Tag: TheShining

  • Slaying the SadClown

    Wild Thing started us off this AM as 18 brothers in arms rose up and posted at Rise and Shine.

    Wild Thing reminded us about our discussion on the SadClown and the reasons as we POGO and struggle through life.  He gave us a reminder of the difference of being alone and being isolated.  He through quite the beat down when he read from Freed to Lead – “Calling your wife your best friend is a true and dangerous OprahBomb – sweet and high-sounding on the surface, but gritless underneath” and “men don’ know how to make friends.” Chatter rose on that reading.

    Discussion then went to talk about “workouts” are not the only answer.  If so, we would see Jesus doing a workout in the Bible.  So, how do we promote times for men to come together and what are the elements that need to be there to make it truly happen. That was the meat of the conversation.

    Parts of Ecclesiastes 4 where read as a Biblical description of the SadClown.  Highlights: 

    1b – 3: I saw the tears of the oppressed—
        and they have no comforter;
    power was on the side of their oppressors—
        and they have no comforter.
    And I declared that the dead,
        who had already died,
    are happier than the living,
        who are still alive.
    But better than both
        is the one who has never been born,
    who has not seen the evil
        that is done under the sun.

    …

    8 There was a man all alone;
        he had neither son nor brother.
    There was no end to his toil,
        yet his eyes were not content with his wealth.
    “For whom am I toiling,” he asked,
        “and why am I depriving myself of enjoyment?”
    This too is meaningless—
        a miserable business!

    9 Two are better than one,
        because they have a good return for their labor:
    10 If either of them falls down,
        one can help the other up.
    But pity anyone who falls
        and has no one to help them up.
    11 Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.
        But how can one keep warm alone?
    12 Though one may be overpowered,
        two can defend themselves.
    A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.

    The Pax provided great discussion on what we can do and settled on two.  Two ideas to start and then to move forward and be like a dart.  Needing to make this happen 4A and Hurler took to Service Saturdays. In hope for us to connect and bring sun rays.  Wanting to capitalize on recent experiences, Worm and Butterfly, choose to see Hometown Hikes take hold.  This we believe will make friendships worth more than gold.

    Announcements –

    Rider is doing well and getting some good therapy – but still needs our prayers

    Ben Collie as he sees and journeys on his path

    May 21st – Ashcreek 5K

  • The Problem of Isolation (Third F Gathering)

    20 men took up residence in the Rise & Shine Diner at 6:30 am for a Third F throw down that went something like this…

    YHC started by stating, “Welcome to F3. My name is The Carpenter. I am not a certified trainer for this spiritual workout. You may think I am because I serve as a pastor but the only real certified trainer is Jesus. Jesus has given us his spirit who he called the great comforter or counselor. I like to call the Holy Spirit the great trainer. He will be our trainer today as I lead. This is a You-vs-You spiritual workout. Don’t compare yourself to other guys. Consider your own life.”

    YHC then shared about the impact of F3 on his life and how he has received new friendships through the shared experiences.

    YHC opened the discussion with the big group by asking, “What is the biggest threat to men?” The following answers came flying back from the PAX – “anger, pride, sexual promiscuity, insignificance, inefficient life, idols…” YHC then reference the Boston Globe article that Hardywood and others have referenced via Twitter about LONELINESS (http://www.bostonglobe.com/magazine/2017/03/09/the-biggest-threat-facing-middle-age-men-isn-smoking-obesity-loneliness/k6saC9FnnHQCUbf5mJ8okL/story.html?p1=Article_Trending_Most_Viewed)

    YHC shared insights from “Freed To Lead” about the Sad Clown Syndrome (“laughing on the outside, crying on the inside.”). A key quote from that book is that men can easily “conclude that he is a man whose wife and job are making him unhappy when, in fact, he is an unhappy man with a wife and job.” That is some hard-hitting truth there!

    YHC followed up with the insights about the Shifter from “Freed To Lead” and the three types of false friends that men claim to have (1) Legacy Buddies – friends from high school & college when you had more opportunities for shared experiences (2) Man Dates – the husband of wife’s friend (3) Work Buddy – co-workers who aren’t really friends

    The PAX shared insights about these types of “friends” and the struggle to find and keep real friends in this stage of life. Life is busy, complex and full of challenges.

