“Row! Row! Row!” The oarsmen in the dragon canoes stroked in keeping with the cadence as they propelled themselves up the Ta Pi River, about five minutes from our house. I watched them intently while Duang listened to the life story of a middle-aged woman resting on a bench at the riverfront promenade.

There were three dragon canoe teams training for an upcoming race. After sprinting up the river, they floated back to the starting point. Then they would do it again—sprint, rest; sprint, rest; sprint, rest—a natural cycle of interval training. The scene was pregnant with an object lesson, but being still caught up in the momentum of my own work, I didn’t see it.

Recently, I completed a full edit of Patriarchs and Prophets in Thai with the help of Duang’s nephew, Amnart. Praise God for answering the prayers of many people, enabling us to reach this critical milestone. The last two months were a solid sprint to the finish line. Then, while still in sprint mode, I transitioned to working on a translation of The Great Controversy for the Tai-Kadai people.

However, I noticed a downward trajectory in my mental stamina. 
A break in our schedule provided time to reflect on the situation. We spent a weekend away from home in Phuket, where I had been asked to translate for the Thailand Adventist Mission president at a retreat for Adventist families in southern Thailand. During this time for introspection, it hit me, I have several marathons ahead of me. Something needs to change, or I won’t be able to finish. I need to take a lesson from the dragon boat teams.

We have had a quiet week back home. There has been time to pray, optimize a schedule, and figure out an exercise and wellness program for peak health. Praise God for speaking through the boat racers. We need interval training—times for rest and activity, activity and rest. Now, by God’s grace, we look forward to the next sprint as we work to finish the first draft translation of The Great Controversy before furlough.

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