F3 Knoxville

Tag: Bandwagon

The last shall be first

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.

Our Shield, Our Protector

THE SCENE:  Sunny and warm, mid-eighties.
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:
20 Side Straddle Hops, 10 Mountain Mans, Plank Stretches, 10 Cherry Pickers, 20 Quick Wing Claps
THA-THANG:
Mosey to shade of tree by stop sign at Northeast corner of Admin Bldg.  20 Box Cutters.

Mosey to shaded grassy area near driveway that goes to northern side of Admin Bldg.

Go to four cones that form large square in grassy area by long driveway.

  • Corner 1:  20 Big Boy Sit ups.  Then Bernie Sanders to Corner 2.
  • Corner 2:  20 Squat Jumps.  Then Bear Crawl to Corner 3.
  • Corner 3:  20 Dive Bombers.  Then Sprint to Corner 4.
  • Corner 4:  20 Star Jumps.  Then Lunge to Corner 1
  • Rinse and Repeat

Mosey back to the long driveway leading to northern side of Admin Bldg.

We will do suicides.  We will always Bear Crawl to first cone while doing the suicides and sprint to remaining three cones.  Each time we return back to the starting point, we will do 25 Little Baby Crunches.

Rinse and Repeat.

Next, do suicides without bear crawls and baby crunches, sprinting to first cone and back, second cone and back, third cone and back, fourth cone and back then continuing to third cone and back, second cone and back and first cone and back.

Mosey to roadway that is on east side of admin bldg.  Go down steps on east side of roadway opposite the sidewalk that goes to the admin bldg.  

We will do thirties, starting with 5 bench dips at the bottom of the steps.  We will run up the steps and then up the sidewalk to the steps of the admin bldg.  There we will do 25 decline merkins.  We then sprint back to the benches where we did the dips.  We do 10 bench dips, then sprint back to the admin bldg to do 20 decline merkins.  We continue this pattern until we have done 25 bench dips and 5 merkins.

Mosey to grassy area on east side of admin bldg.   Do 20 American Hammers

Mosey to AO.

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

When you were young, did you have a father that you admired, that protected you, that you knew found favor in you and you knew would be there for you if in stress?  Did you see that father as big, powerful, strong and mighty when you were a little boy?  Did you like those special times when you got to sleep by him in his bed, just because he was awesome and big and you felt safer being close to him?  Some of us had that in our dads.  Some of us are fathers to children who look up to us and trust in us for protection.

As grown adults, we still have that need for the strength of a father who is big and powerful.  I would say we have that childlike need but the need is not childlike as all adults have that need.  We, as strong men, know that we cannot always go it alone.  We need someone more powerful than us, who will “kick ass” to get to us when we are in trouble, defying all odds to do so.  We have that in our God, our creator, our FATHER.  I love the following verses from Psalms 18 (verses 2 – 19) because they portray not only a wonderful image of just how strong our Father is but how strong his passion is for just one of his children.

2 The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer,
    my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge,
    my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.
3 I call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised,
    and I am saved from my enemies.

4 The cords of death encompassed me;
    the torrents of destruction assailed me;[a]
5 the cords of Sheol entangled me;
    the snares of death confronted me.

6 In my distress I called upon the Lord;
    to my God I cried for help.
From his temple he heard my voice,
    and my cry to him reached his ears.

7 Then the earth reeled and rocked;
    the foundations also of the mountains trembled
    and quaked, because he was angry.
8 Smoke went up from his nostrils,[b]
    and devouring fire from his mouth;
    glowing coals flamed forth from him.
9 He bowed the heavens and came down;
    thick darkness was under his feet.
10 He rode on a cherub and flew;
    he came swiftly on the wings of the wind.
11 He made darkness his covering, his canopy around him,
    thick clouds dark with water.
12 Out of the brightness before him
    hailstones and coals of fire broke through his clouds.

13 The Lord also thundered in the heavens,
    and the Most High uttered his voice,
    hailstones and coals of fire.
14 And he sent out his arrows and scattered them;
    he flashed forth lightnings and routed them.
15 Then the channels of the sea were seen,
    and the foundations of the world were laid bare
at your rebuke, O Lord,
    at the blast of the breath of your nostrils.

