Abscess – Page 37 – F3 Knoxville

Spiritually Strong

October 27, 2018 Lillydipper

THE SCENE: Cloudy and cool, temps in low 50’s.
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:
20 Side Straddle Hops, 10 Burpees, Plank Stretches, Cherry Pickers, Little of This and That
THA-THANG:
Mosey to parking lot directly across the street from Northern Ball Fields parking lot. We will break into four groups, one in each corner of the parking lot. We will perform each exercise listed, first doing 20 of each exercise, then follow directions to go to next corner of the parking lot. We will rinse and repeat after going around the parking lot once. Here are the exercises for each corner:

Corner 1: 20 Star Jumps. Bernie Sanders to Corner 2.
Corner 2: 20 Diamond Merkins. Bear Crawl to Corner 3.
Corner 3: 20 Plank Jumps. Sprint to Corner 4.
Corner 4: 20 Big Boy Sit-ups. Lunge to Corner 1.

Mosey to Alleyway that goes to northeast corner of the Admin Bldg.

We will break into teams of two and do Doras. One teammate does exercise while the other runs to end of parking lot, does ten merkins and runs back. Each team will do 100 of each of the following exercises with bricks that will be placed by a curb along the alleyway.

Overhead presses
Curls
Rows (with bricks at sides)
Tricepts
Wings forward
Wings up
Wings down
Wings in

Mosey to roadway in front of admin bldg. Cones will be set up for suicide runs. We will do suicides to each of five cones laid out ahead. Afterwards do Baby Crunches until all men finish. Do suicides again but this time do 15 Squats after returning to start from each cone. Get bricks that were set up for Doras.

Mosey back to AO to drop off bricks.

Mosey to Playground. We will do five sets of Bench Jumps with 20 second rests in between.

Mosey to AO.

MARY:
20 Hello Dollies, 20 American Hammers, 20 Pickle Pounders, ATM’s.
COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
Fourteen men with one FNG, his hospital name is Roman Marshall and his F3 name is “Fozzie.”
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

Psalm 46: 1. God is our refuge and strength, our very present help in time of need.

Our F3 workouts increase our physical strength and stamina. But in F3 we also focus on spiritual strength. In fact, it is the Fellowship and Faith parts of F3 that give credence to the importance of increasing our spiritual strength.

Looking into the subject of “spiritual strength” I found some good advice in an article from a website called PowerofPositivity.com. It listed seven exercises for spiritual strength. I am listing these below, making my own comments about them, and adding one more exercise at the end of the list.

1. Spend more time with loving/encouraging family and friends. I agree that being with family and friends is important but I also want to put emphasis on the word “encouraging.” We need to surround ourselves with those who encourage us. We get enough pessimism from watching the news and listening to people complain, gossip or argue. We need to get near the type of people who are going to push us forwards, not backwards. One of the things I love about F3 is being surrounded by men who encourage me to get better.

2. Go outside as much as possible. I like this one. What do we do in F3? We get outside to workout, whether rain or shine, no matter what the temperature is. There is something about being outdoors that makes us healthier. We connect to nature, to God’s creation. We are in His space, free yet a part of Him.

3. Reduce distractions (TV, Radio, Internet, Newspaper). I agree that we tend to spend too much time absorbed with media. In my church, on youth group trips such as church camps, we have required that students give us their cell phones for the time spent on the trip. They get them back on the bus ride back home. We ourselves only use our cell phones for emergency purposes on these trips. We have found the students (and us adults) are less distracted, more connected to one another and God, and happier when we implement this policy. We are more free to think about truly important things and to use our minds to imagine and create.

4. Observe your thoughts about the people around you. The website article talked about putting away judgemental thoughts and trying to have positive thoughts about others you know or encounter. Focusing on gossip and judgement does not serve others. I would rename this 4th exercise “praying for the people around you”. It is amazing what happens if you start praying about your coworkers, your neighbors, even strangers you happen to meet. You don’t have to tell them your praying. Just do it. You will find yourself having a better connection to those you pray for and even find your prayers coming true.

