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THE MEN'S LEADERSHIP COMMUNITY
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The Men's Leadership Community
12 Best Practices - Whole-Life Wellness Part 2
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In this series we explore not only the 12 Best Practices of the Men's Leadership Community, but what makes a Christian Community as well
Explore men's leadership and self improvement through a Christian worldview. For men seeking growth and brotherhood.
Hear real stories of answered prayer experiences, overcoming doubt, real faith narratives, leadership stories and the importance men's discipleship / fellowship in navigating today's world.
THE MEN'S LEADERSHIP COMMUNITY
A Christian Podcast for Men who are beat up, broken down & burned out from doing life alone.
Join a Brotherhood where Good Men become Heroic Leaders....at home, at work & in the world.
You can join the call live every Friday morning via Zoom @ 7:00am Central
Get more information here...
https://themlc.life/
Men welcome to the most important podcast that you'll hear in a long time. It's the Men's Leadership Community Podcast, and it starts now.
SPEAKER_0412 best practices, but we're in the heart of it. Six, seven, and eight are all about whole life wellness, which is really shalom, peace, and Christ to bring about whole life wellness in us. Last week we talked about our spiritual health and wellness, and today we're going to talk about our physical health and wellness. Next week, probably one of the most important Fridays ever. I know we're in the dog days of summer. Please put it on your calendar. Next Friday, July 31st, men's mental and emotional health and wellness. It's probably the one of the most important conversations that we can have as brothers in Christ with one another, is it not, Obi?
SPEAKER_01It is. And it's surprisingly one of the most neglected aspects of well, of uh physical and emotional and whole life wellness. Yeah.
SPEAKER_04Well, it kind of falls into that category of sex. We know that we know that it's out there, but we don't really want to touch it or talk about it. But men's mental and emotional health and wellness is huge. So we'll be touching on that next Friday.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I'm excited about that, Andy. You know, I I've shared this story. I don't know if I shared it with you guys, but I was talking to a group of my friends and we were talking, I was letting them telling them about this, you know, and I was like, you know, it's all about, you know, open, honest, and vulnerable. And they cringed all of them, you know, and one of them said, I don't like it, you know. And I was like, what is it? What part? You know, and he's like, just the intimacy part of it.
SPEAKER_04So uh, you know, my goodness, if we can't practice intimacy as brothers in Christ, how in the world is your intimacy with Christ going? You know what I'm saying? I mean, God gives us these opportunities to practice them with with one another so that it might grow in our practice with him.
SPEAKER_01Mm-hmm. Yeah. Yeah, absolutely. Which leads us to be uh being able to share our story, being able to understand who we are in Christ and what he's called you to do. And we heard from CJ, uh, really were able to see that, not just hear about it, but actually see it in action in his life. Uh, and what a great thing to see. And hopefully, hopefully, it's stirring one of you guys, somebody here, to share your story. Because some people really do have that thing saying that, well, you know, uh, my life, you know, my my life story is not that great. My conversion is not that straight. I I came from it's it's a boring testimony. It's not if Christ is at the center of it, it's not yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_04I was about to say, yeah, my life with Jesus is just boring. You don't want to hear about my life, which but you know, and and it doesn't always have to be an entire Friday morning. Well, like CJ did, uh, you grow in it, but you know, today we're on our physical health and wellness, and a guy like Dave Hart uh shares his journey and what he's learned from Steve McNeese and being part of the MLC and his his physical health and wellness growing. Dave is now kind of like you, Obi, with barbecue. Dave's loving to tell everybody about how he's getting in better shape, losing weight, and how it's really benefiting him from being a part of the MLC and learning that from another brother in Christ about how to get more physically healthy and well.
SPEAKER_01Well, how about that? And if you didn't know, yeah, got there's a whole thing uh that the Bible calls us to be what in in in you know when it comes to our health. You know, there's a call that we have to taking care of. Get on the bus. Okay, get on the bus. This is a new MLC phrase. Get on the bus. Get on the long bus, people.
SPEAKER_04Get on the VW bus that my wife is going to eventually allow me to purchase in in our in our empty nesting years. You're gonna see us too on around in my VW bus with Jen smiling as big as she can.
SPEAKER_01Hey, you know, that's me and Kim. You know, I don't know if you knew, but that's me. That's what me and Kim, that's our desire. That's what we want to do when the kids move out, get a little combi. The older ones. Oh. So I love it. I love it.
SPEAKER_04Let's talk a little bit about what what Andy, what is where we shared this last time, just some simple definitions about health and wellness, and looking at the overall condition of your state of being instead of your state of doing. As men, I think we relate our health to what what can I do? What am I able to do versus what is my state of being? And all throughout scripture, our being comes before our doing. We shared a simple thing like John 15, where Jesus says, A good tree produces good fruit. First, you got to be a good tree before you can actually do good fruit. Uh, so our our our health and wellness begins with our being. How's your state of being going? What does it mean for you to be the man that God has created in me? Uh, to be free from illness or injury, the condition of being sound in body, mind, and spirit, which none of us are completely because we live in a sinful and broken world, but God is leading us into more soundness of body, mind, and spirit, Obi, all those connected together. And then wellness, and here's where it gets real. So everybody's like, oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. We hear about health. I see it on Insta all the time or TikTok or whatever your social media is, there's all these, you know, influencers or whatever. But wellness then is where it gets real, where a bunch of brothers in Christ are holding each other accountable. The state of being in good health, especially as actively pursued. And boy, today when we get into our physical health and wellness, not only are we talking about are we actively pursuing our spiritual health and wellness, but are we actively pursuing our physical health and wellness on a regular basis, a daily basis? So these kind of things that are intentional, we're actively pursuing it. We want to grow in it because all of that then leads us, Obi, to a life that's thriving and not just surviving. And I think there are so many of us today that might be waking up and going, I hope I get through Friday so that I can get to the weekend. And my goodness, that is just surviving the week versus thriving in it.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, amen. We don't want that, you know. And you, you know, you were talking about the state of being in good health actively, but I would say it's gonna also gonna be perpetually because this is not something we're gonna um it stops, you know. We don't get to a certain point and then we just stop. This is something we're gonna um have to pursue consistently, really, until the Lord kills us or until he comes back.
