I think there’s a reason the word “run” rhymes with “fun.”

And I don’t care if people think I’m crazy for believing that.

Sure, there are times when running doesn’t always feel good, and there are workouts that make you wish you were doing anything else in the world rather than the self-inflicting pain you’re causing yourself during repeat intervals around a track that just seems to be getting bigger with each lap you endure. Sometimes just thinking about the 400s or 800s or 1600s or ladders or pyramids (lap after lap after lap after lap…) is so daunting that you think about finding a new hobby before the sun sets on this day and makes way for the next.

But, instead, you find yourself lacing up your shoes and heading toward the track the next morning without a second thought.

While I’ve found that a “one smile per mile” strategy reminds me to find the pure joy in something I love doing so much—especially on solo runs or races where you find yourself in No Man’s Land—there’s also another aspect of this sport that people on the outside might not understand: community. The running community seems to continue to grow—just look on the roads at those massive groups you see lining the streets at the ridiculous hours of the mornings (even on weekends!!)—and more people are connecting and forming bonds with their fellow runners. You know, those people who are equally—and perhaps even more so—as crazy as they are.

Because of the time I get to my job each morning, I don’t get to run with people as often as I’d like. I love running with friends at the lake on weekends, though, and seeing other familiar faces as we greet each other in passing. The smiles are endless, and it’s beautiful. I guess running isn’t so painful after all, huh?

Yesterday morning I got the joy of running with a friend with whom I normally don’t get to run much. Her marathon training program had participants from all of its metroplex store locations take part in a race-type event, and she had a goal pace she hoped to average throughout the entire 10.45-mile course. I told her I would run with her to help her hit her pace, which is something I’ve actually never done before. Usually I go to races and race just for me, so I was excited to go and help out my friend.

I must say, it was an awesome experience.

I loved being able to run right alongside her and encourage her the entire time. She is actually a lot faster than she gives herself credit for, and she ended up not only running her goal pace but crushing it by 10 seconds per mile. She was even the overall female winner! I loved seeing how thrilled she was at the end of the race—there is something about another person’s joy that is contagious and fills a person’s heart faster than anyone could even think of running. Ever.

I’ve always known that running is quite comparable to life. Even Paul makes multiple comparisons in the Bible when he talks about how he’s “finished the race,” or when he’s encouraging us to “press on toward the goal to win the prize,” and, of course, that we should “run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” Because of the different challenges we all face, just like different battles we have to endure during races, life really does resemble a run, and it’s often both a mental and physical struggle to fight until the end. But we can do it.

One more way I was reminded Saturday that running and life are similar is that it’s better done with others.

Life isn’t meant to be lived alone. We need one another for encouragement and comfort. We often need people coming right up alongside us and helping push us to the finish, and it’s also so much more fun to be able to celebrate accomplishments when you have your friends with you.

Running isn’t everything. There is so much more to life, and I definitely don’t think a person’s entire focus should center around training. But, I love that running truly pushes a person and is so parallel with the journey of life itself. No matter how difficult or painful the road may seem at times, there can always be joy found from the One who put us in this race in the first place.