    YHC challenged the PAX to consider whether this was true in their lives and to come up with some potential solutions. The PAX broke out into group discussions by table. The mumble chatter was loud and energetic.

    YHC then called the PAX back into one big group and the sharing lit up the room. Men shared how they are struggling with this. The PAX shared about potential ways for men to have shared experiences now. This is the beginning of a discussion that will continue.

    Numberama, Namerama, YHC took us out in prayer.

    NMS:

    A lot of the details were shared in the description above. Abacus brought the heat and challenged the men to take action on what we discussed. The PAX will be focusing on specific ways to get men together for shared experiences. The idea of serving together rose to the top of the list. YHC shared how women stereotypically relate by talking with each other while men stereotypically relate by doing something together. A shared mission brings men together, breaks down barriers and builds up bonds. The First F workouts are a strong example of this. The PAX brainstormed some more possibilities that included everything from helping people move to poker to road trips to serving together in the local church.

    The Shining seemed to experience a wake-up call this morning and this team will be looking to break out of the normal “men’s Bible study” mode and launch into action. Let’s see if the talk becomes action. If not, then The Shining will be a way to feed the Sad Clown Syndrome as opposed to killing it. YHC still holds the hope that God can kill the Sad Clown Syndrome in his life and in the lives of other men as they choose to ENGAGE together.

    Let’s see what these men do…

    The Carpenter

     

  • Anxiety and Stress – 3rd F Gathering

    14 men chose to engage in a spiritual workout this morning at the Rise & Shine Diner and it went something like this…

    Motown fired up the discussion on “Lesson #7: Don’t Make Life So Damn Complicated” by asking the question, “What makes our lives complicated?” The PAX engaged the question in one large group and pulled no punches.

    Motown shared from the “Seven Lessons in Manliness from the Greatest Generation” study we have been considering:

    If there is a common thread in these lessons, it’s having a common sense and a level-headed approach to life. The Greatest Generation’s uncomplicated approach to life is refreshing. They didn’t go on a diet, they simply at whole food; they didn’t exercise, they worked around the house; they didn’t obsess about their relationships, they just found a gal they loved and married her. They didn’t think about how to get things done, they just got em’ done.

    The PAX threw down comments and questions about this quote and dialogued about how it applies to our lives today as men.

    Motown pointed us to two Bible passages:

    Matthew 6:31-34

    31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

    Micah 6:8

    He has shown you, O mortal, what is good.
        And what does the Lord require of you?
    To act justly and to love mercy
        and to walk humbly with your God.

    The PAX then wrestled with this content in one large group discussion. Motown finished up the main part with a reading from a devotion that spoke to the themes of the morning.

    Namerama, Numberama and Motown took us out in prayer.

    NMS:

    The DaVille PAX have been firing up the physical workouts and the call to arms has gone out to fire up the spiritual ones as well. I was asked this past weekend, “How is The Shining different than a Bible study?” I would say that this 3rd F gathering is different because the men are truly looking to push and sharpen each other through raw, honest dialogue and resulting action steps. The goal of this 3rd F gathering (and future ones!) is to propel men to ACTION. Most Bible studies can stay in the HEAD but not move to the HEART and then to the HANDS (aka action!).

    Motown asked, “What makes life complicated?” and the PAX shared about the endless struggle of keeping up with life in a 24 hour, device-driven world. The pace of life can suck the life out of us as we seek to MAN UP and lead. We talked openly about our struggles with our PRIDE, EGO and COMPETITIVENESS. We focused on what motivates us as men and how competition can turn into pride. This pride can drive us to work in a manner that breeds anxiety, stress and worry when we don’t know how things will turn out (even though everyone expects us to know this).

    We then focused on what motivates us. Is the motivation to get better for excellence or to get better to BE BETTER than someone else? If the motivation is the latter, then we will be in an endless competition that will feed our pride if we ‘succeed’ or destroy our self-worth if we ‘fail’.

