The Courage to try the unusual

AO: Galaxy

When: 2024-05-10

QIC: McLovin (Amir Oren)

PAX (9): Abacus (Mark Green), Jillian, Jorts, New Coke, Sparky, Spirit Fingers, Tweaker, Wideright

Preamble:

With Israel's Memorial Day 5/12 and USA Memorial Day 5/27 times as this make us think of Courage.  Let us have the Courage to try the Unusual. “Each time we face our fear, we gain strength, courage, and confidence in the doing." "So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God." "He who is not courageous enough to take risks will accomplish nothing in life." "We may encounter many defeats but we must not be defeated."

Warm-O-Rama:

Leg Up with Hand held together overhead in cadence x 10 Leg Up with under the leg clap in cadence exercise x 10 Squat Straddle Hops x 10

The Thang:

4 PAX members ran their own beatdown at another site from main beatdown due to weather choices. INDIAN RUN with FLAG between sets Each exercise 19 reps Set 1 - Side Plank Elbow to Knee Firemen Rope Pull Shoulder Tap Merkins *Squats to the six Set 2 - Captain Thor Side Crunches with knee tucks Box Cutters *Flutter Kicks to the six Set 3 - Bobby Hurley Peter Parker Peter Alabama Ass Kicker *LBCs to the six Set 4 - Up/Down Planks Criss-Cross in sitting position Bent Knee Kick outs on your upper back Tap Out to Table *Mountain Climbers to six  

COT:

prayers for those suffering praises for those graduating Good luck to Spirit Fingers on his interview

Naked-Man Moleskin:

Courage is the trait that underlies every other trait.   Courage of Being – we are each of us unique and that provides for a mandate to perform extraordinary feats to change the world – “Daily we should take account - What have I done today to alleviate the anguish, to mitigate the evil, to prevent humiliation?  Let there be a grain of a prophet in every man!”   Courage of Will – We must cultivate a burning passion and a lasting energy to overcome internal and external obstacles “Who is Courageous?” Not the one with the most faith in god, or the one victorious in battle. “The courageous one is the one who controls his or her own inner drive”   Courage of Speech – A vital element of spiritual courage is being able to speak up when it is terrifying to do so. “You shall not hate you brother in your HEART.  You shall REPROVE him instead of bearing a sin by not doing so”   Courage of Action – It is not through leadership that we display the courage of action, but in the courage to maintain conviction and propel action.  Nelson Mandela said “courage is not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it” Courage of Restraint – For every notion about courage, have the foresight to restrain oneself.  Courage is not just a public action, but is also shown through silence. “just as there is a commandment to say words of rebuke that will be accepted, so too is there one to not say words of rebuke that will NOT be accepted”  Another form of restraint is taking the initiative to step back and let others shine as “From caring comes courage” “How do we move beyond the fear that destroys connectedness?” by reclaiming the connectedness that takes away fear” Parker Palmer said   Courage of Mind – Live mentally within the discomfort of uncertainty.  Grapple with questions before jumping to answers and continue to seek truth beyond ideological comfort.  Living within a gray zone is more comfortable than the easy binary of ‘black and white’.  Through these struggles we expand our own hearts.   Courage of Spirit – Learn how to transcend self-interest.  Our strengths are greater than we realize.  Prayer is meaningless unless it is subversive, unless it seeks to overthrow and ruin the pyramids of callousness, hatred, opportunism, and falsehoods.  A prayers should revolutionize your spirit, seeking to overthrow the forces that continue to destroy the promise, the hope, the vision.   Courage of Heart – Courage is a product of the heart.  We must learn to be comfortable with honest vulnerability.  Being vulnerable is not the same as being weak or cowardly.  No, it is an element of greater courage.  C.S Lewis wrote “To love at all is to be vulnerable.  Love anything and your heart will be wrung and possibly broken…wrap it carefully with hobbies and little luxuries and avoid all entanglements.  Lock it up safe in the casket of your selfishness.  But in that casket, safe, dark, motionless, it will change.  It will become unbreakable, impenetrable, unredeemable” Distinguish between the moment that distances a person from one’s Maker and the delicate feeling that expands one’s consciousness showing the full and splendid spiritual existence.  One’s heart is filled with courage from the divine light that shines in one’s soul. FINAL NOTE – Learn to listen so we know what opportunities and moments are crucial for cultivating courage.  Be “Here”. There is no life without a task, no person without a talent, no place without a fragment of God’s light waiting to be discovered and redeemed, no situation without its possibility of sanctification, no moment without its call.  It may take a lifetime to learn to find these, but all it takes is listening.  When God calls, he whispers our name, and the greatest reply, as did Abraham, is simply “Here I am”; ready to heed the call, to mend a fragment of the world. So wake up with “Here I am” inscribed on your heart and animated in your soul.  Only then do we ensure that the gran experiment – humanity – continues fresh and anew.  We have the ability yo cultivate the courage in us.  Courage is the engine that allows us to move forward perpetually, with intention, compassion, and knowledge that meaning is found through navigating the path of a full, active life.

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