16 He sent from on high, he took me;
    he drew me out of many waters.
17 He rescued me from my strong enemy
    and from those who hated me,
    for they were too mighty for me.
18 They confronted me in the day of my calamity,
    but the Lord was my support.
19 He brought me out into a broad place;
    he rescued me, because he delighted in me.

 

BB – Asylum PM Candy Corns!

THE SCENE:Overcast and a bit Humid
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:
SSH 25 IC

Arm Circles – thumbs up IC

Arm Circles- thumbs down IC

Cherry Pickers IC

THA-THANG:
Insert information about the workout.

  • Select Partner- Pair up
  • Mosey down the steps by the Bat Cave to HWY 66
  • 10 Merkins OYO
  • Bataan Death March  up RTE 66 – One Pair starts with 3 burpees while rest of group runs, first Pair catches up with group, tags another pair. Complete until all have been tagged 2X.
  • Mosey to large open field below brick bldg.
  • In pairs – Vacuum Cleaners across field (alternate bearcrawls), at end (- 25 yards), 10 Derkins, switch, Vacuum Cleaner back across field or bearcrawl – 10 Derkins (alt Merkins)
  • Imperial Walker Back across, 15 BB slap situps with partner,step lunge across field on return, 15 more BB slap situps
  • Bernie Sanders back across – 25 LBC, return Bernie Sanders, 25 more LBC
  • Lt Dan back across (1 squat,1 Left leg lung, 1 rt leg lunge, add one to each until reach other side) – 10 plank jacks then return with more Lt Dans
  • Rinse and Repeat 1 x
  • Mosey (corrected  to Charge!) up hill to benches
  • 10 Bench drops + 10 Elevated Merkins, rinse/repeat 1 x
  • Mosey to Rock pile, 15 curls with friendly rock
  • Mosey to Bat Cave

MARY:
Insert information about any additional post-THANG work (if applicable).
COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA

8 PAX and 1 FNG – FOF (Andy Ferguson)

CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:
God provides our community – don’t be afraid to ask for help when you or loved ones face difficult times. Use the community resources God provides. As a F3 leader, step up and provide support when called.
MOLESKIN:
Insert any personal comments, notes, devotion content, etc.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Insert information about upcoming events, 2nd or 3rd F opportunities, and any other announcements.

A Hard Rain Is Gonna Fall

THE SCENE:  Thunderstorms, plenty of rain and lightening.
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:
We had to make a mad dash to the northern ball fields pavilion as we were getting started, due to rain and lightening.  It was full of people so we made another dash to the outdoor chapel and worked out there.  We did plank stretches and then got to “Tha-thang”.
THA-THANG:
Totem poles doing each exercise for 30 seconds before going to the next one.  In round one we do the first exercise only.  In round 2 we do the first and second.  In round 3 we do the first, second and third.  We keep going until all five exercises are done.  Then we drop off the first exercise and do only exercises two through five.  Next we drop the second exercise and do only three through five.  We do this until only the fifth exercise is done.  The following are the exercises:

  • Burpees
  • American Hammers
  • Decline Merkins
  • Bench lifts
  • Squat Jacks

Next, we did four corners, performing 20 Little Baby Crunches at each corner.  We hopped from corner one to two, Bernie Sanders Sprinted from two to three, bear crawled from three to four, and sprinted from four to one.  Next we repeated the above routine except did 15 Big Boy Sit-Ups at each corner

Next we did another totem pole but this time with only four exercises.  They were:

  • Squat Jacks
  • Flutter Kicks
  • Hello Dollies
  • Mountain Climbers

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
We had ten men present including a Flying EH whom we named Nick.  We gave him the F3 name of Stormy.
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

1 Corinthians 15:55-57 King James Version (KJV)

55 O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?

56 The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law.

57 But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

King James Version (KJV)

We tend to avoid thoughts of death.  We rather not think about it.  In many ways, we fear death.  And whether we fear death or not, we certainly don’t want to die and rarely think of our own deaths.  Yet, there can be advantages to thinking of our own mortality.

