07/10/24 SERIOUSLY FOCUSED

07/10/24 SERIOUSLY FOCUSED

Though my age, health and miles have taken a toll, I have tried to be physically active throughout my life, and I have tried to encourage others to pursue a healthy lifestyle. 

Like most kids, I played schoolyard and sandlot kickball, dodge-ball, football, basketball, softball and kill the man with the ball. I also, surfed, swam, skim-boarded, sailed, played ping-pong and walked and jogged a lot. 

Daddy owned and operated a weight training facility, "Gould's Health Studio," in Morehead in 1961. At 14 years of age I became a student of weight training, and continued to train periodically throughout my lifetime. It was during that time that I, One Arm Snatched, 125#s at a body weight of 125#s. I would regularly walk up to a 100# bar and One Arm Snatch it without warming up. I took my training seriously. 

In my early ministry I spent a lot of time playing sports and training with other guys as an outreach. In the early 1970s I was asked to teach a weight training class for ninth grade boys in high school. One of the students was not very athletic, but soon started to progress. Toward the end of that year he wanted to see how many sit-ups he could do. As the other boys worked out, I assigned some boys to hold his feet and count his sit-ups. I also monitored his performance. The class was 45 minutes long. He did continuous and legal sit-ups during the entire class period. When class was over he had done 1,100 sit-ups. 

I was amazed. As i am posting this, I just looked up the world record for most sit-ups in one hour. (Edit note... since reports vary, the world record is probably 2400+, and even higher with special equipment or conditions). Had my student been allowed to continue for an entire hour he was on pace to do 1466 sit-ups, and this was around 1971. The boy said he could have continued, but the class was over. We knew it was an heroic achievement, but had no idea how outstanding it was. 

This is a great story by itself, but there are times in the lives of some other dedicated people, which manifests greatness, but it goes uncelebrated. I am referring to the unique accomplishments of fully dedicated Christians in their service to God. 

Those moments do not happen by accident or for the purpose of self promotion. They happen because of self discipline, self denial. They happen because the person has pursued spiritual excellence, and sacrificed the things of this life in order to please God. 

I think there is potential for greatness in all of us, if we have the Biblical view, "This one thing I do..."

Philippians 3:8-15 KJV
8 Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ,
9 And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:
10 That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;
11 If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead.
12 Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus.
13 Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,
14 I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.
15 Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded: and if in any thing ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal even this unto you.