7 PAX made it out on a somewhat chilly morning for our typical Thursday activity.
Some of us did the fast thing, and some of us did the slower thing, and some of us mixed it up and did a bit of both.
NARC Thursdays are special in that they provide a unique opportunity for fellowship and vulnerable sharing along the trail. The bonds of brotherhood can be forged and refined during what could otherwise be a lonely, dull and perilous journey.
Intentional pursuit of meaningful brotherhood is a discipline that requires thoughtful effort. In his book “The Blacksmith’s Discipline: Honing Godly Men”, Vince Miller describes this discipline:
“In the forge of brotherhood, our private disciplines transform into public virtues.”
Too often men “walk the journey alone, which is a perilous path”. He outlines four factors that interfere with our pursuit of meaningful brotherhood:
-men don’t trust men
-men prefer independence
-men are too busy
-men fear spiritual relationships
Vince describes how we can counter these interferences with an intentional approach to foster purposeful and fruitful brotherhood.
First to activate brotherhood we must take initiative:
“Take the first step. Stretch your spiritual muscles and start using them.”
Second think shoulder to shoulder. It is hard to develop brotherhood without an intentional meetup.
Finally, Vince describes some intentional approaches to making those interactions more fruitful:
-Prepare four purposeful questions
These might relate to a challenge or unexpected change you are going through or a general area of your life where you could use the wisdom and perspective of another man.
-Get and give one tip
“Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.” (1 Thessalonians 5:11
-Add in one spiritual element
For the F3 brothers that attended the Lake Champion weekend this year, a recurring theme, as we listened to Vince’s messages over the course of that weekend (which were framed around this book), was that we would turn to each other and say “This sounds just like F3” and in particular some of the Q-source discussion we have been having. The parallels kept catching our attention.
I’m grateful for those moments where, like today, my brother’s took initiative and showed up, stretched our muscles, took the first step, then shoulder to shoulder shared our challenges and struggles, offered wisdom and encouragement, and shared in a moment of trust, vulnerability and inspiration.
May we all be encouraged to continue to strive for growing the intentional discipline of brotherhood, in ways that encourage, challenge and support one another.
How can we more fully implement this intentionality as we continue to grow together in our efforts to embody the mission statement of F3 which is to “plant, grow and serve small, peer led workouts for the invigoration of male community leadership?”
COT
Sunspot – encouragement for his 2.0 in some tough relationship challenges and prayers that an upcoming race in DC, to honor service members, will not be hindered and go smoothly.
Oneshot – continued prayers for comfort in this time of grieving and healing as well as continuation of some positive impacts seen in family members seeking spiritual growth during this time.
Door Dash – encouragement with some communication opening up with his M and prayers for softened hearts and patience that this will open up more opportunities for healing and better communication.