SPEAKER_04You know, and it's how we were created, you know. Martin Luther, the the reformer from 500 years ago, writing about the book of Genesis and the very the beginning and the creation, when he's writing about God creating Adam, Obi, he I I mean it it's almost like you know, uh watching an 80s action movie, the way he describes the way God created Adam, his sinews, which is his muscles were strong, and you know, he could run all day. And you know, his it's just amazing where you when you hear that kind of language about our physical health and wellness from one of the world's greatest theologians, right? John Calvin talked about Adam this way. You know, we get some of our greatest theologians in the world, the Catholic Church, when they put out uh, you know, what it what it means for God to create our physical health and wellness, all of them talk about the way Adam was created. I mean, like a superhero. Yeah. You know, that everything was not only healthy but well.
SPEAKER_01Oh man. You know, when I think about working without without the the negative sides of it, toy, you know, when you're out there being creative and using your strength, all of it to do all of these amazing things and not growing weary and not getting tired and not, you know, thorns and thistles, all of that, you know, it, you know, it's a it's a it's who would have thought not only does our physical health and wellness have an intimate connection to our spirit spiritual health and wellness, but we're gonna find out the transition at the end of today.
SPEAKER_04It has an immediate and intimate connection to our mental and emotional health and wellness. And if you want to hear a man's man make that connection, we're gonna end the day with a little uh a little drop the mic bomb from Jocko Willink, if you know who that is.
SPEAKER_01No, yeah, you're talking about the Navy SEAL, Jekyll?
SPEAKER_04Yeah, yeah, yeah. Guy that might know something about the intimate relationship between spiritual, physical, mental, emotional leadership, and and what it means to be an authentic man in the 21st century, a Navy SEAL. So that there in case you want to hold on to the end today.
SPEAKER_01Yep. Um and you know, and this and really it's a reminder. We we looked at this last week and we've looked at it, you've seen this before, um, where it, you know, Jesus is at the center of it all, right? We we seem to compartmentalize certain aspects of our life, our work life, our you know, our church life, the way and we always talk about Jesus being at the center trans and transforming, and it affects all of that, but it also has to do with your spiritual and your physical and your intellectual, your emotional, your relationship. Jesus is at the center of it all.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, and the church has done a pretty good job of compartmentalizing out the spiritual and saying that's the only thing that matters. The rest of it don't worry about because we're we're gonna live you know in eternity when Christ returns, which is false. Uh, not that we're gonna live in eternity, but that the rest of it doesn't matter right now. And we're gonna actually talk about that today. What does the Bible have to say about my body? Why does it matter, especially if we believe in eternity? Amen.
SPEAKER_01So just a re-recap of last. Yeah, this is just a little recap of what we talked about last week. You know, the what the we answered some questions about, you know, what is what it what does it mean to be spiritual? You know, how do we know that we're spiritual? Um, what does it mean to be a spiritual man and how we define spiritual health and wellness? Um, and we talked about the you know what what the world says about you and what Jesus says about you, the truth that is in Jesus that you are loved because of what good God does for you, that you're loved because what God says about you, and that you are loved because of the good things God gives.
SPEAKER_04Who would have thought that our spiritual health and wellness would actually begin with what God does for us, says for us, and gives to us? That that might be that might be revolutionary to some who have been in the church and have heard that their spiritual wellness depends on what they do and what they say and uh you know what they're giving. Yeah. And you know anybody ever been in a church like that? Yeah, hello. Yeah, it's all about you, yeah.
SPEAKER_01Well, you know, and then you know, I I love that you are you are God's beloved, uh, because now we're not he's no longer seeing us through, you know, through our sin, but he's actually seeing us as he sees his beloved son, Christ Jesus. Um uh so it should be transformative for for all of us, right? Which then leads us to understand that we are chosen, that we are blessed, we are broken, and finally that we are given.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, and really neat to throw, go back real quick to this one, real fast. Uh, so uh the we've never done this at the retreat before, but I'm I'm very big into uh obviously growing in my spiritual and physical health and wellness. One of the things that I've grown in doing, Obi, is Christian meditation. And we're gonna do both on Saturday and Sunday morning. Uh, I'm gonna lead just 10 10-minute session on Saturday and Sunday morning about Christian meditation. And these four aspects are key to box breathing and connecting our physical health and wellness to our spiritual health and wellness through God's word. So just to throw that little advertisement out there.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. And we had this spirit, this, you know, the leadership bomb with Dr. H Dr. JM Nowin, you know, where he was talking about spiritual health and wellness, does not lead us out of engagement with the world, rather, it leads us deeper into it.