5. Step out in faith. This means getting bold in your faith, being willing to take on challenges and even threats from others in your faith. You may get sneered at or criticized but push on in the face of adversity. The website arrticle has some words that I think are powerful in regards to this exercise: “There may be forces that have an investment in keeping you from receiving your best life, but when you decide to stand up or speak out, knowing that your faith is bigger than your fear, the illusion of fear that’s trying to hold you down will diminish and eventually disappear.” The other words from the website I want to quote are “Know that the Divine has got your back.”

6. Be of service to others. Is a true HIM one that is focused on serving himself. No, a true HIM is focused on serving others. Do we grow spiritually strong by focusing on ourselves? No. We grow spiritually strong by serving others.

7. Make prayer/meditation a habit. Our awesome PAX leader, Cap’n Crunch, talks about making the HC, the Hard Commit to show up in the gloom for workouts in order to make ourselves better as men. In the same way, to be spiritually strong, to get truly closer to God, to the Higher Power, to the Divine, we need to make the Hard Commit to pray. It is through this commitment to communicate with God that we make it a habit. And it is though this habit, this connection to God each day and at least several times a day, that we grow in spiritual strength. And when you do it, don’t only listen to what you have to say to God. . . listen to what God has to say to you.

8. Be grateful. This is not an exercise that was listed in the website article but one that I have added. We need to recognize, to truly see, and be grateful for what God has given us. The people that I know who are spiritually strong have this strength of being grateful. That gratefulness can get people through some mighty tough times. Gratefulness keeps us positive, gives us hope, helps us focus on the road ahead, and leads us to glorify God.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
F3 Olympics next Saturday at Asylum. Register online or get to Asylum at 6:30 am to register. November 17 is launch for Cleveland, TN AO. Let Abscess know if you can go with us to the launch.

Rockin’ Dora and Cardiac Attack

October 10, 2018 Hawk

THE SCENE: Mostly cloudy, 73 degrees, 90% humidityTo
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:
(25) 4 ct. SSH; Baby arm circles forward; backers; (10) 4ct. plank jacks; lunge stretch

THA-THANG:

Mosey to base of Everest
(1) sprint up Everest to rock pile
Selected rock and partner for Rockin’ Doras
Partner 1: Run west along road, with rock, to first tree and back
Partner 2: Curls (up to 200); Squats with rock (up to 200); BBS or flutter kicks (4 ct.), rock optional (200)
Mosey cross country to base of Cardiac Hill
(5) 4 ct. American Hammers; Bernie Sanders to first bend; (5) 4 ct. Hello Dollies; bear crawl to next bend; (5) squat jumps; sprint to benches; (5) tricep dips;
Rinse and repeat, add (5) to each exercise

MARY:
Ab work, 2 rounds ending with 4 ct. flutter kicks.

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:
II Timothy 1:7 – This is my Father’s favorite verse, and I had not really connected with it. I never felt that I approached life with timidity or fear. I termed it as humility. But, there is a fine line between timidity and humility. To my shame, I have been doing F3 for a year and a half, and this is my VQ. To be a real HIM, we need to approach life boldly. We need to lead when we are called to lead and not be timid. We also need to remember that God gives us power, but also love and self discipline.

The Peace of Wild Things

October 10, 2018 Pele

THE SCENE: Pleasant temperatures in the upper 70s, but still dang humid
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER

Boom. Nailed it.

WARM-O-RAMA:
20 SSH IC, 20 Imperial Squat Walkers IC, 20 Windmills IC (PAX really needs to work on getting the coordination and count down on these… 😉 ), 20 baby-to-big arm circles IC, front/reverse

THA-THANG:

Mosey to Area 51.

We will do Partner DORAs starting at the parking sign off of the perimeter road just south of the Admin building.. While one partner runs to Area 51 parking lot/loading Dock and does 5 squat jumps and runs back, the other starts the exercises. Each pair shall complete the following, cumulatively:

100 Big Boy sit-ups
200 Lunges (doing both legs counts as 1)
100 Merkins

Mosey around perimeter road to grassy field between Admin Building and main park road. Cones will be laid out in a large rectangle. Move around the cones, doing Bernie Sanders on the long sides and bear crawls on the short sides. Stop at midpoints and corners for exercises.

At midpoints (long side only), do 15 Carolina Dry Docks
At each corner, do 10 mountain climbers (4-ct)

Rinse and repeat, but replace the exercises with the following:

At midpoints (long side), do 15 Bobby Hurleys
At each corner, do 10 Plank Jacks

Mosey to path leading to Admin building.

