Do the hard things first….

6/13/20

QIC- Summit

Capri lap around circle 

Warm-up

WindMill- 12

SSH- 20

Cherry picker- 12

Squats- 20

Arm circles – 12

Moroccan NC-20


The Thang –

Mosey to Napa- 

Mini Merkin madness –

20reg 

12 wide 

20 hand release

12 ranger  

20 reg 

Mosey to school –

Nur to 1st sidewalk 

20 squats 

Lt dan back –  wait for 6 

Nur to sidewalk 

20 squats 

Side shuffle to next sidewalk 

20 American hammers 

Side shuffle back to 1st sidewalk  

Lt dan back – wait for 6 

Nur to sidewalk

20 squats 

Side shuffle to next sidewalk 

20 American hammers  

Sprint to 3rd sidewalk 

25 ssh 

Sprint back to 2nd sidewalk. 

Side shuffle to 1st sidewalk 

Lt dan to start- wait for 6 

Nur to 1st 

15 squats 

Side shuffle to 2nd sidewalk 

20 American hammers  

Sprint to 3rd sidewalk 

25 SSH

Karaoke to last sidewalk 

30 merkins 

Karaoke to 3rd

Sprint to 2nd

Side shuffle to 1st 

It dan to start. 

Breathe –

3rd F

Mosey to Napa

4 corners – 

1st corner- 5 burpees 

Nur to 2nd corner 

2nd corner- 40 squats 

Lt Dan to 3rd corner 

3rd corner- 100 lbc – nice steady pace  

Nur to 4th 

4th corner- 40 flutter kicks 

Mosey back to circle for 

COT 

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Rogue Repeat

Date: 06/11/2020

AO: CHOP, Milton, DE

QIC: Fireplex

Warm up

SSH – 30 IC

Windmills – 20 IC

Bolt 45’s – IC (4 Count) – 15 squats to halfway down.  15 squats halfway to full down.  15 full squats.

Cherry Pickers – 20 IC

Moroccan Night Clubs – 20 IC

Pax completed a Toy Soldier set consisting of 100 LBC’s, 50 E2K’s each side, and 25 Big Boy ‘s.

“Chairman Lap” out the back driveway of the CHOP, to the left on Willow, left on Union and to the left back to CHOP parking lot.  Approx. .25 miles.

The Thang

All Pax were asked to complete a set of 21’s approx. 15 – 20 yards apart. Complete 20 merkins and bear crawl approx. 15 – 20 yds and complete 1 Bobby Hurley.  Bear crawl back the 15 – 20 yards and complete 19 merkins, then bear crawl back and complete 2 Bobby Hurleys.  Continue until you reverse the order to 20 Bobby Hurleys and 1 merkin.

F3 Message – 06/11/2020

SURROUNDED BY PRECIOUS – #5880

Friday, July 24, 2009

Why are refrigerator doors important? Well, you probably say, “To keep the cold inside,” or “to keep that little light inside from burning out.” Yeh, that’s true too. But you might be forgetting one of the most valuable functions of a refrigerator door. That’s right; it is a great place to display the artwork of your children or your grandchildren! Right! Ours has been covered for years. Now, throughout our house and our offices, you can find pictures drawn by our grandchildren, crafts made by our grandchildren. You may not think they’re masterpieces or great works of art, but they’re precious to us.

I’m Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about “Surrounded by Precious.”

And why are these humble artistic creations so valuable to us? Because of who made them, of course! The person who created them is precious to us, so what he created is precious to us. There’s a song the children love to sing; I did, too, when I was one of those Sunday School kids. “Jesus loves the little children, all the children of the world. Red and yellow, black and white, they are precious in His sight. Jesus loves the little children of the world.” They’re all precious to Him – people of every color, every background, every I.Q., every nationality, every age. And they had better all be precious to us.

Sadly, even though according to the Bible, “God is no respecter of persons” (Romans 2:11), God’s children, all too often, are respecters of persons. We judge people by their category. To be honest, most of us secretly, and sometimes openly, think of some people as being “not quite on our level,” or not our type, as being “outsiders,” or in some way not quite as important as we are.

Don’t try telling that to God. In His book, you and I are surrounded by people who are precious. Why? For the same reason our grandson’s artwork is precious to us – because of who made them. Every man or woman in our world was made in the image of Almighty God Himself. Every man and woman in our world is “fearfully and wonderfully made” (Psalm 139:13), and is, in the Bible’s words, “God’s workmanship.” Our subtle racism, or prejudice, or feelings of superiority are nothing less than sin to a holy God who “so loved the world that He gave His Son.” (John 3:16).

And your Savior went out of His way to be with those everyone considered being of less worth. He’d walk past the religious leaders to express His forgiveness to a repentant prostitute. He’d make a despised Samaritan the example of a good neighbor. He would stop the entire parade around Him for the man everyone else wanted to shut up; blind Bartimaeus. And in Mark 1:40-42, our word for today from the Word of God, it says, “A man with leprosy came to Jesus and begged on his knees, ‘If you are willing, you can make me clean.’ Filled with compassion, Jesus reached out His hand and touched the man. ‘I am willing,’ He said. ‘Be clean!'”

What a scandal! Lepers were the lowest of the low – the total outcasts. And no one ever touched them except Jesus. Every person is of equal value to Him. Every person should be of equal value to you and me as His follower. No matter what race, no matter what class, no matter what their limitations, no matter what their education, no matter what nation or religion they come from.

Jesus’ followers don’t get to choose who they’ll treat as precious, because they’re all precious to Him. Our mission is to show every person in our personal world how very special they are to Him and to us because of Who made them!

Respectfully Submitted,

Fireplex

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D-Day+76[Years]

COT @ Georgetown, DE WWII Memorial

6 June 2020

QIC: Chappie

14 PAX posted at the Aegis AO in Georgetown for a D-Day inspired workout by Chappie that went a little something like this…

WARM-O-RAMA

  • SSH – 18 IC
  • IW – 18 IC
  • Cherry Picker – 10 IC
  • SwartzJack – 18 IC
  • MNC – 18 IC

PATRIOT RUN – for 2 reasons:

1) Today is 76th Anniversary of D-Day!

