F3 Knoxville

Tag: Steam

Adapting with CMUesday in the Fake Gloom

[ The Scene ]

SUNNY. Little warm. Character building weather.

[ Welcome/Disclaimer ]

  • Welcome to F3: Fitness-Fellowship-Faith
  • My name is Steam and I am honored to be your Q this evening
  • I am not a professional, you’re here on your own volition, and if you need to modify anything we do this evening feel free to do so BUT push yourselves and the men around you.
  • You will not get left behind and you will not leave the same way you came in.
  • FNGs?
  • I’ll have water, med gear, and my phone on me the entire time in my ruck so if you need to put something in there before we get on the mosey feel free to do so

Before we begin tonight we’re going to have a 1 minute moment of silence in honor of our fallen brother from F3 GrandStand in Myrtle Beach.

Jacob Anchor – codename Hightower –  End of Watch on October 3rd 2020

Very active in F3 GrandStand and a true HIM that led a life of service to his family and community.

Join me now in honoring our fallen brother.

[ Warm o Rama ]

(1) SSH: 15 x 4

(2) Happy Feet: 10

– quick feet —> 1 burpee on command

(3) Windmill: 10 x 4

(4) Baby Arm Circles: 10×4 F & 10×4 B

(5) Rockette: 10×4

 

[ The Thang ]

(Mosey to CMU Pile)

  • Every stop sign = 25 up/down merkins
  • Everyone get a CMU

[ Pause for Reflection for/from the Q ]

Apparently baseball season is back. When I was planning this Q – that did not come across my mind. Which means a couple things: (1) I, as the Q, did not accurately scope out the scene pre-Q. (2) We’re going to have to adapt. Halfway through the evolution of PT that you will see below, some of the PAX running were confronted by a middle aged man who was blatantly overreacting to our presence in the specific area of the park where the morning AO meets (parking lot) and was pretty aggressive in making his feelings toward us being there clear. So what do we do when that happens. Let’s start with what we don’t need to do: We don’t need to add fuel to the fire, we don’t need to confront or engage the individual, and we don’t need to push that individual who is already upset/mad/pissed off/irrational. Frankly, it’s not worth our time in that moment. So what do we need to do: We need to be peacemakers. Being the bigger man man sometimes means choosing to walk away. We’re called to be at peace with all men. We can do this without diminishing our dignity or the other party’s. This man was being irrational and approached our men in almost a rage. Pusher made the excellent point of just walk away, it’s not worth it. However – this all could have been avoided if I, the Q, had recognized that we may have needed to avoid this certain area of the park when we were mosey’ing to it. So from me, the Q – I apologize for not using discernment when leading us there. This was a learning lesson wisely pointed out by Jinxy at the COT. 

[ End Pause for Reflection for/from the Q ]

– PAX takes CMUs to the field by the playground and lays them down in two lines facing each other

– PAX execute 25 Big Boy Sit-ups with CMUs on their feet for stability

– PAX run to CMU pile and execute 10 burpees

(Rinse and Repeat 4)

***Encounter with the upset man in the parking lot***

– Q calls audible – replaces CMUs — circle the men up — brief AAR of what just happened — Mosey back home to the PM AO

– PAX mosey back up the street to the PM AO — every stop sign = 25 up/down merkins

– PAX encounter last 2 stop signs in the same 50 feet or so = 50

– Q leads PAX in 50 up/down merkins but stops when PAX reaches 45 — tells everyone to drop down to their knees and look up — “Breathe. It’s going to be okay. We’re almost there.” — Execute the final 5

– PAX mosey back up the hill to the PM AO — wagon wheel and pickup the 6 — circle up by the flag

[ Mary ]

– 25×4 Hello Dollys

– 25×4 LBCs

– 25×4 flutter kicks

[ COT ]

  • # off = 21
  • Name o Rama
  • FNGs = 0
  • BOM

I found myself at a place I don’t find myself at very often last week.

I found myself at a place that looked exactly like a scene in Lord of the Rings where the main character drops down to his knees, realizes the place that he’s in, and utters the words “I can’t do this.”

What a place to be right?

So a couple points with this:

(1) Own where you’re  at.

