Keep Striving

AO: asylum-pm
Q: Lilydipper
PAX: Pele (Jon Lindberg), Curveball, Windex, Crash Dummy, Tenderfoot, Mr Jinxy, Pusher, Sparkler, Brick
FNGs: None
COUNT: 10
WARMUP: 20 Side Straddle Hops, 10 Squat Jumps, 10 Mountain Climbers, 10 Windmills, 10 Twistees, 10 Rockettes, 7 Pterodactyls Forward and 7 Backward

THE THANG: Mosey to the stop sign at the Northeastern Corner of the Admin Bldg. We will go up the road that semi-circles the Admin Bldg and stop at nine different cones to do the exercises listed and then go to the next cone as listed. Here are the exercises at the nine cones:
Cone 1: 10 Shoulder Taps, both shoulders = 1. Sprint to next cone.
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Cone 2: 20 Hello Dollies. Bear Crawl to next cone.
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Cone 3: 20 Imperial Walkers where both legs = 1. Bernie to next cone.
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Cone 4: Go down stairs by bat cave. Run to summit on left and go up summit. Then go to roadway where you will see next cone.
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Cone 5: 40 Baby Crunches. Slow Mosey to Cone 6
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Cone 6: 20 Bobby Hurleys. Bernie to Cone 7.
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Cone 7: 20 Flutter Kicks, both legs = 1. Hop to Cone 8.
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Cone 8: 20 Merkins. Sprint to Cone 9.
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Cone 9: 20 Mountain Climbers both legs =1, 20 Freddie Mercuries both legs = 1, 20 Big Boy Sit-ups, 20 Box Cutters, 20 Diamond Merkins, 20 Backwards Lunges, 20 Plank Jacks, 20 Iron Mikes both legs = 1.
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Mosey to Coliseum. We will stop to do 20 Squats. The Coliseum is 6 oclock. We will run counterclockwise around circle. At 3 o’clock we will do 10 Carolina Dry Docks. At 12 o’ clock we will do 10 box jumps on stairs of the Admin Bldg. At 9 o’clock we will do 10 Wide Merkins. At 6 o’clock do 20 Bench Dips at steps. Rinse and repeat.
Next, guys will number off into two teams. Team one will mosey to Stop Sign on the Northeast Corner of the Admin Bldg, then go up semi-circle road to AO, picking up cones on the way. Team two will mosey to Stop Sign on Southeast Corner of the Admin Bldg, then go up semi-circle road to AO, picking up cones on the way.

MARY: Stretches.

ANNOUNCEMENTS: Hardship Hill will be May 17. Volunteers are needed. Also, guys who participate can arrive early to help set up or stay late to help break down and clean up. Tomorrow morning at Shamrock, at the 5:30 am workout, Slappy will be passing the baton to Stitch as AO captain. Be there if you can.

COT:

Message

Keep Striving

As a psychologist and as a human being, I have experienced, had family members experience, and had patients experience deep depression. When depressed the idea of going through another day can seem absolutely overwhelming. When depressed, just getting out of bed to shower can be difficult. And, when we do get more active, when we do put in the effort, it may feel like we will never get rewarded. For us who are believers in God, we may wonder where He is and why He doesn’t respond. We may feel like giving up. Yet, we can’t give up. We must keep striving.

I love the song Your Labor is Not in Vain by Isaac Wardell, Paul Zach and Wendell Kimbrough. The song is about having faith and knowing God is with us although all our work and efforts may not currently seem to be paying off. Imagine God saying the following to you:

Your labor is not in vain
Though the ground underneath you
Is cursed and stained
Your planting and reaping are never the same
Your labor is not in vain

Your labor is not unknown
Though the rocks they cry out
And the sea it may groan
The place of your toil may not seem like a home
But your labor is not unknown

Chorus
For I am with you I am with you
I am with you I am with you
For I have called you
Called you by name
Your labor is not in vain

The vineyards you plant will bear fruit
The fields will sing out and rejoice with the truth
For all that is old will at last be made new
The vineyards you plant will bear fruit

The houses you labored to build
Will finally with laughter and joy be filled
The serpent that hurts and destroys will be killed
And all that is broken be healed

Remember, God is with you. He has called you by name. He is there when all seems broken. Keep striving. Your labor is not in vain.

Prayers: Prayers for Slappy and Stitch as Slappy passes leadership as the AO Captain of Shamrock to Stitch. Prayers for our brothers at Shamrock as well. Prayers of thanks for Sparkler’s continuing recovery from surgery related to prostate cancer. Prayers for Crash Dummy’s friend as her recovers from the removal of a tumor near his pituitary gland. Prayers of thanks that Windex’s daughter, Mattie, has recovered so well from her terrible car accident.