2) We should NEVER be ashamed to fly it high! And fly it high we should!

>>>To County Bank Steps      (We’ll chalk that one up as practice…know what YHC means?)

Who said that? “Soldiers, Sailors and Airmen of the Allied Expeditionary Force: You are about to embark upon the Great Crusade, toward which we have striven these many months. The eyes of the world are upon you. The hope and prayers of liberty-loving people everywhere march with you.      Your task will not be an easy one. Your enemy is well trained, well equipped and battle-hardened. He will fight savagely. But this is the year 1944! The tide has turned! The free men of the world are marching together to victory! I have full confidence in your courage, devotion to duty and skill in battle. We will accept nothing less than full victory! Good luck! And let us all beseech the blessing of Almighty God upon this great and noble undertaking.  ~Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower, Supreme Allied Commander, 6 June 1944.

Workout: PAX Plank, each, in turn goes to top & back down. (1 rotation)

PATRIOT RUN:

>>>To School Field:

Almost nothing went exactly as planned on June 6, 1944. In the end, partly due to poor weather and visibility, bombers failed to take out key artillery, particularly at Omaha Beach. Many paratroopers were dropped far off their marks and became vulnerable to German snipers. And during the land invasion, a critical fleet of marine tanks sunk in stormy seas and failed to make it ashore. Despite the setbacks, Allied troops pushed through and by pure grit, got the job done

Workout:

Round 1: Low-Crawl to 1st Sidewalk (get low!)

  • LZ Jumps (Squat Jump, Parachute Landing Fall style w/feet & knees together) – 33 Single Count     
  • Merkins33 SC

Round 2: Run For Cover! (He sees you, get down! & low-crawl | Run for cover!, get up and run) from 1st SW to 4th SW and back. Snipe got YHC on this one, ankle’s still a little stiff but only because Chauffeur asked about it!

Round 3: Low-Crawl to start

  • LZ Jumps33 SC (Squat Jumps PLF style)
  • Hand-Release Merkins33 SC (Brutal, but when you’re ready to quite, remember they didn’t – Burp if you need a break/rest)     

YHC Omaha’d the rest of the field workout due to time constraints, time to move!

PATRIOT WOSEY:

>>>Around corner to School Parking Lot:

French businessman Bernard Marie was 5 years old and living in Normandy on June 6, 1944. He remembers before the Allied invasion, he and his friends could not go out and play on the beaches because “Mother couldn’t trust anybody. So, for me, everybody wearing a uniform was a bad guy.” Bernard Marie recalls when the shooting was done. He heard his mother outside yelling, so he and his grandfather ran upstairs to follow her. “I will never forget,” he says, “She was hugging a soldier! I could not understand that. For me it was a bad guy. So she called me to come and said, ‘These soldiers are good, they’ve come to save us.'” To this day, Bernard Marie is grateful to that soldier—and to all the veterans who fought to liberate France from the Nazis. “The most important thing for any human being is freedom,” he says. “We cannot forget the 6th of June.”

Workout:

Advance & Retreat – PAX took turns calling Advance! or Retreat! for length of parking lot (kinda like suicides but not…)

  • Advance! – mosey forward
  • Retreat !– nuR back

PATRIOT RUN: (With a self-imposed punishment run by Quattro who everyone else thought was running ahead to get pics. No pics, but it did bring an important life lesson: Pay attention to details. Lol! Accelerating man!

>>>To Armory:

PAX acknowledged family members who fought in WWII, especially D-Day. Some of those mentioned…

Chauffeur’s grandfather, somewhere in the crowd
Quattro’s grandfather (L), SPC James H. Baxter Jr.
Chappie’s grandfather, CPL William Goodwin

We’ve done a lot of 33 reps today. Explanation: Done to honor YHC’s grandfather, CPL William Goodwin, who jumped into Normandy with his 508th PIR (Red Devil Regiment (82nd Airborne). They fought for the next 33 days in and around Chef-du-Pont before being sent back to England and preparing to jump again in Holland (Operation Market Garden).

Workout:

(Start at curb) Bearcrawl to top of steps – 33 American (of course!) Hammers, return… (again YHC cut out the rinse & repeat which included: 33 X’s & O’s & 33 Gas Pumpers (4-count)

PATRIOT RUN:

>>>Return to AO at WWII Memorial:

Other quotes:

“We’ll start the war from right here!” ~ Brig. Gen. Theodore Roosevelt, Jr., Assistant Commander of the 4th Infantry Division, upon finding that his force had been landed in the wrong place on Utah Beach. (Yes, that’s who you think it is)

“I took chances on D-Day that I never would have taken later in the war.”      ~First Sgt. C. Carwood Lipton, 506th PIR, 101st Airborne Division. (Band of Brothers)

PAX circled up for the COT around the WWII Memorial

  • Number-Rama
  • Name-O-Rama
  • Named FNG: Welcome to Ruxpin’s 2.0, Peyton (now F3 Peddles)
  • Announcements & Prayers

A huge welcome back to Summit! We’ve missed you! Great to have you in the ranks again, brother. As always, YHC is grateful and humbled by the opportunity to lead these awesome HIM. Always inspired to hear the stories of WWII veteran’s from our own families as well. Let’s live lives that honor the sacrifices of those from the Greatest Generation.

~Chappie, out!

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CHOP 6/2/2020 And we kept runnin and running and running.

F3 CHOP 6/2/2020

  • Be free of charge
  • Be open to all men
  • Be held outdoors, rain or shine, heat or cold
  • Be led by men who participate in the workout in a rotating fashion, with no training or certification necessary
  • End with a Circle of Trust

WARM-0-RAMA

20 SSH IC

20 cherry pickers IC

20 smurf jacks IC

20 Grady Corn IC

THE THANG

Run approximately .5 miles to parking lot circle in front of local HOB school where pax will complete the escalator.