Bernie Sanders up the sidewalk to the stairs, and do 50 calf raises on the stairs.

Mosey back to AO.

MARY:
Captain Thors, 20 Hello Dollies (IC), 15 tempo merkins (IC), 40 E2Ks (10 each leg, rinse and repeat), 20 modified table saws (IC), 20 froggie/heel touches (IC)
COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
11 fine men, all tagged except for Foff (sp?) who is still not registered.
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

The Peace of Wild Things

Outside of church, I have always felt closest to God while immersed in the beauty of nature, surrounded by a world so achingly beautiful that it makes me so grateful and humbled that we have been placed in such surroundings. Whether it is standing on a ledge looking at a spectacular waterfall, gazing out across a valley tinted with fall colors from a peak, or simply looking at the contours and pigments of a simple, perfect flower, I feel the work of God in my heart. I wanted to read this poem, which I stole-borrowed from a fellow F3er’s Facebook page (Thanks Lillydipper!)

“The Peace of Wild Things” by Wendell Barry

When Despair for the World grows in me

And I wake in the night at the least sound

In fear of what my life and my children’s lives may be,

I go and lie down where the wood drake

Rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds

I come into the peace of wild things

Who do not tax their lives with forethought

Of grief. I come into the presence of still water.

And I feel above me the day-blind stars

Waiting with their light. For a time

I rest in the grace of the world. And am free.”

Prayers that we pause and truly appreciate the beauty of our world whenever possible, and that we are wise and responsible stewards of our wondrous planet so that it is preserved for generations to come.

MOLESKIN:
Congrats to Mr. Jinxy and best wishes on the marriage of his daughter this week-end!

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Lots of stuff coming up… Atlanta Mud Run, F3 Olympics, Cleveland, TN F3 kickoff all in the next month. Stay tuned…

The last shall be first

October 2, 2018 Lillydipper

THE SCENE: Partly cloudy with nice breeze, low eighties.
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:
20 Side Straddle Hops, 15 Bottle Caps, 10 Plank Jacks, 10 Windmills, 10 Cherry Pickers, Little of This and Little of That
THA-THANG:

Mosey down Roadshow Run and go to trail near Lyons Bend Entrance. 20 Hello Dollies. After that we will do 14’s on trail as it goes east and then south. We will stop when it curves by parking lot. We will bear crawl to first light and sprint next four all the way on the trail, bear crawl one light, sprint four lights.

Mosey on roadway until we get to playground. We will do elevens starting with one bench lift and ten bench jumps. 20 American Hammers in Cadence afterward.

Mosey to grassy area close to Pickett’s Charge. There will be cones on he grassy area. We will do suicides running to each cone and back to start. Rest to do 40 Baby Crunches. Do suicides one more time but this time do 10 Merkins each time we get back to start. Those who finish first do Big Boy Sit-ups.

Mosey to front of Admin Bldg. Stop to do 20 Box Cutters in Cadence.

Mosey to rock pile near Admin Bldg Parking Lot. 20 Bench Presses, 20 Curls, 20 Rows, 20 Squats.

Mosey to AO.
MARY:
Plank with lifts of each hand and each leg. Leg stretches from plank position.
COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
Nine men including a Flying EH who was our FNG. His hospital name is Tony Guidera and we dubbed him “Bojangles.”
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

Matthew 19:30

But many who are first will be last, and the last first.

Matthew 20:16

So the last will be first, and the first last.”

Mark 9:35

And he sat down and called the twelve. And he said to them, “If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all.”

In all these sayings, Jesus is indicating that God does not give great importance to ability, success, wealth or fame in His Kingdom. Jesus also indicates that God places importance on us serving others. As leaders we should think of ourselves as servants, not head of the pack.