    The discussion turned to the words of Jesus and his call to “seek first God’s kingdom and his righteousness and everything else will be given to you as well.” Where is our focus? Is it vertical (trusting God and serving Him for excellence)? Is it horizontal (competing with others to be better)? If we focus on the vertical then we can experience freedom, joy and strength.

    Life is a “you vs. you” workout where God is our true Q and He is the one that should be following!

    We can build “spiritual strength” (not just physical strength) as we exercise our faith through seeking to live out our God-given purpose in this world. These spiritual workouts give us a renewed perspective on our days and send us out into the world to take ACTION.

    A big THANK YOU to the men for stepping into this “you vs. you” spiritual workout this morning. Let’s go out and live with a vertical mindset so that we can more positively impact our horizontal relationships with every person we encounter!

    The Carpenter (summarizing the good work of MoTown who Q’d this spiritual workout)

     

  • Embrace Challenge – 3rd F

    18 men, including 3 FNGs, fought off the fartsack for a spiritual workout in the Rise & Shine Diner side room. The men started filling the room starting at 6:15 am and all were set to go by 6:40 am when 2 kettle bell fighters completed the PAX. Here is what went down…

    Opening call to arms and prayer

    YHC shared the sixth lesson from the “7 Lessons in Manliness from the Greatest Generation”

    The Greatest Generation wasn’t the greatest despite the challenges they faced, but because of them. Today many men shirk challenge and difficult pursuits, believing that the easier life is, the happier they’ll be. But our grandfathers knew better. They knew that one cannot have the bitter without the sweet, and that true happiness comes from the overcoming the kind of challenges that build character and refine the soul. The challenges they experienced made their joy all the more sweet because it was tinged with gratitude of knowing how easily it could all have been taken away.

    The PAX did some heavy lifting by chewing on the following Bible verses:

    James 1:2-4

    2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters,whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.4 Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

    2 Corinthians 4:8-9

    8 We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; 9 persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.

    Romans 5:3-5

    3 Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.

    Group Breakout – The PAX broke out into 3 groups at different tables. YHC threw down the challenge for the men to share from their personal experiences & struggles as opposed to talking in generalities. YHC handed out questions and the PAX got to work.

    Numberama, Namerama, Announcements.

    Abacus took us out.

    NMS:

    The Rise & Shine Diner was buzzing this morning with laughter and talking as the PAX rolled into the side room. There seemed to be a full team in place but then Mudface and Emoji rolled in with a Circus Maximus glow.  The Carpenter asked how it went and they said, “Rosie said to not tell you AND you are not allowed to read the backblast because you missed.” Good work on the fart sack punishment!

    YHC (Wild Thing) fired up the morning with a throw-down challenge to the men. He challenged the men to bring their lives to the table and share from personal experience as opposed to weak generalities. The PAX took up his challenge and fired up some impactful discussions around embracing challenges in our lives.

    Once again, the PAX realized that they were not alone in the struggles and challenges in this life. We are all struggling. We all need hope. We all are facing darkness. We all need help. We can’t fight these challenges alone and expect to win consistently. We need God and the PAX to MAN UP and STEP UP.

    This spiritual workout was one that we all needed.

  • Assume Innocence

    16 pax plus 2 FNGs showed up at the Shining to shine some light on LOVE.

    This is what transpired:

    COP

    Chatter and Fellowship as food orders were taken.

    Reading of Romans 8:35 –  Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?

    A Daily Prayer:

    • God, I offer myself again to you. You are in charge. I am your agent. Whatever you have in store for me, let me accept it and do with it as you would have me do. Your will be done, not mine. Please use me to be a help to another suffering sinner today.

    After the prayer we moved into our main workout which today was the continuation of a Headliner – a study on a topic.

    THANG

    The Pax jumped in fast and furious to tackle the next 11 ways to show / demonstrate / give love to someone:

    Does not boast – does not point to your own successes or accomplishments

    The Carpenter pointed out Golf Cart and how embodies this

    Not proud – believes that everyone is perfectly and wonderfully made by Creator

    Does not dishonor others – doesn’t make people feel small and respects their beliefs and God given right to make choices we don’t agree with. Who did you vote for? Can a Christian vote for Trump or how about Obama? How do you treat people on the other side of the issue of abortion? Black lives matter?  How do we honor someone who is gay?