SPEAKER_04So are you saying that my spiritual health and wellness as as it grows in Christ should actually affect my physical well-being in the world?
SPEAKER_01It will, should, and does. There we go. Um, so we segue into what we're going to be talking here today, physical wellness. And really, we're taking this out of Romans 6.13. Offer yourselves up to God as those who have been brought from death to life, because we've been we have been brought from death to life. We're dead. Um, and offer every part of your body to Him as an instrument of righteousness.
SPEAKER_04So this is pretty cool because if you don't remember Romans 6, 1 through 13, this entire section is about the new life and baptism, being being buried with Christ under the water in your baptism and then being raised to new life up out of the water like Christ. Uh, and that our baptism brings us into a brand new reality. Guys, listen to this. Our baptism in Christ brings us into a brand new reality, which means a brand new perspective, not only our spiritual health and wellness, but look at this. Paul talks about a brand new perspective now on our bodies and what our body are are they a gift? What are they used for? Have you ever thought of it that way, Obi?
SPEAKER_01No, I had not. I can already tell you 100% that in in all my years as a believer going to church, this was never, ever, ever addressed.
SPEAKER_04So now all of a sudden, baptism has something to do with my physical health and wellness because doesn't it make sense, though? Because God is the creator of all things, especially the creator of us as humans. He's the creator of our bodies. Do you think God cares about our bodies?
SPEAKER_01Yes, he absolutely does. So we're going to answer a couple of questions for you. You know, we're going to talk a little bit about um about some questions here, gonna answer some questions for you.
SPEAKER_04And Oli, we've worked on these. We think that these are pretty good questions that that a lot of people actually want to ask you, men, who are a part of the MLC, but we rarely are ready for these questions and we rarely have good answers for them.
SPEAKER_01Yep. Questions such as what what does my body have to uh do with being a Christian? What does it mean to be physically healthy and well? What does the Bible have to say about my body, and why should I listen to God's word?
SPEAKER_04Because today, my body, my choice, you know, I'll do whatever the hell I want with it. Nobody has authority over my body but me. Well, if you if you are a follower of Christ and and you believe that God's word is the ultimate authority, that's not true.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, and this is a good one, Andy. Why should I care about my physical health and wellness if we believe in eternal life?
SPEAKER_04Yeah, because we've all we you know, in the church, especially in American cultural Christianity, we have turned we have turned the gospel message of salvation and Jesus Christ into an escape plan for the world is going to hell in a handbasket. I can't wait to get the hell out of here. And there's really nothing meaningful for me to do during this time period but wait for Christ to return or for me to die and go to him.
SPEAKER_01You know, that's that's absolutely not true. That's that's just surviving. Yeah, it really is. Uh, so let's talk a little bit about what what does physical fitness mean, right? Um, we we had three definitions for it: a state of physical health and well-being, specifically a measure of the human body's ability to function efficiently and effectively in work, leisure, play, exercise, and regular daily activities.
SPEAKER_04Now, look at this all of a sudden. I want to throw this out for us as men, but also for thinking about our wives or our daughters, or if you're dating the young lady that you're dating, or whatever. Did you notice that the first defining uh uh, you know, definition that we have of physical health and wellness doesn't begin with how you look. In the world that we live in, the first definition of physical health and wellness is what do you look like? And that is absolutely not true and not a great starting point. Mm-hmm.
SPEAKER_01Not at all. Not only at a set point in time, but at various ages and stages within the person's life cycle.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, so mine is changing in my later 50s. Golly, I hate to say that right now, right? But my my, you know, intentional goal of going after physical health and wellness is changing because my life stage is changing, but that doesn't mean you stop. No, you know, and one of the things that Jen and I have witnessed in our families is we've watched our our parents, especially our our dads, who stopped because they were taught that your physical health and wellness at a certain age goes away and you just do your time. And that is not what we want to be about. We want to adjust our our physical health and wellness to the age and stage of life that we're in, but continue to intentionally chase after it.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, and you know, Gunnar just shared something on the chat. Yeah, and we were talking about it really before we we got started earlier this morning. Um, he was saying that him and his wife were talking about about this last night. Um, and part of their discussion was how his mind is paying the price for his physical limitations. Yeah. Sure. Yeah. And so we we should think about that, right? That that really should stir us into thinking about how we take care of our body.
SPEAKER_04Uh Gunnar, that's gonna be the immediate, intimate connection to next Friday's conversation between physical health and wellness and your mental and emotional health and wellness. So you're hitting it right on the head.
SPEAKER_01Yep, yeah. So um we end with the key is finding optimum health within the limits of one lifestyle in order to be able to resist hypokinetic diseases, obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, high blood pressure, which are all uh in many cases are preventable diseases through positive intentional physical health and wellness. Yeah, to improve our immune system and our ability to meet emergency situations. And Terry, David, Terry, I I saw you came in. Were you chiming in on something, brother?
SPEAKER_04Yeah, share that, Dave. What a great line.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. Oh, well, no, I mean, our I'm I'm almost 60.