  1. We see how precious our time here on Earth is and it can motivate us to act more like HIM’s with the time we have here.  And we appreciate our mortality more.  As Bob Geldof says in one of his songs, Mortality is a cheap price we pay for existence.”
  2. We are forced to think of life beyond this existence.  We are forced to wonder about God, about His creation and whether God has plans for us beyond our lives here.
  3. We have a better understanding of our dependency on God.  We must trust in God, that God indeed does have plans for us.  As Henri Nouwen states, we come into this world as a dependent creature and leave life as a dependent creature.  And, if we can trust that God exists and that He has plans for us beyond our lives here, then . . .
  4. We fear death less.  We realize that, although Mortality is a cheap price we pay for existence” our existence is more than our lives here.  If we can trust in God, we need not fear death but welcome it.  Just as, when we were in the womb, we did not know what our lives outside of it would be like, we do not know what our lives beyond what we have on Earth will be.  But, with God, “Death, where is your sting?”  With God, as John Donne says, “Death, thou shalt die.”

 

Farva’s Highway Trooper Sendoff

THE SCENE: Partly cloudy, low 80’s.
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:
20 Side-straddle Hops, 10 Imperial Walkers, 10 Bottle Openers, 10 Cherry Pickers, 10 Baby to Wide Arm Circles Forward, 10 Baby to Wide Arm Circles Backward
THA-THANG:
Mosey toward stop sign on northeast side of Admin Bldg.  Stop at brick wall on left of road.  25 Bench raises.

Mosey to big coniferous tree just north of stop sign.  20 American Hammers.

Mosey on perimeter trail to area north of Roadshow Run.  20 Hello Dollies.  Then run to top of Roadshow Run and back.  Those who arrive back first do Baby Crunches until everyone is back.

Mosey to bottom of Mt. Everest.  20 Flutter Kicks.  Run to large tree half way up Mt. Everest and run back.  Those arriving first do baby crunches until everyone is back.

Mosey on perimeter trail to shaded area north of utilities bldg.  25 Carolina Dry Docks.

Mosey on perimeter trail to Northshore Entryway Gate.  Mosey east up road to shady area south of utilities building.  15 Tempo Merkins.

Mosey east on roadway to where there is downhill slope toward soccer fields.  Go down hill.  We will do sevens with Bicycle Kicks at bottom of hill and Burpees on top.

Mosey to stop sign on Southeast Corner of Admin Bldg.  25 Diamond Merkins.

Mosey to boulder pile.  Do 20 each of the following exercises:

  • Overhead Presses
  • Curls
  • Triceps
  • Rows
  • Squats

Mosey to AO.

MARY:
Standing stretches with legs together and legs apart; leg raises while lying down on six; arm and leg raises from plank position; Boat canoe.

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
Eleven men, no FNG’s.pi
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

THE DESCENDING GOD

In Philippians, Chapter 2: 6-8 we read about:  “Christ Jesus,a 6who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped,b 7but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant,c being born in the likeness of men. 8And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross”

As Henri Nouwen states, our God is a descending God.  Jesus, who was born in a manger, chose the descending way continually.  He lived with his parents up to his 30th year in an disrespected town of Nazareth.  Although full of divine power, he equated power and popularity with temptation.  His disciples were simple men, not popular, wealthy, or religious leaders of the day.  His miracles were performed out of compassion, not to impress.  Often he even tells those whom he has cured not to tell others about it.  And, as he his life continues he becomes increasingly aware that he must fulfill his mission by sacrificing himself on a cross.  God is spat on and tortured, not lifted up in greatness.

Quoting Henri Nouwen in his “Letters to Mark” he states “God has willed to show his love for the world by descending more and more deeply into human frailty.”  And when Jesus reaches the utmost in poverty, pain lowliness and loneliness, nailed as a criminal to a cross, it is then that “we know how far God has gone to show us his love.  For it is then that Jesus has not only reached his utmost poverty, but also has shown God’s utmost love.”

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
3rd F at Outlook on August 11 at 8:30 am.  Talk to Pele or Lillydipper about signing up for the Fake Gloom Kickball team for a great tourney on Saturday, August 18.