    • This was an area we stayed on and had some great discussion with Dumbbell sharing from his life and a friend from his old church.

    Not self-seeking – is other oriented (Ex: Brian Bassett – Viral and the BRR)

    • Emoji pointed out the example that Fast Food shows in this area with his organized runs and the Pax agreed

    Not easily angered – takes time to see if it is a perceived injustice or true injustice AND what is a reaction that Glorifies God

    Keeps no record of wrongs – successfully resists bringing up the past. Finding peace through forgiveness- book http://www.focusonthefamily.com/media/daily-broadcast/finding-peace-through-forgiveness

    • The Carpenter shared how he kept a record and how he and M were damaged

    Always protects – stands up and sacrifices oneself to keep danger away from someone in the long term. Let’s one experience life lessons, protects their growth opportunities as well.

    • The pax talked about kids and Wild Thing brought truth and YHC added his truth – “in the long term” to the perspective on this element.

    Always trusts – believes and starts with a level of belief in their creditability, reliability, focus on others and connection as a person. Assumes innocence

    • Wild Thing brought it AGAIN as he talked about “Trusting” is to assume innocence.

    Always hopes – be willing to wait for transformation

    Always perseveres – doesn’t back down when facing headwinds, resistance and changing circumstances

    Love never fails – this we cannot be, we are human and two we don’t fully see the plan that God has and therefore we don’t truly know what failure looks like. But we press forward to the Glorification of Jesus Christ in our relationships that he has established for us.   Remember God is love. We are to be like Him.

    Abacus took out on a prayer after announcements.

    Announcements:

    • F3 tomorrow AM at “The Creek” – New Highland Baptist church – Opus will have his virgin Q!
    • Order your Focus Prayer Books (2 new features in 2017) by paying Abacus $20 and going to this link and filling out the form – – – http://www.paracleteanswers.com/material.html
    • 4/1/2017 – Iron Sharpens Iron – – – F3 style!
    • Gary’s eyesight is fading in one eye. Pray for our brother for healing and insight to God’s plan

  • Soar Like an Eagle

    5 pax plus 1 FNG showed up on a raining morning during this week between Christmas and New Years.

    This is what transpired:

    COP

    Chatter and Fellowship as food orders were taken.

    Reading of Isaiah 40:31 –  …but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.

    A Daily Prayer:

    • God, I offer myself again to you. You are in charge. I am your agent. Whatever you have in store for me, let me accept it and do with it as you would have me do. Your will be done, not mine. Please use me to be a help to another suffering sinner today.

    After the prayer we moved into our main workout which today was a Singlet – a study of a single verse.  This was an audible as the attendance was light.

    THANG

    Singlet of the day – Isaiah 40:31

    Broke the verse in 2 parts – What is the “IF”?  What is the “THEN”?

    What does it mean to “hope in the Lord”? Divot read out of another version and it said “wait upon the Lord” and Elmer stated that his notes say that to hope is to trust in the Lord.

    What does it mean to “soar on wings like eagles”? YHC mentioned how this could mean that we can reach new heights or go further. Fast Food talked about seeing more clearly. Elmer talk about not being tossed around by the world but being in control.

    What does it mean to “run and not grow weary”? Discussion around if you in life and worn down, most likely you are not in God’s will. Yikes!

    What does it mean to “walk and not be faint”? Discussion centered around endurance and consistency.

    NMS

    The Pax started arriving at The Shinning at around 6:25.  The Pax was light so we all gathered around in one table.  Given the numbers YHC modified and changed the workout from the next Headliner around Love to a Singlet on Isaiah 40:31.  This was the verse of the day in the Bible App…  After reading the verse Mud Face arrived and YHC took the opportunity to read the verse again.

    After the read we talk about “hoping in the Lord” and read some other versions.  Worm, being the book worm he is, brought us to verse 26 of Isaiah 40.  From there discussion really start flowing from the pax.

