up qualifying for it before the race, so this was more for the experience). I finished a little faster than my goal which was great, but for me, time is irrelevant in ultras because a finish is a win.

This was the first race that both Crystal and Tanzen worked as my support crew. Crystal shuttled the team to the aid stations and Tanzen’s main purpose was to ring a bell she borrowed from another spectator and give me advice on hydration.

In her words, “Daddy runs fast. Tanzen runs fast. Mommy runs…errands.”

The race was more difficult than I was expecting because of the elevation gain/loss and the mud. I ended up having to strip off my shoes and socks part way through to clear the rocks from inside my socks, and the picture at the bottom shows what I went through the last third of the race.

This was one of my most enjoyable races because of the girls being with me! I look forward to the next one.

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Atheism

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Here is one of the many reasons to read

Wilson, N. D. Death by Living: Life Is Meant to Be Spent. Thomas Nelson Inc, 2013.

“Atheism is an idea. Most often (thank God), it is an idea lived and told with blunt jumbo-crayon clumsiness. Some child of Christianity or Judaism dons an unbelieving Zorro costume and preens about the living room. Behold, a dangerous thinker of thinks! A believer in free-from-any-and-all-godness! Fear my brainy blade! Put candy in their bucket. Act scared. Don’t tell them that they’re adorable. Atheism is not an idea we want fleshed out. Atheism incarnate does happen in this reality narrative. But it doesn’t rant about Islam’s treatment of women as did the (often courageous) atheist Christopher Hitchens. It doesn’t thunder words like evil and mean it (as Hitch so often did) when talking about oppressive communist regimes. His costume slipped all the time—and in many of his best moments. Atheism incarnate is nihilism from follicle to toenail. It is morality merely as evolved herd survival instinct (nonbinding, of course, and as easy for us to outgrow as our feathers were). When Hitchens thundered, he stood in the boots of forefathers who knew that all thunder comes from on high” (Wilson, Death by Living, kindle loc. 294).