Filed under HEART …

Nov 24 2011
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faith, family, HEART, LIFE

The F’s and not the Black

Thanxgiving is my favorite holiday!  I like to spell it Thanx because it puts the Christ back in Thanksgiving! Christ’s name begins with an X in Greek. Therefore, I give Thanx for the many blessings He has provided me. Here are a few reasons that I love Thanxgiving:

  • Faith & My Father’s Gifts: My God in heaven has given me such great blessings and gifts through life in Him… and He makes all the rest possible too.
  • Family: I have the greatest kiddos, the most wonderful wife, and even a pretty great dog!
  • Food: I just love the Thanxgiving Carbs, pumpkin pie, and the turkey comma that follows!
  • Football: You can’t beat The Lions & The Packers on Turkey Day… not to mention a triple dose of the NFL!
  • Film: I love a good movie and Thanxgiving usually provides Charlie Brown, Elf, and It’s a Wonderful Life!

One thing I don’t fully enjoy is the whole Black Friday mess… especially now that they are bleeding over into my Hallowed Thursday. Michelle and Kaitlyn are braving the crowds and the chaos while Eli and I sleep off the comma!

I pray you enjoy this blessed holiday with the “F’s” and hopefully not the Black!

Nov 23 2011
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BODY, discipline, fitness, goals, health, HEART, LIFE, weight

Guess who’s 199!

Today is a milestone in my journey of fitness, life overall for that matter.  As of this morning I broke the 200 lb. threshold.  I should probably call it a choke-hold since my weight has been an ever-present reminder of my lack of discipline, insecurity, and unhealthy coping mechanism for many years now.

I went off to college in 1994 at 190 lbs. and my brokenness had no bounds. My first semester saw the addition of the Freshman 15. Not long after that I ballooned up to 255, maybe more around the birth of Kaitlyn. The years following saw the roller-coastering of fad diets and leaf-turnings, but nothing corrected the reasons that I chose food for reward or punishment. However, through the grace of our Lord and the power of the Holy Spirit enabling my lifestyle of eating and exercise discipline, I have seen great victory. I don’t need food to comfort me when the gospel of Jesus is enough.  I don’t need food to punish my sorry sinfulness away. I have the grace of Jesus and the promise of life, hope, and glory in Him.

Psalm 63 states that “He satisfies me as with the richest of foods!”

So, this goal, beginning in February, has been properly realized today! And I am excited! Yes, I will have a feast this week, but then it’s back to the discipline of health that has been a life change now for just under 10 months.

Want to know more, ask me about it.  I love to share how this victory came to be!

Nov 19 2011
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discipline, fitness, goals, health, HEART

C.P.T.

Do you know what that stands for? It stands for Certified Personal Trainer… and as of yesterday, I am now one!

I have been studying for the last five months to reach this goal. I chose the national accreditation offered through NASM, the National Academy of Sports Medicine. It wasn’t easy learning the medical names for muscles, intricate training techniques, or the glossary heavy material. But I’m glad I stayed disciplined to the process.

Yesterday I drove to Livermore, at the airport of all places, to take the written exam that solidified my certification. The test was more difficult than I first expected but with much prayer, from myself and others, I was able to recall all that I read and studied. Thanks to all who were, and have been, praying!

So now, I’m going to enjoy the accomplishment for about a week and then figure out the best way to go about incorporating this into the routine of working at the gym.  What’s nice is how much I’ve been training myself with the concepts– which I will share about more in some future posts. My desire is to help people who want health & fitness for the long haul and want help getting there. I know I needed it!

And it’s also fun because Michelle has been such a great support. She even bought me some “trainer guy” clothing. She’s the best!

Shameless plug: IF you know of someone (or yourself) who is looking to receive training, 1 or a group of 2-3, then message me.  I’m affordable!

 

Nov 15 2011
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church, community, SOUL

The Machine?

Below is a post from Alan Fadling that you should read… I couldn’t agree more.

A very simple question that we might consider asking ourselves as paid or volunteer church leaders is, “What is the church?” Sometimes it feels more like a machine than a community of people sharing Christ together. Along these lines, I always appreciate Eugene Peterson’s seasoned insights, like this one:

“Another common way to avoid community is to turn the church into an institution. In this way people are not treated on the basis of personal relationships but in terms of impersonal functions. Goals are set that will catch the imagination of the largest numbers of people; structures are developed that will accomplish the goal through planning and organization. Organizational planning and institutional goals become the criteria by which the community is defined and evaluated. In the process the church becomes less and less a community, that is, people who pay attention to each other, ‘brothers and sisters,’ and more and more a collectivism of ‘contributing units.’” (Eugene H. Peterson. A Long Obedience in the Same Direction. Downer’s Grove: InterVarsity Press, 1980, 2000, p. 179-80.)

In The Leadership Institute, we call this the difference between a “program-centered” church and a “people-centered” church.

Program-centered ministry can become more of an “it” than an “us”… {the rest} …

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