Escalator- Take lap around parking lot and do 10 burpees, Lap around parking lot 10 burpees 20 jumpin beans lap around parking lot 10 burpees 20 jumping beans 30 merkins F3 message insterted here (details at end of back blast) … Lap around parking lot 10 burpees, 20 jumping beans 30 merkins 40 squats. Lap around parking lot 10 burpees, 20 jumping beans, 30 merkins 40 squats 50 lbc lap around parking lot. Wosey to stop sign, Mosey .5 miles back to CHOP.

Number o rama (12 HIM posted)

Name o rama

COT- Please continue to pray for our President and his advisors. Please pray for peace during this time of unrest. Praise the Lord for Quatros father in law and let keep him lifted in prayer to make a full recovery. GritMill will be reopening on July 2 2020. CHOP will be closed and all HIM will meet at the Grit Mill. Way to get after it HIM!! (total distance running today was 3 miles)

F3 MESSAGE

Ephesians 5:15-21 15Be very careful, then, how you live-not as unwise but as wise, 16making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. 17Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the LORD’s will is.

The Devil is about like a roaring lion right now. He is using every distraction he can to separate us, and cause divide. We need to discern the time, we need to remember the great commission. Jesus told us to simply treat others the way we wish to be treated not to treat others the way they treat us. Its an easy lesson, but a hard practice.

Matthew 5:43-48 

43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ 44 [a]But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, 45 that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. 46 For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? 47 And if you greet your [b]brethren only, what do you do more than others? Do not even the [c]tax collectors do so? 48 Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.

Matthew 5:41 41 And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two.

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The H.O.B./M.E. 500

The so-named workout will become evident as you read on but it was done in honor of the race that is always run on Memorial Day — The Indianapolis 500. This year it is postponed to later this Summer in August. Meanwhile, it served as a good motivator for the first workout at CHOP since mid-March.

Monday was the “official” reload of F3 First State since the shutdown and it was a good one! The relaunch was a brutal 2nd Annual Memorial Day Mini CSAUP at Cape Henlopen State Park. 13 PAX started the day with a mile-long double Patriot Run to the beach, planted the shovel flags, promptly got completely wet, and commenced to making “sugar cookies” between sets of Sandbear and recitations of the F3 principles: Open to all men. Free. Always outdoors, rain or shine, hot or cold. Peer led. And always end with a COT. It all unraveled from there. But it was awesome to be back together! PAX shared brief bio’s of fallen warriors throughout the workout to keep focused on the reason for the Day. We ended the 2-hr CSAUP with a tailgate coffeeteria.

The morning after: 13 PAX posted again for what was originally scheduled as a day of reeecovery. Yet the draw of being circled up together again for motivation, accountability, locking shields, and to be sharpened “as iron sharpens iron,” drew PAX out of the fartsack to ignore recovery for a Chappie led H.O.B./M.E. 500 — so named after the perfect little oval in front of these two elementary schools: H.O. Brittingham & Milton Elementary…

The Oval

First things first…

WARM-O-RAMA: (something like this)

Disclaimer given because it’s been so long, and because of the presence of an FNG; welcome Spread!

  • SSH – 18 IC
  • Crab Flippers – 18 IC
  • Moroccan Night Clubs – 18 IC (not Arm-Circles Chappie!)
  • Windmill – 18 IC

Mosey’d to H.O.B. & M.E.

3rd F YHC chose to share his 3rd F word to be sure to get it in:

First, a quick recitation from the PAX of F3 core principles and mission.

See if you can finish this very popular verse from Jeremiah 29:11 : “For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you…’ <PAUSE> …’a future and a hope.'”

We tend to think the 2 most important thoughts of this verse are that God will give us A FUTURE and A HOPE.

But I’ve been re-thinking this lately because in our nation, our state, and our communities we’re surrounded not only by signs people are putting on their front lawns with the word “hope.” on them, but behind those signs are people concerned about an undetermined and unknown future. They’re looking for hope. Maybe you are too!

Whether we’re talking about businesses, schools, churches or other entities that have been affected by the shutdown who wonder if they’ll be able to reopen and what it will look like when/if they do, nobody likes an unknown future. That’s why I think there are 2 words in Jeremiah 29:11 that are even more important than the words “future” and “hope.” I’m talking about the words: “I KNOW.” God was saying to Israel, the false prophets don’t know the future, but “I know.” Israel themselves didn’t know the future, but God said, “I know.” Our federal, state, and local governments can’t even pretend to know the future, but God says, “_______________.”

Admit it, having an unknown future bugs us! It’s disorienting! I don’t know the future, and you don’t know the future, but the most important part of this verse, that part which actually gives us hope, is that God says, “I know…I ALONE know…the plans I have for you.” This is a call to turn to God and trust Him!

For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.'” Trust Him for those plans, THAT future!

The Thang:

PAX partnered up and completed the following exercises cumulatively (Partner 1 runs lap, partner 2 exercises, swap, rinse and repeat to total number of reps were completed:

  • 100 – Apollo Ono
  • 200 – Merkins
  • 300 – Seal Jacks
  • 400 – Squats
  • 500 – LBC’s (500, get it?)

Mosey return to CHOP AO

Number-Rama

Name-O-Rama – Welcome again, Jalil Davis (F3 Spread)

COT – Prayers lifted for several PAX and family members, etc.

Honored to Q the reload workout at CHOP. Welcome back, welcome, back, welcome back…

Chappie, out!

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A Circle, A Square, and a Straight Line

Date: 03/21/2020

AO: Aegis, Georgetown, DE

QIC: Fireplex

Warm up

SSH – 30 IC

Bolt 45’s – IC (4 Count) – 15 squats to halfway down.  15 squats halfway to full down.  15 full squats.

