Keep Pushing the Rock Men

/in , , /QIC:

There once was a man who lived in a cabin next to a field. In the middle of the field was a huge rock – an enormous boulder. One night, God came to the man in a dream and said “I want you to go out in the morning and every morning after that and push the rock with all your heart and all your might.” So, the next morning and every morning after that the man did exactly as God instructed. Every morning, day after day, week after week, month after month – no matter the weather – the man woke up and pushed the rock until he could no longer push it anymore. And day after day, week after week, month after month, the rock never budged a single inch. Some days, he did not feel like pushing the rock, but he did it anyway.

Some days, he did not push the rock with all his heart and all his might, giving just a partial effort until he realized this was not God’s command. His task was to push the rock with all his heart and all his might, every morning. He grew frustrated and prayed, “God, why am I pushing this rock? Day after day, week after week, month after month I have pushed this rock. I have never moved it, and never will!”

God replied, “I did not ask you to MOVE the rock, I asked you to PUSH the rock with all your heart and all your might. You have been an obedient and faithful servant; now look how you have transformed yourself: your shoulders are broad, your arms are strong, your legs are powerful. You are now ready for me to use you for a greater purpose!”

What are you pushing the rock for?  We may not know yet!

Deadbolt

 

Image result for pushing the rock

Turning Water Into Coffee

/in , /QIC:
PAX: ,

PAX: Straight Cash, UTI

Warm Up:  This was more mental than physical.  Despite the sound of consistently louder and louder drops of water hitting the roof as my alarm went off at 5:30 AM, I got out of bed with my correctly set alarm (No mis-fire today Skidmark).  I proceeded through my pre-workout ritual which gave me a little time to sit and read a few articles on the best attire for a run in the rain.  Following said ritual, I pulled together the best of what my closet had to offer and went down stairs.  Checking-in with Straight Cash, who had DM’d me the night before, I re-confirmed his HC for a clowncar to AGS.  He got in the car and we both agreed this wasn’t smart but we committed.  If other PAX showed and committed as well, we were in it for the long haul.

The Workout:  We did expect to meet some hard core PAX at Womble.  Upon arrival at approx 6:29 the lot was empty.  We gave it the old 5 min. rule and in at 6:34 and about 30 secs we watched as a lonely car made its way over the speed bumps on Stinson.  The car passed Womble and we started talking game plan.  The rain was a solid “yellow” for the next hour on AccuWeather’s MinuteCast…  So the next debate was Starbucks or Duncan.

Mary:  We were reassured by Draper with our decision to go for coffee, he had also called off his Harris Lake run this morning due to the heavy rain.  At least we weren’t alone.  Straight Cash and I sat at Duncan and covered a broad spectrum of topics both F3 and personal.  The shop itself was pretty dead with the occasional customer strolling through.  There were some questionable cleaning practices in play on the AC intake as the manager or other employee sprayed some sort of aerosol upward onto/into the vent.  I hope it was on the up-and-up and they weren’t simply spray painting the vent cover white for appearances.  There was a definite spray paint smell…

Announcements:  Based on our own mumblechatter I’ll call out the following announcements…

  • BRR hangout Jan 22 – Black Dog Bottle Shop, info on the Facebook and the Slack
  • Breathtaker up for grabs weekly at Cletus – Benefits charity, many ways to contribute either through auction, donation, and even getting others to sponsor you to carry the vest.
  • Convergence Lunch in RTP – Look for updates on the next one on the typical channels.
  • QSwap continues next week SW goes to Carpex.

Prayer:  Selfishly – please pray that Straight Cash and I don’t have some sort of lung-related issues from the DD fumes.

vvv  – Super creepy confirmation of whereabouts and timelines sponsored by Google – vvv

2019 Southwake – an official region with official “roles”

/in , , , /QIC:

F3 Southwake Pax:

Aye – as I have mentioned in a few COTs as we closed out last week, we are moving into becoming an official “Region” of F3.  In order to be an official region, we have to have a few leadership positions in place to ensure smooth operations in all three Fs and other areas.  These leadership positions are:

  • 3F Qs: We need a Q for each of the three 3F:
    • 1st F – Fitness
    • 2nd F – Fellowship
    • 3rd F – Faith
  • COMZ: We will need a COMZ person for communications, social media and a website presence.
  • Weasel Shaker: We also need a position called the Weasel Shaker – he basically makes sure everyone is doing what they are supposed to be – a rule follower.

Since we have been in the incubation stage of an official Region for over a year now. I am going to stay on as Nantan but I think these roles should be renewed with new leaders every year.  Each year, around Thanksgiving, we will nominate new positions.  I have given this a lot of thought – consulted with a few others and I would like to announce our 2019 Southwake roles.  Below is a description of the general duties of each role and the 2019 Pax that will fill the role:

Each of the #HIM below will be reaching out to Pax to form committees for all of these roles – please let one know if you are interested in helping!

1st F Q:  Pikachu

  • The 1st F guy ensures the smooth running of the AOs.
  • He makes sure that SiteQs are doing their jobs, and often will hold regular meetings to do so.
  • 1st F Q also helps to plan and execute CSAUPs
  • He works with the Nant’an and WS to look at growth of 1st F AO plants.
  • He holds regular Q Schools for new(er) Pax, for PHT.

2nd F Q:  Emeril

  • Party Pants. Whether it be happy hours, family picnics, Christmas Parties, or Coffeeteria, this is the guy who makes the donuts.
  • The ComzQ is his best friend, as he attempts to get Pax motivated and excited about Fellowshipping together.

3RD F Q:  Slide Rule

This job is one of the tougher ones… the 3rd F Q really needs to understand the needs and wants of his Pax.

  • He can plant anything from a weekly Bible Study to an open discussion group to a regular community service opportunity for Pax.
  • His role is the essence of the real mission of F3.
  • Male COMMUNITY Leadership. It’s ambiguous on purpose, but it needs to make IMPACT.

COMZ Q :  Gump

It may be obvious, but… This man is the Q for making sure the Pax stay connected to one another.

  • He understands very clearly that 2nd F does not end at the AO or at the Happy Hour. Part of what makes F3 work is a dedicated man to keep the drum beating so that Pax have community one with another.
  • He manages the content of the website
  • He can explore other opportunities for communications: Twitter, Slack, GroupMe, Newsletters, etc. are the tools he uses.
  • Should be reasonably tech-savvy.

Weasel Shaker – Skid Mark

The man which “shakes the weasels” and makes sure they are all doing what they are supposed to do.

  • He is a spreadsheet loving, rule embracing, detail-oriented sort that helps to give the Nant’an the information he needs to effectively guide and make decisions on how to empower Pax to become the leaders they have been called to be.
  • He keeps his ear to the ground, and his finger on the pulse of the Pax with the Nant’an
    • For example: Wednesday numbers are really high, might be time to split the workout; or, I’ve plotted all the Pax houses on this map and it looks like we could use an AO on the other side of town

I would like to begin these “official roles” at the beginning of the year.  I have talked this over with a few others and we feel that the ideal term for one of these positions is 1 year with new leadership coming in every January 1.

I am very excited with Southwakes growth over the past 6 months and that now we are an official region.   You #HIM have made such a positive impact on my life that it is hard to put into words.  I love you all like brothers and I look forward to 2019 and beyond.

Iron Sharpens Iron

Deadbolt