    The majority of the discussion centered around the what it means to “hope” / “trust” in the Lord. Then YHC shared how when he is upset with timing that he is not looking expectantly to the Lord and out of the Lord’s plan.  At the end of study YHC shared his action step was to go to the scriptures when he finds himself out of God’s will and to surrender on his knees daily. YHC challenged each man to make their own action step and do it!

    After announcements Fast Food took us out in a prayer.

    Announcements:

    • F3 tomorrow AM at “The Creek” – New Highland Baptist church – Opus will have his virgin Q!
    • Order your Focus Prayer Books by paying Abacus $20 and going to this link and filling out the form – – – http://www.paracleteanswers.com/material.html

  • Love First Step is to Surrender

    14 pax plus 7 FNGs showed up for the third Q at The Shinning.  To start we fellow-shipped and gave our orders to our most gracious host.

    This is what transpired:

    COP

    Chatter and Fellowship as food orders were taken.

    Reading of Romans 8:17 – Now if we are children, then we are heirs – heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his suffering in order that we may also share in His glory.

     

    A Daily Prayer:

    • God, I offer myself again to you. You are in charge. I am your agent. Whatever you have in store for me, let me accept it and do with it as you would have me do. Your will be done, not mine. Please use me to be a help to another suffering sinner today.

    After the prayer we moved into our main workout which today was again a Headliner.

    THANG

    Headliner of the day – Learning to Love part 1

    Review of last week’s lesson on Love –

    • Is Love important?  YES
    • How important is Love? #1
    • Why is Love important? It is the oxygen of our spirit.
    • To start YHC Read: 1 Corinthians 13:1-10 – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1+Corinthians+13%3A1-8&version=NIV
    • If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. 3 If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.
    • 4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 8 Love never fails.

    The pax then tore into the first three descriptors of love:

    • Love is patient
    • Define Patience
    • Example of a seeing someone being patient
    • Example of witnessing someone being patient to them
    • Love is kind
    • Define Kindness
    • Example of a seeing someone being kind
    • Example of witnessing someone being kind to them
    • Love does not envy
    • Define envy
    • Example of a seeing someone not being envious / sharing in the success of others
    • Example of witnessing someone not being envious to them

    NMS

    The Pax started arriving at The Shinning at around 6:20.  Chatter again was high and able body men rolled in with casual observance of the time.  6:30 came and the chatter continued as we take the first 10 minutes to engage and fellowship as our gracious server starts to take our orders.  10 minutes into the fellowship time YHC stood up and once again let everyone know that he was not a pastor, or gone to seminary nor has he been an ordained, and that this is a you versus you bible study.  YHC then continued with warming us spiritually with the reading of this week’s verse from Wild Thing’s Focus Prayer Book.  YHC then prayed to get things really started.

    With a little warmup the YHC reminded everyone what we covered last week.  Emoji shared that his first to get this right is to surrender.  Truth was spoken. Next the pax continued into the meat of their Love “Headliner” workout.

    This week’s headliner dived into the elements of Love.  Taking 10 minutes for each element, we tackled 3 before we continued the great naming…  After discussing I Cor. 12 that setup the “love” chapter YHC read the first 8 verses of the Love chapter.  Then we starting digging deeper into each ot the elements of love. Discussion started slow, but then began in earnest.

    Patience was defined  as being interested when you aren’t and also as moving at someone else’s speed (slowing down or speeding up as necessary). Wild Thing read the official definition – being able to accept or tolerate delays, problems, or suffering without becoming annoyed or anxious.  After discussing the definition YHC asked for live examples in people lives as seeing and experience patience.  Care was mentioned as one who has shown a great amount of patience. Emoji talked about his parents showing him patience (after he wrecked the car at 12 years old) and changing his whole mindset. That pax saw how impactful love through patience can be.

    Kindness was next up.  Lots of great definitions where thrown around at the Pax got to a feverish pitch. Some were – Giving of time and effort / doing something positive / using your energy in an unexpected manner to build someone up at a cost  / lending your strength to others.  Once again after this discussion the YHC asked for live examples of seeing and experiencing kindness.  More examples and experiences where shared and the Pax was again moved.