Cherry Pickers – 15 IC

Windmills – 15 IC

Mountain Climbers – 20 IC

Jiminy Crickets – 10 OYO

The Thang

At the Aegis, Pax completed the Route 66 routine around the circle.  1 lap around the Aegis and complete 1 burpee.  A second lap around the circle and complete 2 burpees.  Rinse and repeat until reaching 7 burpees.

Pax moseyed to the Georgetown Firehouse to complete a Mike Tyson set of 7’s in the back parking lot utilizing a bear crawl to traverse the distance between the station wall and a set of parking bumpers.  Pax completed 1 Mike Tyson at the wall and bear crawled across to the parking bumpers to complete 6 Mike Tyson’s, then bear crawled back to the wall for 2 Mike Tyson’s and back to parking bumpers for 5 Mike Tyson’s.  Rinse and repeat until the number of evolutions was reversed from where it began.

Pax moseyed to the school.    

Spartan Run Routine – Run/sprint approx. 50 yards from one parking lot light pole to the next and drop and do 10 merkins.  Plank until all Pax are complete.  Run/sprint 50 yards back to the starting light pole and complete 10 merkins.   Plank for the 6.  Pax completed 10 reps for 100 merkins for the exercise.

Pax moseyed back to Aegis and finished strong with a Toy Soldier set consisting of 50 LBC’s, 30 E2K’s each side, and 20 Big Boy ‘s.

F3 Message 03/21/20

THE PARALYSIS OF ANALYSIS – #8505

August 16, 2019

It’s got to be one of my favorite plays – “Fiddler on the Roof.” The story is virtually a modern classic. It tells with this incredible charm and warmth the story of 19th Century Jews in Russia. All the joys of Jewish faith and Jewish family are there, along with the pain of persecution for being Jewish. Tevye, the milkman, is the colorful father of the family; a man who is forever arguing with himself. If you’re familiar with the play, you’ll remember how his conversations with himself – and even with God – will go back and forth as he talks himself in and out of opposite viewpoints. Tevye will present one view, and then inadvertently he will say, “On the other hand…” and he’ll talk himself out of it. He doesn’t actually reach many conclusions!

I’m Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about “The Paralysis of Analysis.”

There are a lot of folks who have a little bit of Tevye in them – always analyzing, often not reaching any conclusion. I’m a data-based decision maker. I like to weigh all the information I can before I make a decision or a commitment. And that’s a good thing until it paralyzes you; until it keeps you from exercising the one thing the Bible says you have to have to please God – faith.

In John 6, beginning with verse 7, we see an example of the disciples going as far as analyzing could take them and nearly missing a great miracle. Jesus and His disciples are facing this hungry multitude of at least 5,000 people. Sizing up the situation analytically, in our word for today from the Word of God, Philip gets his calculator out and tells Jesus, “Eight months’ wages would not buy enough bread for each one to have a bite!” So much for the earth-math. Jesus is about to do something that earth-math could never anticipate.

Andrew’s calculation is simpler but it leads to the same human-sense conclusion. He said, “Here is a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, but how far will they go among so many?” But using miracle-math instead of earth-math, Jesus instructs His men to “Have the people sit down.” You probably know the rest. Thousands were fed from that one small lunch, and the disciples “filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the five barley loaves left over.” Don’t you just love it – one basket of leftovers for each disciple. So much for earth-math.

When Jesus went to his hometown of Nazareth, all the people there could do was analyze Jesus’ history, and the Bible says it was the one place Jesus could do no miracle because of their unbelief. Endless analysis (intellectual, theological) ultimately takes you in this futile circle and it often costs you the miracles that come only to those who risk everything on a great Savior.

“We walk by faith, not by sight,” Paul says (2 Corinthians 5:7). Now some people need to think a little more and they need to use their God-given mind to seek out the truth. But there’s only so far thinking and analyzing can take you. Those who try to figure out the science of stepping out of a boat when Jesus says to, will never know what it is to walk on water.

Right now, God may be asking you to take a step that doesn’t quite add up. All your analyzing can’t show you how you’re going to get from here to there. The bridge over that gap? Yeah, it has a name. It’s called faith.

Don’t miss some wonderful things God wants to do because you’re suffering from the paralysis of analysis. You belong to a Lord who loves to do, as the Bible says, “immeasurable more than all we ask or imagine!” (Ephesians 3:20).

Chappie Rocking the Socks in Support of World Down Syndrome Day
Quattro is COVID-19 Ready and Sporting Socks for World Down Syndrome Day Awareness.

Respectfully Submitted,

Fireplex

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Blimps, Blimps, Blimps

Date: 03/05/2020

AO: CHOP, Milton DE.

QIC: Fireplex

Warm up

SSH – 20 IC

Cherry Pickers – 20 IC

Bolt 45’s IC (4 Count) – 15 squats to halfway down.  15 squats halfway to full down.  15 full squats.

Jiminy Crickets – 10 OYO

Windmills – 20 IC

The Thang

Pax completed the Hindenburg BLIMPS routine from the Exicon at the CHOP.  We modified the sprint portion to a straight line across the CHOP Parking lot approx. .02 miles apart.  Sprint from the Church to the field behind CHOP and perform 1st exercise, sprint back to Church and perform 1st exercise, sprint back to the field and perform 1st exercise.  Sprint back to the Church and perform 1st exercise.  Plank it up until all PAX are in.  That completes one round.  Rinse and repeat but perform the second exercise working from the Church to the field.  Rinse and repeat for the 3rd and 4th exercises.  Round #1 – 10 Burpees. Round #2 – 20 Merkins.  Round #3 – 30 LBC’s.  Round #4 – 40 Lunges (20 each leg).  Round #5 – 50 Plank Jacks.  Round #6 – 60 Squats.

Count-O-Rama, Name-O-Rama, and the Circle of Trust.  Please keep all our HIM in your thoughts and prayers.    

F3 message –The 3rd F from Ron Hutchcraft Ministries was shared after completing Round #4.  See Below….