  • If you’re tired – own it. If you’re struggling, own it.  I’m tired/struggling mentally, I’m tired/struggling physically, I’m tired/struggling mentally, I’m tired/struggling spiritually, I’m tired/struggling sexually (we’re men we can handle that), I’m tired/struggling emotionally – own that place.
    • What I mean by this is this: We have all been tired and struggled in all of these arenas at some point in time in our lives. For me specifically, last week I was really tired and struggling mentally. I was tired and struggling emotionally. I was physically tired. I was struggling spiritually. I was struggling sexually with lust and loneliness and losing my sexual battle with porn and felt the complete weight of that. I was exhausted. The enemy was exhausting me, because I was exhausting myself. We’ve all been there. Maybe in different forms or fashions, but nonetheless, we’ve been there.
  • I’m tired. I’m lonely. I’m stressed. I’m not where I want to be. Own it.
  • Own it. Don’t accept it – own it. There’s a difference there.

Why do we need to own it?

(2) Just because we’re in a certain place does not mean this is our final resting place. Just because we’re here doesn’t mean we are destined to stay here.

  • Life is hard. It’s dark. If you’re in a place you don’t want to be in – own it and realize this is not where the story ends. You weren’t meant to stay here.
  • Just because this is where you are right now does not mean this is where you’re going to stay.

You were created for so much more than the situations and places you find yourself in.

(Hey and guess what – you have brothers that toe the line with you in the gloom and fake gloom – that I KNOW are ready to lock shields and toe the line with you outside the COT too. Let them in and seek wise counsel from them)

Why? Because point number 3

(3) God is about to do something awesome in your life. God is about to do something AWESOME in your life.

Believe that.

Regardless of where you are, what your status is, God is on the move in your life whether you realize it to not.

We need to believe this to be true.

  • God is about to do something great in your life but it is directly tied to your obedience.

What does this look like? Something like this I think.

(Gather men around carefully)

I saw this on my morning walk as the sun was rising and I was praying just for a good day. Sometimes we just need to pray for a good day.

And I came across this gate in a field with the door opened. And I truly believe this is such an excellent picture of how much God loves us and how he calls us into freedom in Him.

And I don’t know who needs to hear this besides me but here we go:

So when I saw this this morning and took this picture — I noticed a couple o things.

  • One of the gate doors was flung wide open
  • The other side of the gate door was closed, with a trash can blocking some of it.
  • And if you were with me this morning, we could have walked right through the open side of the gate. But we would have had to make a choice to do so. However it would have cost us something as well.
  • I think this picture screams the invitation that God gives to us:
    • An invitation to walk out of or walk through whatever you’re going through or wherever you’re at.
    • There is a God above that opens jail cells, doors, and gates — but it’s going to require something of you.
    • Notice the trash can sort of in front of the closed side of the gate. When God opens a gate or a door or a jail cell – whatever that may be in our lives – we’re going to have to leave something behind and leave the place that we currently are at to enter into the place He’s calling us to be. Maybe its an identity we’ve been holding onto or a relationship we’ve been in, or an idol – anything that would prevent us from walking through the gate/door that God is calling us to. 

 

 

Here’s what I want to leave you with:

Jeremiah 1:17 – 19

Get yourself ready! Stand up and say to them whatever I command you. Do not be terrified by them or I will terrify you before them. Today I have made you a fortified city, an iron pillar and a bronze wall to stand against the whole land – against the kings of Judah, it’s officials, it’s priests and the people of the land. They will fight against you but will not overcome you, for I am with you and will rescue you, declares the Lord.

 

Stay in the Fight!

Steam

RAW SAW

[ The Scene ]

  • 50s – cool

[ Welcome/Disclaimer ]

RAW – SAW

  • Welcome to F3: Fitness – Fellowship – Faith
  • My name is Steam and I’m honored to be in your company and be your Q this morning
  • FNGs?
  • Couple of things before we begin:
    • (1)  I am not a professional
    • (2) You’re here on your own volition
    • (3) If you need to modify anything we do this morning – feel free to do so as you need but push yourself and those around you.
      • No man left behind – no man left the same

This WILL be a character building workout and you will leave better than when you came in. Sore, perhaps, but better.

