Tag: Swirlie

THE SCENE: Foggy but nice.
F3 WELCOME & DISCLAIMER✔
WARM-O-RAMA:
Cherry Pickers, Windmills, TN Rock’n Chair, Tempo Merkins, Temp Squats, Dancing Bear
THA-THANG:
The warm-up came to an end quickly.

• AO-Flag Parking Lot Circuit – 25 Burpees, Run a Lap, 50 Merkins, Run a Lap, 75 Squats, Run a Lap, 100 SSH, Run a Lap.
• Soccer Field DORA: Battle-Buddy Up – 200 Merkins, 150 Seal Squats – Recovery Run to Mid-Field and back.
• Concrete Bleachers: Stairway to Calve Heaven – 25 Calf Raises every step (4 total), Box Jumping to next step every time. 3 Rounds for a total of 300 calf raises.
• Mosey to Playground – Same Battle-Buddies – One runs length of parking lot and performs 3 Double Burpees before returning to start.  Other partner performs 10 Pull-ups, 15 Merkins, 20 Dips. 2 Rounds each.
• Soccer Field: Bear Crawl entire length of field.
• Long mosey back to AO Flag

MARY:
Nope
COUNT-OFF & NAME-O-RAMA
15 Strong + 2 FNGs
CIRCLE OF TRUST/BOM:
It’s an age old question and one of the biggest reasons why people reject God – the problem of suffering.  If God were so loving, why would He allow us to suffer? You hear a lot: “Well, I just don’t know why this is happening to me” or “God just doesn’t answer the question of why we suffer” or “I don’t deserve this.” There are times (I believe few) when we just don’t know why we are suffering but to say God does not answer this question is just plain false. Don’t trust me – my words have little weight.  Trust the God of the Universe – His do:

1) Because of SIN – Romans 3:12, Mark 10:18.  There are no good people, not even one He says.  There is a song out by Luke Bryan that states “I believe most people are good.”  Luke Bryan doesn’t know Scripture.  God says not only the opposite but that NO ONE is good. All have turned away.  Sometimes I’ll hear “I just don’t deserve this.”  That’s right, you deserve worse. In my own life, I’m not shocked by the suffering when it comes.  What I’m shocked by is His overwhelming grace.  We deserve His wrath.  We do not deserve His grace.  King David’s life was filled with sin and the awful consequences of it – loss of an infant, wars with his children, never got to see the temple built.  Sometimes we suffer because of our sin.

2)  To Warn Others – 1 Kings 2.  As David did on his deathbed to his son, Solomon. “Be strong, act like a man, and observe what the Lord your God requires: walk in obedience to Him, and keep His decrees and commands, his laws and regulations…..”

3) To Affirm Our Commitment to Christ – 2 Timothy 3:12, 1 Peter 1:6-7.  If you are trying to live a Godly life, you WILL face persecution.  When it comes, you shouldn’t pray for the suffering to go away but that God will give you the boldness to do what He has called you to do.

4) To Produce Steadfastness, Endurance and Character – James 1:2-3. Have you ever considered that suffering may be for your own good?  “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.  Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking in anything.” Want to get a good workout in spiritually, try suffering.

5) To Recalibrate Our Focus on Heaven – Romans 8:18-19.  Suffering can make us yearn for our real home – Heaven, with Jesus as King. “I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.  For creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed.”

6) To Humble Us – 2 Corinthians 12:7.  The Apostle Paul was shipwrecked, beaten, imprisoned, mocked, rebuked by his kinsmen, and ultimately beheaded for Jesus.  “Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me. I pleaded with the Lord three times to take it away from me.  But, He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”

When suffering comes we have two options: 1) We can reject God or 2) We can run to Him, embrace Him, and allow Him to transform us.  I REALLY like option 2.

MOLESKIN:
N/A
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
HH