KNOWING THE ENDING – #5692

Tuesday, November 4, 2008

Count-O-Rama, Name-O-Rama, and the Circle of Trust.  Please keep all our HIM in your thoughts and prayers.    

At a party with some of our ministry staff and volunteers, we had a lot of fun with a common party game. You know, each person brings something they really want to get rid of, beautifully wrapped, of course. Everyone draws a number. When your number comes up, you have the choice of opening one of the unopened gifts and making it yours or taking that unopened package and trading for what someone else has already opened, and then you leave them with whatever is in that still-wrapped package. Somehow, there always ends up being a few items that everyone wants. And depending on how aggressive your people are – and we’ve had some pretty aggressive ones – they remember who’s got the hot item and they go after it with a vengeance. Those few items just keep moving around in trade after trade.

My sister-in-law, who is a wonderful worker in our ministry, actually drew the #1, which meant she didn’t get to make a trade at the beginning. But while the trading frenzy for the evening’s hot items got more and more intense, she just sat peacefully and quietly through it all, because she remembered the oft-forgotten rule of the game. Since #1 didn’t get to make a trade at the beginning of the game, she makes the last trade of the game. So all along, she knew what she wanted. And all along she is sitting there thinking, “I know how this is going to end!”

I’m Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about “Knowing the Ending.”

One of the exciting things about what God reveals to us in His Word is that we get to see how things are going to end. The frenzy and chaos may last quite a while, there may be lots of twists and changes, but, like my sister-in-law’s perspective on that game, there is no question about how it’s going to end up.

Our word for today from the Word of God is the incredible promise of Romans 8:28; the verse that one great writer called “a soft pillow for a long night.” Later verses will declare that if God is for us, no one can successfully be against us, that Christ’s love makes us conquerors in the worst of life’s disasters, that there will never be a life-quake so severe that it will be able to take us out of Jesus’ love. But before all that, this promise of how everything in a believer’s life will end up. “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.” In the King James, “God works all things together for good.”

During the game, it can get really frantic. In fact, it can even hurt a lot. The verse doesn’t say everything is good. It says God is working everything together for good – the agony, the ecstasy, the pains, the gains, the losses, even what the devil is doing to you. Paul’s thorn in the flesh wasn’t good in itself; it hurt him, it frustrated him, and the Bible says it was a “messenger from Satan.” But Paul saw the good that came later in the game. The pain had brought him to the end of himself and into an experience of God’s power that only the powerless ever touch. The gain was far greater than the pain.

That is the implied guarantee of Romans 8, that God will not allow it in your life unless it can be used for a greater good. No matter how hard this current situation is to understand, no matter how almost unbearable the pain, it’s possible for you to keep going with this unexplainable sense of peace and well-being. Because while God never guarantees that all the chapters will be happy, He does guarantee a happy ending.

The outcome – a better family, a better ministry, a better business, a better you if you will stay on the Jesus-path, if you will let the struggle turn you to your Lord, not away from Him. He will do what will bring you the greatest good and Him the greatest glory. Relax in that guarantee, no matter how it looks now.

As the pressure and the frenzy increase around you, you’ll be able to sit there with this wonderful inner calm saying because of your Sovereign Lord, “I know how this going to end.”

Respectfully Submitted,

Fireplex

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Pretty Colors

DATE: 02/25/20

QIC: Chappie

Eleven PAX posted at CHOP this Gloom for a beatdown hosted by YHC himself. Some wonder was expressed over where the other (potentially) 12+ PAX were at on such a perfect day, and for the first beatdown of F3 First State workout week.

YHC has been trying not to be a “numbers watcher” but, hey, you’ve gotta understand there’s been just a little invested in the past 3.5 years to put a shovel-flag in the ground here in the First State and get this mustard seed growing. So, yeah, there’s this tendency (because of ownership) to watch the numbers and want to see both F3 PAX and more and more FNG’s welcomed into the fold. Put it this way, if you’d been the one to put the first shovel-flag in the ground in the First State, you’d very likely want to see all the guys out, all the time; you’d want to see every man consistently win over the fartsack in order to sharpen others and make F3FirstState the best it can be. That’s a pretty high expectation, yet YHC is aware of reality too. Nonetheless, he merely wants to see that ownership spread [ownership in a healthy way…as in responsibility]. Still, we had 11 who broke the grip of the fartsack this morning, and it was the perfect number for a beatdown in honor of Faye Marie Swetlik.

YHC saw the post last night calling PAX across the F3Nation to wear the brightest colors we had to our workouts on Tuesday, Feb 25th. Known for wearing our dark colors, the bright colors instead were worn to honor Faye, a 6-yr-old girl who loved pink and purple and brought sunshine into the lives of all those around her. You likely saw on the news that Faye was recently abducted from her front yard in Cayce, SC. Sadly, she was found deceased 4 days later near her home.

YHC used to land-survey all over the community of Cayce, but F3 PAX from AO’s in that area have both family and friends familiar with the family—some of their 2.0’s went to school with Faye.

Wearing bright colors was a small thing for our PAX to do this morning, but it was at least one way for us to stand in a shield-lock with F3 brothers, the Swetlik family, the community of Cayce, and all those, especially LEOS, who spent countless hours searching for 6-yr-old Faye. Our hearts go out to everyone effected by this tragedy. YHC appreciates all the PAX who read the post last nite and came dressed for success at today’s workout…

Leatherman
Quattro
The boys

WARM-O-RAMA:

  • SSH – 10 IC
  • Imperial Walkers – 10 IC
  • The Motivator – 10’s Single Count IC (YHC still has to figure out how to properly end this heart-pumper)
  • Crab Flippers – 10 IC (A legit local favorite, cousin to the Cherry Picker)
  • Hillbilly Walker – 10 IC
  • Windmill – 10 IC

Patriot Run to “Merlot Hill” (a.k.a. the end of Behringer Street by the park, so named after a PAX by the same name. And, yes, you know why!)