[ Warm o Rama ]

(1) SSH: 7 x 4 IC

(2) Merkin: 7 x 1 (up/down)

(3) Tempo Squat: 10 x 4

(4) Man-Makers: 15 x 8

[ The Thang ]

(1) There and Back Again

  • Run to the tennis court
    • 25 Squats (1 count)
  • Run back to AO circle
    • 25 LBCs (4 count)
  • Run to the bathroom building
    • 25 LBCs (4 count)
  • Run back to AO Circle
    • 25 flutter kicks (4 count)

(10 count)

(Mosey to pull-up bars)

  • Road signs and lights on either side of the road = 10 squats
    • There are a lot of signs

(2) 30s

  • 5 pull-ups/chin-ups here
  • Run up the hill to the top where the pavilion is on the right
    • 5 merkins (1 count)
  • Rinse and Repeat 6x

(Mosey back to AO for Mary)

[ Mary ]

  • AO Lot: 50 x 4 Flutter Kicks
  • 50 x 4 Hello Dollys
  • 50 x 4 LBCs

25 x 8 Man Makers (8-count body builders)

Stretching to finish it out

[ COT ]

  • # off
  • Name o Rama
  • FNGs
  • BOM

Waiting on the Lord In the Midst of Loudness

  • The loudness of the world that we live in – there is such a deafening loudness.
  • An example of this is the Presidential Debate last night
    • Political leanings, opinions, views – that’s not what this is about.
    • One of the great things about F3 is that when you arrive at the AO – all that stuff gets checked at the door.
    • However that’s not what this BOM is about – I only use this example because watching it last night – I was just thinking – this is loud. So loud. The theme I took away as a 26 year old, as an American, and most importantly as a follower of Christ – was a deafening loudness.
  • No luckily there’s not a debate every night but what do we do as High Impact Men when we’re constantly surrounded by a loudness from the world?
  • Andrew Murray’s book “Waiting on God” has some great points towards this
    • So there are two ways that touch on the how and why of waiting on God through the loudness
  • (1) Waiting on God for Instruction
    • Psalm 25:4-5 — Make me to know your ways, O Lord; teach me your paths. Lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation; for you I wait all the day long
    • Murray writes: The psalm has always been a very special one because of its reiterated expression of the felt need of the divine teaching and of the childlike confidence that that teaching would be given. Study the psalm until your heart is filled with 2 thoughts: the absolute need and the absolute certainty of divine guidance.
  • (2) Waiting on God With the Heart
    • Psalm 31:24 — Be strong, and let your heart take courage, all you who wait for the Lord!
    • Murray writes: Let the heart wait at times in perfect silence and quiet; in its hidden depths God will work. Be sure of this, and just wait on Him.

If that’s not a hard thing to do I don’t know what is. 

It’s A Good Week to Have A Good Week

[ The Scene ]

Rainy at the most opportune time – as PAX were walking to the AO. Not a lot, but just enough

[ Welcome/Disclaimer ]

  • Welcome to F3: Fitness – Fellowship – Faith
  • My name is Steam and I’m honored to be in your company and be your Q this morning
  • FNGs?
  • Couple of things before we begin:
    • (1) Contrary to popular belief I am not a professional
    • (2) You’re here on your own volition
    • (3) If you need to modify anything we do this morning – feel free to do so as you need but push yourself and those around you.
      • No man left behind – no man left the same
  • COVID measures are still in place so as much as you can let’s try and keep 6ft if possible.

[ Warm – o – Rama ]

(1) SSH: 7 x 4

(2) Mountain Climber: 7 x 4

(3) Baby Arm Circles: 7 x 4 (F)

(4) Baby Arm Circles: 7 x 4 (B)

[ The Thang ]

(Mosey to Big Ball stairs)

(1) Up and Over

  • Rinse and Repeat this once for a total of 2 times
  • Bear crawl up the stairs
  • Landings
    • Middle: 20
    • Top: 15
    • Bottom of stairs: 10
  • Run across the street to the stairwell — down into WFP backwards bear crawl-style
    • 10 Iron mikes
  • Run back to the start right here
    • We’ll do this 2x
    • On your second lap — decrease Iron Mikes by 5 (15, 10, 5)

Done?

