2011 Houston Marathon? Tithe your way into it!

2011 Houston Marathon registration opened at 6:00 AM CDT on Tuesday, July 27, 2010.

The 2011 Chevron Houston Marathon and 2011 Aramco Houston Half Marathon will be held on January 30, 2011.

The marathon committee this year introduced a lottery system for standard registration. The committee says that it was motivated to go to a lottery because standard registration for the 2010 events sold out within something like sixty hours.

The registration that opened earlier this week for the 2011 Chevron Houston Marathon and 2011 Aramco Houston Half Marathon is set to stay open through 11:59 PM CDT on Thursday, August 12, 2010.

And having this “Don’t rush, it’s a lottery.”  approach is intended to prevent server crashes and disappointments by runners and walkers who are not fast enough to register when the registration servers are up.

If you cannot stand the “Maybe. Maybe not.” uncertainty of the lottery, then one way that you can guarantee your entry is by going through what the marathon committee calls Heroes Charity Registration, which requires beyond the registration fee a minimum donation of $350  to an approved charity.

Author Joe Vitale effectively defines “tithing” as giving to your source of inspiration. Many people see this source as their religion. But you may also be inspired by a non-profit organization that helps the homeless, that helps families overcome the devastating effects of a disease, or that supports a park.

For me, then, if “2011 Houston Marathon?” or “2011 Houston Half Marathon?” is the question, then “Tithe your way into it!” is my answer.

Be sure to register soon, though, if this is the way that you want to go — to tithe your way into it.

When I checked earlier this morning, just three days after registration opened, several of the official charities no longer had slots available. Here is a snapshot of the table of official charities as of this morning. A struck-through event indicates that you may no longer tithe your way into it through that charity on the same row.

3 ‘A’ Bereavement Foundation Marathon Half Marathon Action Ministries Houston, Inc. Marathon Half Marathon Alzheimer’s Association, Houston & S’east TX Chapter Marathon Half Marathon American Cancer Society – Gulf Coast Region Marathon Half Marathon American Heart Association Marathon Half Marathon ASHA for Education Marathon Half Marathon Best Buddies Texas Marathon Half Marathon Bo’s Place Marathon Half Marathon Buffalo Bayou Partnership Marathon Half Marathon Cade R. Alpard Foundation for Pediatric Liver Disease Marathon Half Marathon CanCare of Houston Marathon Half Marathon Child Advocates, Inc. Marathon Half Marathon Children’s Miracle Network at Texas Children’s Hospital Marathon Half Marathon Citizens For Animal Protection Marathon Half Marathon Cystic Fibrosis Foundation Marathon Half Marathon Down Syndrome Association Of Houston Marathon Half Marathon Elves & More Marathon Half Marathon ESCAPE Family Resource Center Marathon Half Marathon Houston Area Parkinson Society Marathon Half Marathon Houston Food Bank Marathon Half Marathon Houston Habitat for Humanity Marathon Half Marathon Houston Marathon Foundation Marathon Half Marathon Houston SPCA Marathon Half Marathon The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) Marathon Half Marathon The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society Marathon Half Marathon Living Water International Marathon Half Marathon Lupus Foundation of America, TX Gulf Coast Chapter Marathon Half Marathon Marathon Kids Marathon Half Marathon Memorial Hermann Foundation Marathon Half Marathon Memorial Park Conservancy Marathon Half Marathon Neuhaus Education Center Marathon Half Marathon Northwest Assistance Ministries Marathon Half Marathon Open Door Mission Marathon Half Marathon Organization for Autism Research Marathon Half Marathon Palmer Drug Abuse Program Marathon Half Marathon The Parish School Marathon Half Marathon Pink Ribbons Project Marathon Half Marathon Presbyterian Children’s Homes and Services Marathon Half Marathon REACH Unlimited Marathon Half Marathon Ronald McDonald House Houston Marathon Half Marathon San Jose Clinic Marathon Half Marathon SEARCH Homeless Services Marathon Half Marathon Sheltering Arms Senior Services Marathon Half Marathon Snowdrop Foundation Marathon Half Marathon Spaulding for Children Marathon Half Marathon Sunshine Kids Foundation Marathon Half Marathon Susan G. Komen for the Cure, Houston Affiliate Marathon Half Marathon Texas Center for the Missing Marathon Half Marathon Todd Krampitz Foundation Marathon Half Marathon Vanessa’s Big Heart Marathon Half Marathon YES Prep Public Schools Marathon Half Marathon Young Texans Against Cancer Marathon Half Marathon

What do you think of the lottery system? Please leave a comment here. Thanks!