SPEAKER_03I'll be 60 in a few days. And it's, you know, I'm realizing my physical fitness has to be a reflection of my life in Jesus. And, you know, as I'm getting to 60, let's see. I've got cancer, I'm diabetic, I've got high blood pressure, I've got uh autoimmune disease that if I don't take a pill every day, it's gonna kill me. I'm still healthy in Jesus though. So how is my body reflecting that? Well, it means that my body's under attack, and I've got to do my part in growing my faith, but also taking care of my body. And, you know, you know, it's it's it's what I've got to do if I want to live long enough to share Jesus with my grandkids and also kind of pester them as the as they continue to grow up.
SPEAKER_04And maybe, and maybe be an example to your children, to your grandchildren of uh the reality that your physical fitness is a reflection of your life in Jesus and wanting them to grow in that right now, Dave. You know, so I that that was, you know, I was always big into physical fitness, Obi, as a an ex-athlete. Uh, but then I went through, you know, I went through the drinking years and the eating years and all of that that a lot of us go through, right? Uh, and and it was my son, I think he was 16, uh, Obi, when Sam came to me and just said, Dad, you're not healthy. I don't want you to be this way. Because I see that you're you're on the you're on the same trajectory as Grandpa Jim, you know, and it and and sat down with Jen and Sam, and both of them were like, You've got to, you've got to actually care about your physical health and wellness if you're going to continue to lead us as the the leader of this family in Christ. Wow, that that was shocking to me. If you're gonna continue to be the leader of this family in Christ, you need to be better in better shape, Bucko. You know, and they were right.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, you talk about getting hit in the face with an anvil, right?
SPEAKER_04Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_01Well, just so you know, guys, this is you know, we uh we we don't just pull stuff out of our hats. We really do not only re read God's word and make sure that what we're talking about is reflected in God's word, but we also like to have, you know, some actual scientific statistics. And so we wanted to just share a couple of them with you. Physical fitness, health and wellness trivia? Yep, yep. Um, globally, worldwide, one in four adults do not meet the recommended levels of physical activity.
SPEAKER_04That is two percent higher than the number of people that are actively self-aware in the world right now. These are these are shocking, right? Only 23% of the people in the world are self-aware. Only 25% of the people in the world are are meeting the recommended levels of physical activity.
SPEAKER_01And Andy, I'll put it in I'll I'll math that out for you guys. That's two billion people worldwide that don't meet the recommended levels of physical activity.
SPEAKER_04And I I was, and and it's very easy for me to be a part of that once again. I don't feel that I'm a part of that statistic right now, Obi. But I was, and it's very easy for me to get back into that statistic again. Think about that for a second.
SPEAKER_01Yes. And I'll tell y'all a little bit here and a little bit about that. But I'll keep going here. People who are insufficiently active have a 20% to 30% increased risk of death compared to people who are sufficiently active.
SPEAKER_04So again, do you think God wants us to be intentional about our physical health and wellness, especially against things that are preventable?
SPEAKER_01I would say yes, Andy. I would say that's a responsible thing to do. You mean be responsible with our bodies? Okay. Good. Good. That's crazy talk, Andy.
SPEAKER_05Yeah.
SPEAKER_01Uh more than 80% of the world's uh adolescent populations, it's insufficiently physically active.
SPEAKER_04And this goes, Dave, Terry, this goes directly to your point. Do you know why more than 80% of the world's adolescent population is insufficiently physically active? Because they have not had good examples. And just remember this statistic: 70% of what children know and do is caught, not taught. It's caught from watching. Our kids are watching us, our grandchildren are watching us.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, they they really are. Um, so let's talk physical fitness. Um, it can be subdivided into five categories. Here's some fancy words for you guys: uh, cardiovascular endurance, muscular strength, muscular endurance, flexibility, and body composition.
SPEAKER_04Wow, and this is pretty cool when you talk about your stage of life. Do you know which one has now become the most important one for me at my age, Obi? Flexibility. Because when you lose your flexibility, you stop moving.
SPEAKER_05Yeah.
SPEAKER_04And when you get into that mid-50s and up, it's now, I mean, yes, you want cardiovascular endurance and you want muscular strength, but man, you got to have flexibility. And I'm actually, it was on my goal for this year, Obi. I don't know if you remember, and we'll get to it next year when we see how we're doing. But one of my goals this year was to start Tai Chi. And I started it finally about two weeks ago. It only took me to a half middle of the year, but I've been doing it for two weeks now, and I am it is amazing what the human body will do if you're intentional and active about doing it. And now my flexibility in the last two weeks has grown incredibly.
SPEAKER_01That's awesome, dude. You know what? I'm gonna get you a Patrick Swayze poster from um Roadhouse.
