Northeast Tennessee

From the dust you came and to the dust you’ll return

Northeast Tennessee Arrowhead (Indian Trail) Johnson City

13 PAX made the decision to get a little better this morning and entered a crucible of mud, sweat, and pain. Partly cloudy, 35 with a slight wind-chill.

DISCLAIMER

PRAYER

COP

  • Motivator from 8
  • Windmills 10 IC
  • Through The Tunnel 13 IC
  • LBAC 10 IC (then reverse)
  • Pretzels 10 IC
  • Travoltas 10 IC (each arm)

THE THANG

A game I made up called Run, Rabbit: 1 PAX starts with high knees/quick feet around the track with a resistance band around his belly and a buddy offering the resistance. Meanwhile, the rest of the PAX start in on 10 burpees. As they finish, they sprint after the “rabbit.” When they reach the rabbit they all wait in plank or Al Gore until the 6 arrives. A new PAX is selected as the rabbit (the guy who caught him or the next in who hasn’t been rabbit yet). Continue in this way until all PAX have been the rabbit. As we completed a lap, the resistance band was traded out for two 30lb kettlebells which were cleaned above head. In total we made 2.5 laps and did 120 burpees. (Side note: We lost #Pedialyte  to a pulled muscle in the battle, so please remember him in prayer)

DOWN AND DIRTY…

In honor of Ashe Wednesday yesterday, I decided to remind the PAX that we are but dust and to the dust we will return, so we did a tunnel of love across the width of the field. It should be noted that there was a large storm last night, so it was quite moist (to say the least). Each PAX made it though the tunnel twice.

MARY

Dealer’s choice: Merkins (Rudy), Air squats (PBS), Windmill (8 Mile), grueling 30 count Flutter Kick IC with arms out (Baby), Elevator (Glory).

MOLESKIN:

Ecclesiastes 3

There is a time for everything,
    and a season for every activity under the heavens:

    a time to be born and a time to die,
    a time to plant and a time to uproot,
    a time to kill and a time to heal,
    a time to tear down and a time to build,
    a time to weep and a time to laugh,
    a time to mourn and a time to dance,
    a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
    a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
    a time to search and a time to give up,
    a time to keep and a time to throw away,
    a time to tear and a time to mend,
    a time to be silent and a time to speak,
    a time to love and a time to hate,
    a time for war and a time for peace.

What do workers gain from their toil? 10 I have seen the burden God has laid on the human race. 11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet[a] no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end. 12 I know that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to do good while they live. 13 That each of them may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all their toil—this is the gift of God. 14 I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it. God does it so that people will fear him.

15 Whatever is has already been,
    and what will be has been before;
    and God will call the past to account.[b]

16 And I saw something else under the sun:

In the place of judgment—wickedness was there,
    in the place of justice—wickedness was there.

17 I said to myself,

“God will bring into judgment
    both the righteous and the wicked,
for there will be a time for every activity,
    a time to judge every deed.”

18 I also said to myself, “As for humans, God tests them so that they may see that they are like the animals. 19 Surely the fate of human beings is like that of the animals; the same fate awaits them both: As one dies, so dies the other. All have the same breath; humans have no advantage over animals. Everything is meaningless. 20 All go to the same place; all come from dust, and to dust all return. 21 Who knows if the human spirit rises upward and if the spirit of the animal goes down into the earth?”

22 So I saw that there is nothing better for a person than to enjoy their work, because that is their lot. For who can bring them to see what will happen after them?

I reflected the other day about how I was kicking myself for a slow pace on my long run only to walk into church late and find myself seated next to a man dying of ALS. I was given perspective and was overcome with gratitude that my body is able to run at all. As we enter the Lent season reflecting on our mortality and knowing that one day we will indeed return to the ground from which we came, let us remember that today is not that day; there is work to be done! While some days it may indeed all seem meaningless, our toil is not in vein and our labor produces good fruit. Good work, men.

 

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