    Does not envy was the last we had time for this Thursday morning at The Shinning.  Definitions included wanting something you don’t have. Being a negative attribute we looked at the opposite and came up with rejoicing in the success of others.  YHC told the story of teammates celebrating for one of them getting their Olympic trial cut.  The Pax talked about how this is against everything we see on TV. Wild Thing talked about how he is praying for his co-workers success and that has helped, but it is still not natural.

    Lots of great sharing and challenges where made today.  The Pax was challenged to take one of these elements and be committed to being intentional with it and show patience/kindness/rejoice in someone’s success.  What do you choice?

    Announcements:

    • F3 tomorrow AM at “The Creek” – New Highland Baptist church – Spit will have the Q and part 2 of the Reindeer Games.
    • 4/1/2017 – Iron Sharpens Iron – – – F3 style!
    • Order your Focus Prayer Books by paying Abacus $20 and going to this link and filling out the form – – – http://www.paracleteanswers.com/material.html
    • Nathan (a 11 yr old grandson of Postal who has a bone infection) is doing much better

  • 3rd F Tackles Love

    8 pax plus one 14 FNGs showed up for the second Q at The Shinning.  Being a 3rd F Q, the chatter was high, tardiness was present in force and the food flowed. #TheShining

    This is what transpired:

    COP

    Chatter and Fellowship as food orders were taken.

    Reading of James 1:26-27 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=James+1%3A26-27&version=NIV

    A Daily Prayer:

    • God, I offer myself again to you. You are in charge. I am your agent. Whatever you have in store for me, let me accept it and do with it as you would have me do. Your will be done, not mine. Please use me to be a help to another suffering sinner today.

    After the prayer we moved into our main workout which today was a Headliner.

    THANG

    Headliner of the day – Love is the Oxygen of our Body

    First we tackled the question is Love important?

    Second, we mosed over and tackled the question – how important is Love?

    Matthew 22:36-39 – see that same story from Matthew’s eyes. https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+22%3A36-39&version=NIV

    Third, we discussed why is Love important?

     

    NMS

    We arrived at the newly named A/O – #TheShining (Rise and Shine Diner) with the weather as warm as it will be for a few days.  Chatter was high and able body men rolled in with casual observance of the time.  6:30 came and the chatter rose and food orders were taken by our gracious server.  10 minutes into the fellowship time YHC stood up let everyone know that he was not a pastor, or gone to seminary nor has he been an ordained, and that this is a you versus you bible study. You will get what you put into it and you can sit back in listen, participate or just tune us out and eat some grub.  YHC then continued with warming us spiritually with the reading of this week’s verse from Abacus’s Focus Prayer Book.  YHC then prayed to get things really started.

    Next the pax took on a “Headliner” workout.  A “Headliner” is a study on a subject, and this week’s subject is Love.  Other options we are exploring as we move into this new territory of bringing the 3rd F alive are:

    • Singlet – a study of a single verse
    • Carve Out – a study of a Biblical Passage
    • Spotlight – a study of a Biblical Character
    • Headline – a study on a subject
    • Tubing it – a video Bible Study
    • Worming it – a study of a book
    • Preschool – a devotional style study
    • Storytime – a study of a story from the Bible

    This headliner was broken in three sections and the pax stayed together as we opened the Good Book and read some truths.  After reading some truths to discover if love is important, thoughts were thrown back and forth. Emoji started getting deep early by factioding that God is Love.  After getting warmed up, the Pax opened up and participation skyrocketed. Atlas threw down a monstrous KaBOOM by sharing his experience that if he isn’t in the word he doesn’t truly know what love looks like. Elmer shared what all were thinking – That’s a wrap, because we just got feed in a big way at The Shining. Dan (FNG to be named) saw light bulbs go off on how this is abiding to God. Words were shared more Truth was revealed. Rocky shared some of his story and employed us not to keep our junk a secret. When we keep our junk a secret the Sad Clown reigns. Death to the Sad Clown!  YHC tied it up with the thought that Love is the oxygen that feeds the body and makes it possible for the arms to move and the whole body to work. When Love (God) / Oxygen (O) is breathed in, CO2 is breathed out and Christ touches those around us.