SPEAKER_04I have well, you know, here's the thing. Talk about watching, you know, JB made a video of me from Roadhouse that I now have to try and live up to because he said he was gonna show it again at the end of the year. So, you know, and and this is true. Talk about this with the MLC, Obi. This is true with Brothers in Christ. Uh Obi and I are both intentionally and actively chasing our physical health and wellness in order to mentor other men, instead of you guys showing up and going, okay, you guys talk a good game, but you're not doing anything. You know, so you guys have accountability over Obi and I, an authority, if you will, and accountability, like, okay, you guys are talking about this. Are you actually doing it in your lives? You know? And the answer is yes, we are. Yeah, and we want more men to be able to go, yes, I am.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, yeah. You know, I love Gunner shared a picture of him on a bike. Uh, and I think that's pretty that's pretty cool. He was an Ironman triathlete in 2016. Uh, so that's really, really cool. And I, you know, and I think Gunner's working hopefully towards that. I don't know if his back can do it now, but uh what a wonder, what a what a legacy to have, right, Gunner. So we're we we're I know I'm impressed by that. I will drown like a rat.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, and Gunner, touch base with me offline, and I'll I'll share some stuff with you that we can talk about with your physical limitations now where you can still be intentional uh about you know bringing that weight down and be and moving in a way that isn't painful.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, yeah, awesome. Well, um, and we're not just sharing with y'all with that just to try to scare you. We there are there there is a a a purpose to what we're talking about. You know, these are some key benefits. There are key benefits. Uh, and the World Health Organization says the top three key, the top five key benefits, right, of being healthy. Uh physical activity has significant health benefits for our hearts, bodies, and minds. It's physical activity, that's so simple.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, great benefits for your heart, your body, and your mind.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. Physical activity contributes to preventing and managing non-communicable diseases such as cardiovascular diseases, cancer, and diabetes.
SPEAKER_04So you mean physical activity actually helps us against preventable diseases? The answer is yes.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. Um, physical activity reduces symptoms of stress, depression, and anxiety.
SPEAKER_04And this is the big one. This is why it's in the middle and why it's going to be connected to next week.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. Physical activity enhances thinking, learning, and judgment skills. Absolutely. Physical activity ensures healthy growth and development in young people by improving overall well-being.
SPEAKER_04So if they see us doing it, they probably are going to catch it and they're probably going to do it too.
SPEAKER_01Yep. As one whole person, our physical health affects our spiritual health and yeah, and these are pretty huge.
SPEAKER_04We're doing defining moments. What does faith in the human body have to do with one another? Well, they're intimately related because God created human beings as one entity, not two.
SPEAKER_05Yeah.
SPEAKER_04You are one thing, you are an embodied, souled person. So your physical and your spiritual have an intimate connection to one another and affect each other, right? Vice versa.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. You know, and as followers of Jesus, we believe that our spiritual and physical health are intimately interconnected because we are embodied and embedded beings. I love that. We are embodied and embedded beings. And when our physical health is adversely affected, it can definitely affect how we commune with God, how we fulfill our daily vocations, and the way we live in community with one another.
SPEAKER_04Look at this. I mean, these are pretty huge. Number one, did you know that, you know, it says your spiritual act of worship, Paul says in Romans chapter 12. But what Paul means is your entire the entirety of your person. So when we go to worship, on let's say just as an example, Sunday mornings, Obi, why do we stand up and sit down? Why do we kneel? You know, why do we bow our heads? Because physicality is an active part of our worship, right? It's not like some disembodied thing where all of a sudden I'm there on a Sunday morning, you know, and my body, my spirit floats up out of my body and worships God, and this meat bag's just sitting on the pews. That's not how it works. So, you know, really huge in the way we commune with God. But then also, did you know that it can have a serious impact on your relationship with yourself? And this is where we see in the world today when physical health and wellness, the number one definition of it is how you look, is when you are not physically and healthy well, people begin to have a bad body image or a bad view of themselves. And this can turn into negative self-speak, and this can turn into not wanting to be around other people. This can turn into people that are actually otroverts, you know, extroverts that want to be around others that now become introvert because they're body shamed or in their own minds, Obi. Yeah. So it has all kinds of impact. So let's look at the Greek word soma, which is the Greek word for body. And you might say, well, what does being a Christian have to do with my body? Well, these are just a few examples of the intimacy of what our spirituality has to do with our body.
SPEAKER_01Hey, let's roll, let's pull something out of the scripture. Um, this is out of Romans 12.1. Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies, Soma, as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God. This is your true and proper worship.
SPEAKER_04You know, and Obi, this connects directly with not only our physical health and well-being, but you were talking about our sexual health and well-being in our marriages, or as we're raising our children that are not married, to offer our bodies as living sacrifices becomes a proper act of worship. When a man, a husband, is protecting the sanctity of marriage and that sexual relationship with just his wife, that is active worship of God, following his law for what he has created to be best for us. When a man is teaching his son about the sanctity of marriage and the sexual relationship that a husband has with his wife, and is encouraging him to follow God's design for sexuality in the world today, that is a father's act of worship to God by fathering his child. Yeah. You know, do we normally think about it that way though?
SPEAKER_01You know, I'm I'm so thankful that I'm that the Lord brought me to the MLC because, you know, my son is turning, he turns 15 today. Um, and that's you know, since he starts, you know, that's to talk about sex has been on the forefront of what we of what we discuss with our children. We don't have anything that's taboo or anything like that. We wanted them to have a healthy and Christ centered view of what what sex means. So what it is.
SPEAKER_04What what we do with our bodies, and you know, here's the here's the beautiful thing, Obi. Because we are sinful and broken and we're not going to get it right all the time, and we're not gonna be perfect, we can also be there when we've used our bodies inappropriately.
SPEAKER_01Yep.
SPEAKER_04And we've sinned against God, we can bring about the forgiveness, mercy, and grace of Jesus Christ, which has been brought into my life. I know it's been brought into your life, and many other men need to hear the story of mercy and grace and forgiveness, so that we might find the joy once again of actually utilizing our bodies properly in worship to God in all kinds of ways.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, look, and what about what a beautiful segue. Therefore, do not let you we might have put some thought into this, guys. Therefore, do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. Do not offer any part of yourself to sin as an instrument of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and offer every part of your body to him as an instrument of righteousness.