THE THANG:

YHC introduced the conspicuously placed Restrictor Plates (20lb sandbags) lying in the shade beside the power pole.

The Workout: 11’s on the hill.

  • Merkins at bottom and top. The sandbags? Only rule was that you could never pass one up (unless you had just carried it either to the top or bottom) 11 PAX, 2 bags…no problem. Everyone got their fair share of carries by the time this series was completed. No one slowed! No one quit! No one passed up opportunities to carry an extra 20 lbs!
  • 110 Merkins total + Racing hearts = Great cardio
  • And…no one splashed!

PAX Circled Up for 3rdF:

The leadership strategy of subordinating your ego.

A few verses I want to share as an underlying foundation for today’s 3rdF:

▪1 Pet. 5:5-6 say, “You younger men, likewise, he subject to your elders; and all of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one-another, for God is opposed to the proud, but gives GRACE to the humble. Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time.”

▪Critical Quote: Humility is not thinking less of yourself, it is thinking of yourself less.

▪Rom. 12:3 “For through the GRACE given to me I say to every man among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought...”

I’m reading Jocko’s book LEADERSHIP STRATEGY AND TACTICS. In one portion he talks about Subordinating Your Ego. As men we tend to think AND practice otherwise, but subordinating your ego IS a leadership strategy!

Jocko tells of meeting with senior executives from a young and very successful company. He was impressed with all of them! The COO, the CFO, the CTO were all solid! Then he tells of meeting the CEO. The guy had been an NCAA athlete. A 6’5″ beast! He’d earned his MBA at an Ivy League school. Was already running a hundred-million-dollar company in his mid 30’s! Was physically impressive, and had a massive ego to match. His attitudes and the look on his face screamed “I’m better than you are!”

Jocko said there was immediate tension because of the guy’s enormous ego. But after realizing that ALL of the CEO’s senior executives and midlevel managers liked and respected the man, Jocko assumed “He’s got them all fooled!”

At several of the company’s training sessions, Jocko observed the man’s self-important, ego-driven attitudes. He wondered, “what the heck is wrong with this guy?”

As he pondered why fellow executives weren’t bothered by the CEO’s conceit and self-importance, Jocko began to think, “Wait, is it possible the problem is me? Could it be my ego causing this problem? Was there a chance that my ego was intimidated by all this and that I was the one who was acting like an idiot?” His conclusion: “Of course—Our two massive egos were bumping into each other and causing friction.”

At one break Jocko asked the man to step out in the hallway, out of earshot from the other team members, where they could talk. He gave him a quick assessment: “Your leaders are solid. Your company has great morale. Everyone understands the mission here. But the most impressive thing I’ve seen here is you….” He spoke of several more items about the CEO that brought Jocko to the point of telling him he was impressed and that he had nothing but respect for the CEO. RESULT: They talked of their deep respect for one another and both laughed as the tension between their two egos disappeared.

Jocko wrote: “The problem was solved. How? Simple. As soon as I was able to detach and recognize that this was a clash of egos, all I had to do was humble myself for a minute; I had to subordinate my own ego to allow the tension to break. Once I did that, the problem was solved.” “Subordinating your ego is actually the ultimate form of self-confidence. That level of confidence earns respect.” He said, “To put your ego in check, to subordinate your ego, you must have incredible confidence. If you find you cannot put your ego in check because you’re afraid it might make you look weak, then guess what? YOU ARE WEAK. Don’t be weak.

Subordinate your ego. Build relationships. Win the long game” (Adapted from Leadership Strategy and Tactics 72-78) …a great read, get it!

▪Philippians 2:3-4 “Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind let each of you regard one another as more important than himself; do not look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.”

I love that: Don’t be weak! Subordinate your ego, its what HIM do!

Patriot Run back to the CHOP AO: Shovelflag + two 20lb sandbags. YHC said next time we’re taking the backstreets. Moseying back up Union was a bit of a clusterbanger (Rush hour in Milton!)

Short round of Mary complements of Leatherman, Beeker, & Fireplex (Flutterkicks, LBC’s, and Crabjacks respectively)

COT/BOM:

Announcements:

  • Saturday, March 7 workout moved to Crossroad Community Church @ 6 a.m., instead of the usual 7, followed by breakfast and Operation Timothy Men’s Conference at the church. (See Quattro for details)
  • Lucky Rucker, March rucking challenge by @ruckingchallenges. Whoever is a HC and wants to roll the dice for accountability, stick around because YHC has the BIG dice available…see results below
  • Sunday, March 15 @ 3:17 p.m. Annual Shamruck Family Ruck. Park in Big Lots parking lot in Milford. 1 mile around industrial park loop to McDonald’s for Shamrock Shakes, 1 mile return. Bring the M, the 2.0’s, and friends and family. Bring the wagons and strollers! Recommended weight: Over 150lbs, you carry 30lb ruck; under 150, you carry 20lb ruck. The weight, however, is not important—the 2nd F is!
Nothing like a ruck with a reward: Shamrock Shakes!

Prayers:

  • Hoffstetler family
  • PAX’s Marriages
  • Swetlik family in Cayce, SC
  • Chairman’s mom, ankle surgery
  • Semi’s M, Leah, going for job interview
Chappie: 6 Rucks, 4 miles each
Leatherman: 5 Rucks, 4 miles each
Ruxpin: 3 Rucks, 5 miles each

That’s a wrap! Honored to lead the workout and offer a little something for transformation as HIM. Thanks men for posting! Remember: Don’t be weak!

~Chappie, out!