    Announcements:

    • F3 tomorrow AM at “The Creek” – New Highland Baptist church – Mud Face and Chewy have the Q
    • We are a go for “The Shinning” on 12/29
    • Tim S is recovery from knee surgery / Dennis (FNG to be named later) starts a new job on Monday / Dave (FNG to be named later) is moving and needs help / Nathan (a 11 yr old grandson of Postal has a bone infection
    • Focus Prayer Books orders are coming
    • Man-up Award: Fast Food – stepped up initiated  and organized many men to rack leaves of lawns for those needing help.  1 House was the goal – – 3 was accomplished! (JARLC)

  • 3rd F Experiment – Rise Up!

    24 men stormed out of their beds to participate in a 3rd F experiment at the Rise & Shine Diner at 6:30 am. Most of the crowd were guys from the DaVille area. Some of them have engaged in 1st F workouts while others are actively considering joining us in the gloom.

    Here is what went down this morning:

    YHC (Wild Thing) opened up with a call to arms and challenged the men to embrace a vision of teaming up as men to fight the battles of their lives. He shared from Luke 2 in the Bible and described how the shepherds didn’t keep the good news of God to themselves but they went and shared it. YHC challenged the men to go out and share the good news of how they are being impacted by meetings like this one. He invited The Carpenter to share.

    The Carpenter followed up by sharing about the men’s group called MANera that recently moved to this new location. This men’s group had grown to a weekly gathering of 40-50 men years ago but never planted a new one. The men had engaged in topics that helped them in their marriages, parenting, leadership and faith that led to concrete action steps. He shared how the 3rd F could be the way to resurrect and expand these kinds of discussions and action steps. He also shared about the SadClown Syndrome and how F3 is like targeted chemotherapy to kill it off. As SadClowns, we are all smiling on the outside while sad (or dying) on the inside. We need to rise up!

    YHC then opened up the floor for input on how this 3rd F gathering can be impactful. 

    • Abacus fired up the discussion with a hard-hitting challenge to the men in the room. He shared how the meetings need to focus on topics that truly challenge men. He described how the physical workouts push our physical bodies but we also need to push our hearts & minds.
    • Another man shared about how he needed a place to know that he was not alone with his struggles.
    • Another man shared the idea of bringing in experts to talk on topics and then have the men engage in discussions around those topics.
    • The men then entered into a spirited debate about how to go about doing this. Some wanted lighter topics that allowed for more men to check out the group. Others wanted hard-hitting topics that would go right to the gut of the problem. The attack plan will be determined as we experiment.
    • Earthworm shared about what he has implemented with GridIron. He shared about the 15 pre-game devotion that he led and how it began with his leadership but is not mostly led by other men. He also shared about Ben Franklin’s idea for engaging business leaders and how we can follow a similar pattern for bringing in experts to push us in our thinking and action.

    Abacus followed up with the idea of having different men “Q” this spiritual 3rd F “AO” and to let them decide on the format and content. This would be like the physical workouts but these would be spiritual workouts. Abacus volunteered to Q next Thursday’s spiritual workout. At least two other men expressed an interest in stepping up to Q in the coming weeks. One man shared that he would like to start a new 3rd F AO in the near future.

    The group agreed that we need both physical and spiritual workouts to grow as men in our leadership and faith. The current F3 guys saw the value of adding in spiritual workouts (3rd F). The other guys heard about the value for adding in physical workouts (1st F). Over all of this, the men saw the potential for 2nd F opportunities to bring the groups together to build up the camaraderie toward both.

    Stay tuned for what can come from all of this…

    Something is happening here that can add gasoline to the F3 fire through 3rd F discussions that lead to concrete action.

    We all want to kill the SadClown Syndrome in our lives.

    We need more than the workouts. We need God’s help and each other. If a man leaves “the herd” then he will become dead meat.

    We are in this together!