SPEAKER_04You know, and this is again in the beginning what we talked about, you know, set of verses of Romans 6, 1 through 13 about our baptism is God knows our sin and brokenness. He knows that there are aspects of the way we have utilized our bodies or let more sin reign in them that have to be put to death in Christ. But he also then is the God of mercy, grace, and forgiveness that raises us up out of the water into brand new life to see our bodies, our physical health and wellness and how we use our bodies over in a brand new way. And that was what really hit me. I saw my body uh as an athlete for all those years. I used it for my own pride and I used it for my own boasting. And then I had the wild years where I used my body and sin, you know, for pleasure. And it was when I came to this moment of actually seeing my body as used as an instrument of righteousness, and now can it enjoy intentionally and actively going after being physically healthy and well as an act of worship, using my body as an instrument of righteousness? So it's no longer about pride and it's no longer about pleasure, it's now about joy in Christ, and and that is the aspect of physical health and wellness of that shalom, that whole life bonus, but that joy in Christ to use my body properly. It's a joy, it's a joy.
SPEAKER_01So it in contrast, Andy, I'm gonna talk, uh, I'm gonna put put this next slide um on really what the world uh the the the world views this, okay?
SPEAKER_04And we not only we not only want you guys to be aware of these lies and the way that they hit us, but we want you also as as husbands and fathers, uh and and and sons to recognize the way of the world and what it's done to the women in our lives.
SPEAKER_01Yep. Um objectifying the human body, valuing, worshiping outward physical appearance, unhealthy body image issues, ridiculing those who do not fit certain physical stereotypes, lying to those who are living in an unhealthy lifestyle. Oh, Andy.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, you know, and four and five are just huge. We we we flip-flop back and forth, we oscillate from ridiculing those uh that don't fit into the Hollywood, you know, stereotype. And then immediately, you know, we turn around and say, but everybody's body image is their own, and there's no such thing as a healthy, unhealthy body image, or there's no such thing as an unhealthy body type. Well, talk to my wife who is an expert in diabetes, right? Or also in liver disease, or these other things that are preventable, and she'll tell you that's absolutely not true. We shouldn't lie to those that are living unhealthy lifestyles. We should tell them the truth.
SPEAKER_01If she's some kind of doctor Andy covered, and I know.
SPEAKER_04Oh, you're one of them wicked smot people, yeah. But she's she so her passion when you talk about vision, mission, and values, Jenna's worked through hers. Uh, and her vision is she has a passion to work against preventable disease as a as a uh a doctor of pharmacy. And the reason not only so here here's a great perspective: not only that that God has given us science and medicine to be able to help people with diseases, but Jen doesn't even want you to get to the point of having to take the drugs. So those are pretty huge. So not only ridiculing those who don't fit, but let's not lie to those who are living unhealthy lifestyles. Overweight is not God's design for our bodies, and we have to share that with one another in an encouraging and loving way, but we still can't look at each other and lie and say, Oh, you're you're however you want to live is okay for you. Unhealthy is unhealthy. That's hard to say out loud, but it's true. Yeah.
SPEAKER_02And it's not to be mean, neither actually to be loving. Go ahead, Dave. Oh, you're saying gluttony isn't okay?
SPEAKER_04No, yeah, it might be one of those seven deadlies, the Catholic Church.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, we we don't talk about that one though, dude. We it's better to pick on some of the other more visible ones.
SPEAKER_04No, but Dave, you know, Dave, real quick input from you on, you know, just the transformation in your way of thinking about physical health and wellness in your body over the last year or so.
SPEAKER_02Uh, it's been something that my mind is has a completely different view of. And I am I haven't done it because I want to fit into a certain pair of jeans or shorts or uh, you know, a certain size shirt or anything. It's been a um, as my health's gotten better, my spiritual life has gotten better. And you know, I'm I'm all I can say is that the two are probably somehow linked. I can't imagine we would actually be talking about something that made sense like that, but you know, it it probably is. And um, you know, at some level, I'm sure God said, Hey, you need to get your stuff together, and I'm gonna give you some men that can kind of point you in that direction and help you. And so you're gonna learn both. And, you know, it's it's one of those things that's been really good. So yeah, it's just it's just funny because yesterday I was running around and I was out and there were some ladies that were about both of them were about three times the size of me, my old me. I mean, they were very large. And I never would have thought I never would have thought about it before, but I was kind of like, and they were they were ordering food that was just like, okay, that's enough food for me and seven guys in the MLC. And they're you know, to them, it was just like, it was okay. It's like we're gonna get this because we can. And I'm like, no, that's that's not. You're not taking care of your body and you're not doing the right thing. And I see people that are healthy. I hear about, you know, I hear Dave saying, you know, you walk two miles, I feel like a slacker. I'm on a half mile during the call because I didn't get up, and so I'm you know, I'm feeling like a real slacker this morning. But you you see a difference, and I'm not trying to judge, I'm just thinking, wow, they're not they're not doing what you were talking about.
SPEAKER_04Well, and yeah, and huge open, honest, and vulnerable Dave. Was there a time where you ate like that and ate whatever the hell you wanted? Because you can do whatever you want with your body. Oh, way too long.