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Quattro’s Kindergarten

Aegis February 22, 2020

QIC: quattro

Warm-o-Rama

  • 20 SSH IC
  • 20 Cherry Pickers IC
  • 20 Windmill IC
  • Annie 10-counts IC
  • Steve Earl 4-count IC
  • 15 count playboys each side
  • 7 Pretzel Merkins each side IC

THANG

  • Mosey to Richard Allen School (where Q attended Kindergarten in 1985 [only one year mind you!]) parking lot, taking a quick pit stop for a set of fence hurdles at the Grace UMC park
  • Circle up for Global Warming (10 burpees, 20 bobby hurleys, 50 lbc, 25 WWI situps)
  • Time for recess!… Wosey to playground
  • Split in 2 groups: 25 x 2 each swerkins, extra PAX do E2k until swings open up
  • To the monkey bars: Merkins, while 1 PAX crosses monkey bars performing a newley-named workout “monkey junkers” 3x alternating regular, wide-arm, and diamond merkins

Break for 3rd F

Proverbs 22:28 "Do not move an ancient landmark which your fathers have set"

from Biography.com:

Born into slavery in 1760, Richard Allen later bought his freedom and went on to found the first national black church in the United States, the African Methodist Episcopal Church, in 1816.

Synopsis

Minister, educator and writer Richard Allen was born into slavery on February 14, 1760. He later converted to Methodism and bought his freedom. Fed up with the treatment of African-American parishioners at the St. George Episcopal congregation, he eventually founded the first national black church in the United States, the African Methodist Episcopal Church. He was also an activist and abolitionist whose ardent writings would inspire future visionaries. Allen died in 1831 in Philadelphia.

Background and Younger Years

Minister, educator and writer Richard Allen was born into slavery presumably in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on February 14, 1760. (As with other details surrounding Allen’s life, there have been some questions as to the place of his birth, with certain sources asserting that he was born in Delaware.) Known as “Negro Richard,” he and his family were sold by Benjamin Chew to a Delaware farmer, Stokeley Sturgis, sometime around 1768.

Allen converted to Methodism at the age of 17, after hearing a white itinerant Methodist preacher rail against slavery. His owner, who had already sold Richard’s mother and three of his siblings, also converted and eventually allowed Richard to purchase his freedom for $2,000, which he was able to do by 1783. The paper detailing Richard’s freedom would in fact become the first manumission document to be held as a public file, having been donated to the Pennsylvania Abolition Society.

After attaining his freedom, Richard took the last name “Allen” and returned to Philadelphia.

Early Religious and Social Work

Allen soon joined St. George’s Methodist Episcopal Church, where blacks and whites worshiped together. There, he became an assistant minister and conducted prayer meetings for African Americans. Frustrated with the limitations the church placed on him and black parishioners, which included segregating pews, Allen left the church as part of a mass walkout with the intention of creating an independent Methodist church. (While Allen gave the year of the walkout as 1787 in his own accounts, some scholars have asserted that the departure happened in 1792-93.)

Along with the Reverend Absalom Jones, who had also left St. George, Allen helped found the Free African Society, a non-denominational religious mutual-aid society dedicated to helping the black community. A century later, scholar and NAACP founder W.E.B. Du Bois called the FAS “the first wavering step of a people toward organized social life.” In 1794, Allen and several other black Methodists founded the Bethel Church, a black Episcopal meeting, in an old blacksmith’s shop. Bethel Church became known as “Mother Bethel” because it eventually birthed the African Methodist Episcopal Church. Helped by his second wife, Sarah, Allen also helped to hide escaped slaves, as the basement of the Bethel Church was a stop on the Underground Railroad.

Founding the African Methodist Episcopal Church

In 1799, Allen became the first African American to be ordained in the ministry of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Then, in 1816, with support from representatives from other black Methodist churches, Allen founded the first national black church in the United States, the African Methodist Episcopal Church, and became its first bishop. Today, the AME Church boasts more than 2.5 million members.

Understanding the power of an economic boycott, Allen went on to form the Free Produce Society, where members would only purchase products from non-slave labor, in 1830. With a vision of equal treatment for all, he railed against slavery, influencing later civil rights leaders such as Frederick Douglass and Martin Luther King Jr.

Death and Legacy

Allen died at his home on Spruce Street in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on March 26, 1831. He was laid to rest under Bethel Church. 

In 2008, Richard Newman and NYU Press published an acclaimed biography of Allen—Freedom’s Prophet: Bishop Richard Allen, the AME Church and the Black Founding Fathers.

https://www.richardallenschoolgeorgetown.com/

Richard Allen Coalition Inc in Georgetown opened its doors in the 1920s as one of the 80 schools built by Philanthropist Pierre S. DuPont for African-American children in Delaware. This is one of the “DuPont Colored Schools” that continued to serve as the heart of the African-American community for more than half a century.

Beginning in 1829 when public schools were established in Delaware, both white and black Delawareans paid schools taxes. However, the taxes supported schools for white students only. The few schools for African-Americans that existed relied on contributions from local churches for land and materials. The modest wooden buildings were built with community-based labor.

When desegregation was implemented, it became part of the Indian River School District. Five years ago, the school district decided to close the school and has been vacant since then.In 2010, a small group came together to form the Richard Allen Coalition Inc. We are a diverse group with a common goal: to restore the school so it can once again be a cultural, civic, and educational center. We found so much history in this school which has never been recorded, including baseball games held on the field behind the school and baseball teams formed by Luther Tingle.On August 12, 2015, Phase I of our journey was completed when Governor Jack Markell signed the bill sponsored by Senator Brian Pettyjohn and Representative Ruth Briggs King which deeded the building to the Richard Allen Coalition. Phase II was a kick off with a gala at the Georgetown Cheer Center on February 6, 2016, which was a success.

Today, we are hosting programs on the grounds for the community.  There has been considerable work within the building. With the community help, we have painted, sanded and worked to bring portions of the building into a useable facility. We are continuing to raise the funding needed to begin the renovation and restoration project of the Richard Allen Coalition School.  It is an ambitious goal, but with the help of the grants, civic and business leaders of Sussex County, we can do it efficiently.

When Richard Allen School opened its door, it was a beacon of hope for African-Americans living in Jim Crow Delaware. When it opened, it welcomed all of us who wanted to learn about the past while helping our youth explore their talents and prepare for a wonderful future.