One of the reasons that I have loved the F3 Brotherhood and F3 Philosophy so much is that I feel we follow this philosophy that Jesus speaks of. When I came to F3, I heard that military men had started it and I was worried that it was going to be a “get your A _ _ in gear boy” type of mentality where guys are pushed and made fun of when they failed. Instead, I found a group of men who do push THEMSELVES but who encourage the newcomers and circle back for them when they cannot keep up with those ahead of them. I found a group who gives RESPECT to the older, slower guys. The philosophy of F3 is to encourage EVERY MAN. We respect each man for what he offers, for his unique set of gifts. We admire the fastest and we admire the strongest. We admire the slowest who is giving it all to get better. We admire those who are great speakers, who know about our community, who are good teachers, who are awesome mumble-chatterers, who are willing to do something that they are uncomfortable with doing, who are willing to wake up early morning to get better, who are willing to come out on an afternoon of excessive heat and humidity to get better. Who is first and who is last in F3? Who knows? I guess we are all first and all last. And I get the feeling that God smiles on F3 Knoxville because we do live out the philosophy that God has asked us to live by.

MOLESKIN:
Insert any personal comments, notes, devotion content, etc.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Hike this weekend on Andrews Bald. Those going will meet at Food City at 8:30 am and head out together. Mud run in Atlanta following weekend.

Dirty Dozen Dropping Sweat

September 22, 2018 Lillydipper

THE SCENE: Sunny and humid, temps in 70’s.
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:
20 Side Straddle Hops, 10 Burpees, 10 Windmills, 5 Burpees, 10 Cherry Pickers, Michael Phelps, Little of This and Little of That
THA-THANG:
Mosey to the driveway that heads to the northern wall of the admin bldg. There will be bricks by a large tree near he drive way. We will pair up in teams of two and do Doras. While one partner works on the following exercises, the other partner will run with a set of bricks to the curb, do ten mini man makers, then run back and exchange the bricks with his partner who will do the same. Here are the exercises each team will do:

100 Big Boy Sit-ups
100 Merkins
200 Baby Crunches

Mosey to gate at the Lyons Bend entrance. Take perimeter trail east. Stop once at first light. We will do 20 American Hammers in cadence.

Mosey east on perimeter trail to cone that will be located close to a large Mimosa tree. We will do a Route 66 going eleven lights, stopping at each one. We will do each of the following exercises starting with the first and doing it once at first light, twice at second, etc. until we do 11 of that exercise at 11th light. Those who get there first will sweep others back to start and we will begin the next exercise. Here are the exercises:

Squat jumps
Dive bombers
Imperial Walkers (four count)
Shoulder taps (tapping each shoulder counts as one)

Mosey to Playground

We will do bench jumps. We will do ten, then rest for 20 seconds. We will do five sets of ten with the 20 second break.

Mosey to Pavilion. We will do 25 Picnic Table Pull-ups. We will then do squat by wall for one minute.

Mosey to AO.

MARY:
Plank Stretches.
COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
12 men, no FNG’s.
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

The following message is not fully from me. Rather, it stems from a conversation with a friend of mine named Tony Kuykendall. Tony observed that in our age of social media, whether on Facebook, Group Me, Twitter, or whatever, we wonder how many people are following our messages. We follow other’s messages by giving them the Like signal, coloring in a heart, showing a happy face, a thumbs up, or some other sign saying we listened and took notice. We may follow peoples’ messages on social media each day. My friend Tony observed that the Bible is certainly a form of social media. It has been written and distributed socially so that people may read it and follow God. Tony wondered how many times we actually follow God’s word each day. Certainly, God wants us to “follow’ Him.

John 8:12 “Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.’”

God wants us to follow Him because he knows that we need Him to live within the light. When we follow Him, good things happen. We move along in our lives and often miss out on the light. We seek the light through our own means and often fail to listen to that higher power calling us. Where is God calling you to follow? What path does he want for you? Where does God want to take you. We can sense that there is something missing in our lives if we do it alone, something greater we need to fulfill us. We get glimpses of something greater by showing up in the gloom each day to work out with our brothers in F3. We didn’t want to listen to our crazy friends that rooked us into coming out here. Yet, by coming we have found something special, something invigorating, something good for us. In our busy lives we often don’t want to take the time to listen to God. But if we do so, we find something special, something invigorating, something good for us. It is that which we need. So, listen, take time to focus on Him and what he is calling you to do. Follow Him.

MOLESKIN:
Hotspur and his family needs a prayer as his mother-in-law died recently.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
F3 Knoxville Anniversary and Olympics on November 3. Launching of F3 in Cleveland, TN on November 10.