SPEAKER_02That's what caused my stroke. Yeah. And here you go. I didn't have there, you know, no, there was nobody in my life, even though people were like, you need to do this, you need to do that, you need to do this. It was everybody that said it was in super good shape. And, you know, even my friend Ryan McCoy, who Steve's friends with, Ryan would say, You should try this, this, and this. Brian's like six foot one, like 190 pounds, his blood sugar is like 80, you know, on a bad day. And it was hard. It just it was sounded like Charlie Brown talking to me. And when Steve said, Oh, yeah, I didn't want to be on these medications, and for some reason my brain picked up on what he said, and it was like, oh, and maybe that was God's way of saying, Listen, I'm gonna put somebody in your life that can speak your language. I don't know. And I'm I'm still far from perfect, but I'm doing way better than I've ever done in my life. And, you know, people left and right are like, wow, we never thought, you know, honestly, we didn't think you could do that. And I'm like, I didn't think I could do it. I said, but some people told me that was possible, and I said, let's see what we can do, and it's helped me. So I feel better having done it. And you know, it's this this group, and and I think my spiritual um awareness has really grown as as my health awareness has grown too. So um, I don't know, maybe the Lord works in mysterious ways, right?
SPEAKER_04Or maybe he works in some pretty common sense ways, and and we just need to get on board with that too.
SPEAKER_02Well, let's not, let's not, we can't use logic and common sense answering. Right, right, right. You know how you know how society is today.
SPEAKER_01That's crazy talk, David. Yeah. Crazy talk.
SPEAKER_04I pray every day to lose weight, but I don't do anything about it. Oh, wait, wait, wait. Why isn't God answering my prayer? Well, maybe he wants you to, you know, get up and do some common sense things that he's given us to do. So, and Dave, you're actually doing it, and we're proud of you and want to applaud that, but we also want to use that as encouragement for the rest of the brothers. It it it can happen.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, and it's a big deal to have somebody that's not just you know, that we're not just talking about it, but there's somebody that's actually walking through it and and and is a living testimony of that.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, uh let's look at some of the lives of the world, Obi, real quick.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, and I heard you talking of uh mention a few of them just a little bit ago that the human body's an empty meat machine. I heard that. Um, and my body's my own, no one can tell me what to do with it. Eat, drink, and be merry. Uh tomorrow die. Okay. And then this last one, this is a this is a good one. When we die, we will be set free from this physical prison.
SPEAKER_04Yeah. Which is not true. You know, death. The biblical definition of death is when the human body and the soul that are uh supposed to be intimately connected to one another as one human person are ripped apart. The resurrection of Jesus Christ when he returns is what, Obi? The putting back together of those two things that were never supposed to be ripped asunder.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, yeah. So let's let's let's compare that to the transformational truth in Christ Jesus, right? When we exercise regularly, we are faithfully stewarding the human body God has given us as a gift.
SPEAKER_04Wow, stewarding, so faithfully stewarding, really good. We're active worship, we are better prepared and equipped to serve others, but wait a minute, I just want to get healthy for me.
SPEAKER_01Nope, it's not about you, Andy.
SPEAKER_04Okay.
SPEAKER_01We are better prepared and equipped to keep our mind awake and spirit alert.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_01We talked about it.
SPEAKER_04So you mean you mean when we're physically healthy and well in the way that God wants us to be? With you know, that that whole you know, uh verse on uh be sober-minded because your enemy, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion. You mean our physical health and wellness helps us be more spiritually alert?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, you know, this is where we came up when we came up with that the devil loves an unhealthy man.
SPEAKER_04Devil loves an unhealthy man, brother.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_04Easy, easy, easy prey. Hercus, that's dinner just laid out on the plate for him. He didn't even have to hunt it down.
SPEAKER_01We are more excited and energized to share laughing Christ with others, which hopefully that's what these Friday mornings are, right?
SPEAKER_04Yeah, hopefully you're energized, Obi. Are you excited?
SPEAKER_01I am excited, Andy.
SPEAKER_04Okay, all right, yeah, just checking.
SPEAKER_01And we have a great opportunity to worship God and delight ourselves in Him and His as His created for. Physical beings.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, pretty cool stuff. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01Paul would say on the book of First Corinthians, do not do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it and receive receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable one. So I do not run aimlessly. I do not box as one beating the air, but I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.
SPEAKER_04I I discipline my body and keep it under control for a whole lot of reasons. Not just so I look good, but if we discipline our bodies and keep it under control, we get the benefits of what God has created us to receive physically, spiritually, mentally, and emotionally, sexually, relationally, vocationally. So we that we receive the benefits of actually behaving with our bodies in the way that God intended them.
SPEAKER_01Yep. Which means that your body is not a machine. Rather, it is a beautiful work of art created by God. I know this is one of your this is one of those scriptures, Andy, that's very near and dear to you. Um that says, um Here it is.
SPEAKER_04No, you got it. It's on the next one. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah, you're doing the whole thing. Go ahead.
SPEAKER_01For you are wait, what? For you created my inmost being. You knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I'm fearfully and wonderfully made. Your works are wonderful. I know that full well, my frame was not hidden from me when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to you.