  • 25 LBCs
  • 25 Flutter kicks

(15 count)

(Mosey to Amphitheater)

(2) Over And Up

  • Rinse and Repeat this once for a total of 2 times
  • Pick a side (L or R) and run Over to the ramp up to the top
  • Run Up to the top
  • Execute 10 chin-ups/pull-ups
  • Run down the stairs
  • 10 incline merkins + 10 dips 
  • Rinse and Repeat once

Done?

  • 25 LBCs
  • 25 Flutter kicks
  • Rocky Balboas under the amphitheater: 10×4

(15 count)

(Mosey back to AO)

(3) Core 4

  • Find a bench and lay on your back
  • 25 x 4 flutter kicks
    • Run to rock pile
    • 10 curl presses
    • Run back to AO
  • Find a bench and put your feet under it for some stability
  • 25 BBSs (1 count)
    • Run to rock pile
    • 10 rock triceps
    • Run back to AO
  • Find a bench — lay on the bench — 
  • 25 flutter kicks  (4-count)
    • Run to rock pile
    • 10 rock rows
    • Run back to AO
  • Find a bench
  • 25 incline plank jacks (1 count)
    • Run to rock pile
    • 10 rock squats
    • Run back to AO

Fin.

[ COT ]

  • # off
  • Name o Rama
  • FNGs
  • BOM

The 59 “One Another’s” in the New Testament of the Bible

http://storage.cloversites.com/wakarusamissionarychurch/documents/59one_another_scriptures.pdf

There are 59 “One Another’s” in the New Testament of the Bible and I think they’re worth reading over and contemplating over – specifically in terms of the application for our lives as HIM.

So the encouragement is this —> Read it out — pray it out — live it out. Because we can’t “One Another” without one another

The Not-So-Merry-Go-Round

THE SCENE: 60’s, clear skies, a little damp from yesterdays rain
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:
Static stretching, Tempo Squats, Hill Billies
THA-THANG:
Moseyed over to the field behind the amphitheater with the paved walkway around it, then got into partners with someone who would push you but not lap you or be lapped. Here we had 8 stations, 4 corners and 4 cones (1 between each corner). Each had a different workout assigned to it. Pairs rotated around the stations by completing the exercises, running a lap around the field, and then moving on to the next. Here are the exercises at each station:

  • Toe-Tap-Merkin Bearcrawls forward and backwards across the large paved section
  • Monkey Jumpers across the field then duck walk back
  • 50 x Cobras, 25 x Carolina Dry Docks, 10 x Walkout merkins
  • 100 x BBS
  • 25 x Hand-Release-Release Merkins, 25 x standard Merkins
  • Murder Bunnies across the field and Overhead Carries back
  • 25 x Standing Shoulder Taps, 25 x Plank Shoulder Taps
  • 20 x American Hammers, 20 x Flutterkicks, 20 x Freddie Mercurys, 20 x LBCs

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA

CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:
Shared the story of Robert McCherye, who was a 19th century minister who was just as well known for his faith as he was for being a workaholic. He died of cardiac arrest at 29 and on his death bed wrote “God gave me a message to deliver and a horse to ride on. Alas, I have killed the horse and now I cannot deliver the message.” I think we tend to acknowledge that rest is worthwhile but are still reluctant to take the time needed for it. Sometimes it makes us feel weak or like we’re wasting our time. When Jesus was confronted about working on the Sabbath He said that man was not made for the Sabbath but the Sabbath for man. It’s easy to walk away from that saying “OK, Jesus said its fine for me not to rest”, but rather we should hear that and acknowledge that if the Sabbath was made specifically for us then it must be worthwhile. So let’s seek out rest wherever we need it, whether that be physically, mentally, emotionally or spiritually
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Hardship Hill next weekend

Scarred

THE SCENE: Light rain, temp in low 60s.
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER
WARM-O-RAMA:
20 Side-Straddle Hops, 20 Plank Jacks, 10 Windmills, 10 Rockettes, 10 Baby Arm Circles Forward and Backward, 7 Wide Arm Circles Forward and Backward.
THA-THANG:
Our AO for the day was the pavilion at the Northern Ball Fields.