The state of Delaware mandated racially segregated schools until 1967. The Act of Free Schools of 1829 provided public education in Delaware, but taxes levied on both white and black citizens supported schools for white students only.

A few schools for blacks existed in the early 20th century but all land and material were acquired with contributions from local churches, and the modest wooden buildings were built with community-based labor.Pierre S. DuPont, appalled by the unfair tax system and the lack of educational opportunities for Delaware’s’ black students, donated the funds to build more than 80 schools for black students throughout the state in the 1920s.

  • Be the man in the boat: Abyss big boys while legs are hooked into side of playground boat -25 IC amid plenty of mumble chatter
  • Mosey back to the Circle

Count-o-Rama

Name-o-Rama

COT

Respectfully submitted, quattro

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Super 21 Cycle

Date: 02/15/2020

AO: Aegis, Georgetown, DE

QIC: Fireplex

Warm up

SSH – 30 IC

Cherry Pickers – 15 IC

Bolt 45’s IC (4 Count) – 15 squats to halfway down.  15 squats halfway to full down.  15 full squats.

Windmills – 15 IC

Dips – 30 IC

Mosey to Ball Park @.5 miles.

The Thang

The Super 21 Cycle.  1 Merkin to 1 Big Boy Sit up.  2 Merkins to 2 Big Boy Situps.  3 Merkins to 3 Big Boy Situps, etc., etc., etc.  But wait there is a twist….after each completed set of #1 though #5, PAX will complete 21 Imperial Walkers.  Bear Crawl to 1st base.  After each completed set of #6 through #10, PAX will complete 21 Mountain Climbers.  Bear Crawl to 2nd base.  After each completed set of # 11 through #15, PAX will complete 21 Monkey Humpers.  Bear crawl to 3rd base.  After each completed set of #16 through #20, PAX will complete 21 Prisoner Squats.  Bear Crawl to Homeplate and PAX will complete the final set of #21 Merkins to #21 Big Boys, then finish strong with 21 Burpees. Q took a break for the 3rd F after all PAX completed the 2nd base exercise set. See below for the word provided from Ron Hutchcraft Ministries.

Mosey back to Aegis @ .5 miles.

Count-O-Rama, Name-O-Rama, and the Circle of Trust.  Please keep all our HIM in your thoughts and prayers.  

F3 Message 02/15/2020 – From Ron Hutchcraft Ministries #7641 – 04/25/16

HOW TO BUILD A LOVE THAT LASTS A LIFETIME – #7641

Monday, April 25, 2016

Valentine’s Day! That’s the season when all of us think about the love we found, or the love we lost, or the love we’re looking for. And, man, people are looking! Did you know there are over 5,000 dating websites, including Match.com, OKCupid, along with SeniorPeopleMeet, Farmers Only and DateACowboy.com?

I’m Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about “How to Build a Love that Lasts a Lifetime.”

Love is where we place our greatest hopes. It’s where we experience our greatest fears and our greatest hurts, and make our greatest mistakes. It’s a treasure, for sure, but it’s a fragile treasure. Like a fragile plant, love has to be watered and protected with some basic love-nurturing steps.

Let me give you some. First of all, handing out goodies – emotional goodies that is. Love thrives on affirmation, encouragement, compliments, praise, “atta-boys.” But love is torn down by critical words, angry words, sarcastic words; on our lips momentarily, in their memory forever. The Bible so wisely says, “The tongue has the power of life and death” and “reckless words pierce like a sword” (Proverbs 18:21; 12:18).

That’s why the Bible’s challenge to “encourage one another daily” (Hebrews 3:13) is glue for a love that lasts. Because everybody needs a cheerleader, and all of us need to be one.

Secondly, unpack your suitcase; the suitcase where we carry the junk from our past into the present. The abuse. The betrayal. The neglect. The injustice. And the anger and negativity and bitterness that go with it. Unless we face it, we can’t fix it. And if we don’t fix it, we’ll spread it. The poison will spill into lives that don’t even deserve it. And they will poison love.

That’s why God tells us in Hebrews 12:15, “See to it that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many.” If we harbor resentment and unforgiveness, it’s just going to keep growing into a monster that invades every close relationship.

Unpacking this suitcase we’ve carried so long has a name. It’s called forgiving, which sometimes seems like humanly impossible. But it’s not supernaturally impossible, because the One who forgave His crucifiers will download His forgiveness into any struggling heart and He’ll pour His healing into every broken heart.

Thirdly, relinquish the wheel, because controlling people hardens their heart and pushes them away. Control freaks are fixers. We’re always trying to fix and change what we love. But when you hold onto something too tightly, you crush it – including love.

I’ve found a lot of freedom in five words John the Baptist spoke long ago, “I am not the Messiah.” When you realize that it’s your job to love people and it’s God’s job to change them, you can experience the wonderful freedom of releasing what you’ve been controlling.

I guess most importantly, to build a love that lasts a lifetime, anchor your heart. See, there’s a problem with love. It’s “loseable.” Betrayal. Divorce. Death. No human love can truly anchor a human heart, a lonely heart. So how can that aching hole in our hearts ever be filled? How can we finally know that we’re safe in a love we can’t lose?

Our word for today from the Word of God in Romans 8:39, “Nothing can ever separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” That’s God’s ironclad guarantee to every person who belongs to His Son, who proved His love in blood poured out on a cross for the very sins you’ve done against Him.

This is love that comes looking for us all the way from heaven to the cross. And He’s come looking for you today through our time together. So, let today be the day to let His love in. Let Jesus in and say, “Jesus, the life you died for, that you paid for with your life is yours beginning today. I am yours.”

Our website is to help you get there – ANewStory.com. Would you go there? The love of a lifetime is within your reach right now.

1 Corinthians 13 New King James Version (NKJV)

The Greatest Gift

13 Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned,[a]but have not love, it profits me nothing.

Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part. 10 But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away.

11 When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things. 12 For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.

13 And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

Respectfully Submitted,

Fireplex

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