Mosey to semi-circle roadway that goes by soccer fields.  We ran high knee for 10 stakes, did 10 squats, then butt-kicked for 10 stakes and did 10 squats.  We continued that pattern until the end of the semi-circle roadway.  We then returned to the start with the same pattern but this time doing squat jumps instead of squats.  We, finally, went back on the semi-circle, this time doing Bernie Sander for 20 states and 5 Imperial Walkers, repeating that pattern to the end of the semi-circle roadway.

Mosey to parking lot by southern ball fields.  We did suicides up parking lot, running to each of the large light posts along the parking lot.  When we got back from each cone we did 20 Squats.  We rinsed and repeated.

Mosey back to the street but stop at curb before stop sign.  We did 10 tempo merkins by curb.

Mosey to parking lot with the islands that is located south of the Northern Ball Fields.  We divided into three groups.  Two groups positioned themselves on islands on the opposite end of the parking lot.  While the third group ran from one end of the parking lot to the other, the groups on either island alternated between doing 10 incline merkins on curb and 10 bench dips on curb.  Once the running group got to the island then they started the exercises while the group that was there ran to the other end.  This pattern continued until all groups had run from one end to the other two times.

Mosey to Pavilion.  At pavilion, we ran to benches, did 10 bench jumps and ran back to pavilion.  Rinse and repeat.

Finish at Pavilion.

COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
17 men, no FNGs.
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:

Galatians 6:17

From now on let no one cause trouble for me, for I bear on my body the brand-marks of Jesus.

I’m going to talk a little bit about the importance of scars, the importance of wounds.  As men, we sometimes take a bit of pleasure in showing our scars to one another.  Sounds weird, but I think there are good reasons for it.  By sharing we show one another that we have been wounded and have that in common.  We also show we were tough enough to take it.

Our brother, Pusher, has told me of a tradition in the Philippines where boys are circumcised at the age of ten.  Think about how painful that is for a ten-year-old.  For two weeks after the circumcision that boy, in fact, wears a dress because the touch of pants to the circumcised area would be too painful.  Filipinos realize that they could change the age of the circumcision – to circumcise at that age is certainly not a medical necessity.  But in the Philippines it is a rite of passage.  The boy fears the moment, fears the pain, but in enduring it makes a major step toward manhood.  He can walk proudly, knowing he has endured it.

The Aborigines have an interesting rite of passage that I read about.  At the time of puberty the male or female meets overnight with the same sex members of their community who tell them stories of manhood or womanhood.  Afterwards, the male or female meets in a ceremony with their father and mother.  Both the father and the mother each take a sharp claw from an animal and cut the skin on the chest of the child.  The cuts form permanent wounds that will remain on the daughter or son’s breast for the rest of their life.  It is a symbol of recognition: “I have been wounded by my parents and I must accept that fact.  In accepting it, I can become a woman or a man.”  I love that – my parents love me but they have also wounded me and I need to man up to that.

I can remember my cousin and I talking, at about college age, about the types of women we would like to marry.  Of course we talked about physical beauty.  But we also talked about the character of the woman we wanted to marry.  We both agreed that we would rather marry a woman who had been wounded by some hardships than marry a woman who never had faced hardships and was completely innocent.  Our scars give us character.  They also help us to empathize with the pain and hardships experienced by others.

I accept that I have been scarred by life.  I cannot deny it or escape it.  I am not the Innocent Man that Billy Joel sang about.  But, as a Christian, the ultimate example of empathy for me is our Lord Christ.  I expose my scars to Him.  For, He was willing to take on the scars of the Cross to save humankind from our sinfulness.  In recognizing this, in baptizing myself to this, I am given the ultimate rite of passage.  And, as Paul states in Galatians 6:17, “from now on let no one cause trouble for me, for I bear on my body the brand-marks of Jesus.”

MOLESKIN:
Prayers for Helga and his wife who is having surgery, for Steam’s father who just had total knee replacement surgery, and for Steam as he considers a new job.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Hardship Hill on Saturday, October 3.