SPEAKER_04Obi, look, look at this real quick. I praise you because I'm fearfully and wonderfully made. When we exercise our bodies and when we are intentionally chasing the goal of physical health and wellness, here it is. David says right here in the Psalms that we're praising God. It is an act of worship.
SPEAKER_01It is an act of worship.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_01Well, did you know that your body is a gift from God, in which the Holy Spirit has made his home?
SPEAKER_04Well, all of a sudden, my physical health and wellness has to do with am I keeping God's temple where the Holy Spirit resides clean?
SPEAKER_01Mm-hmm. And we get that out of Psalms. Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Holy Spirit dwells in you? If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him, for God's temple is holy, and you are that temple.
SPEAKER_04Now all of a sudden, our bodies are a temple in which the Holy Spirit lives. Is that is a temple not a place of worship? Yeah, so interesting, interesting concepts here, guys, on how we should look at our bodies, by the way, from scripture.
SPEAKER_01Yep. Well, um, did you know also that God redeemed your body? So your body is not your own. God bought it back for you a price, a steep.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, and what price did he pay? Paid the price of his own son's body on the cross. Uh, but then you get the empty tomb, the resurrection of the body. Jesus is resurrected in his flesh. So this is pretty huge from 1 Corinthians 6, 19 through 20. You know.
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_04Go ahead.
SPEAKER_01Uh yeah. Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit who live in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own. You were bought at a price, therefore, honor God with your body.
SPEAKER_04Now, look at this right here. You are not your own. But wait, my body, who can tell me what to do what I have to do with my body? I do with my body whatever I want. Well, scripture says, No, you're not your own. You were bought at a price.
SPEAKER_05Yeah.
SPEAKER_04God's authority over how we treat our bodies. Pretty amazing.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. Um, and that God cares so much for our bodies that he daily nourishes, nurtures, and sustains each and every one of our bodies through his divine fatherly goodness and mercy.
SPEAKER_04Nourishes, nurtures, and sustains. And we'll get into at the very end here as we wrap up in the next few minutes, Obi, that our eating is a part of our physical health and wellness, not just our exercise.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, yeah. Um, Matthew 6, 11 would say, Give us this day our daily bread. So, what does this mean? God gives us daily bread to God gives daily bread to everyone without our prayers, even to all evil people. But we pray in this petition that God would lead us to realize this and to receive our daily bread with thanksgiving.
SPEAKER_04So, all of a sudden, our physical health and wellness, our exercise of our bodies is thanksgiving.
unknownThank you.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. Yeah. Oh, my favorite one.
unknownYeah.
SPEAKER_01God will resurrect us in our bodies.
SPEAKER_04You are not an empty meat wagon. We are not escaping the spirit physical reality. That is not what salvation is about. The resurrection is about the resurrection of the body and the soul being reunited with one another, Obi.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I thought we just run a little fat chubby angels playing a harp. Um, no.
SPEAKER_04Pure spirit, pure spirit. Can't wait. No, that's not what it is. Jesus was resurrected in his flesh. Jesus is currently actively reigning and ruling over all things, Obi, right now, in his flesh. He has not laid down his human body. He is the God man. And God promises that through his resurrection we get what Jesus gets. And if Jesus is resurrected in his flesh, guess what we're gonna get?
SPEAKER_01That sounds like one of those math problems, Andy. I know, I know, crazy. Job 19, 25 through 27 says, For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last day he will stand upon the earth. And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God, whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another, how my heart faints within me.
SPEAKER_04And I wonder if we have that same kind of uh awe about the resurrection of our bodies in Christ that we when it says how my heart faints within me, that's awe and wonder. How how wonderful and how amazing. How can this be? How can this gift be given to me?
unknownYeah.
SPEAKER_01So we say so we say all of this, you know, it um so that you know we get to this culmination of of this transforming movement. And so what why why do all of this, right? Why, you know, why take care of the of our bodies? What are the benefits of uh holistic physical health and wellness? Um, well, it begins with rest, it's built up on healthy nutrition, it's strengthened through regular exercise, it is to be shared by living in a healthy community, and it leads to thriving with less anxiety.
SPEAKER_04These are pretty huge, especially in the world that we live in today with normalized anxiety, normalized individual, isolated individualism, right? Uh uh food as a pleasure versus as fuel, right? And the fact that we now say, I'm gonna work through the week so I can get to the weekend and rest. When in scripture everything begins with resting in God so that you might have uh that energy and that strength to go out and now do. We've completely flipped it on its head. And in scripture, everything begins with resting in God. The Hebrew day began at evening, began at twilight. It began with rest so that when you woke up in the morning, the second half of your day was now you had the energy to go do what you needed to do in Christ. That is crazy. Yes. Well, real quick, we'll wrap up with these five. Obi, it won't take too long. Nope.
SPEAKER_01It begins with rest, right? God designed his human children to thrive from periods of regular physical rest and recovering him. Bodily function, cognitive ability, and hormonal function, as well as all parts of the body, including the five senses, serve us best with periods of regular recovery and rest.
SPEAKER_04Which is why he created our day to begin with rest and then to go out and do. And I love seeing the studies that we're getting now where people are like, Hey, did you know that you know studies have shown yes, we know, yeah, and the the rising rates of cortisol and anxiety because we get up in the morning to start our day, and at the end of it, after we've done everything that we can do and a little bit more, maybe we'll get some rest. No, yeah.
SPEAKER_01Um, physical life, rhythm, physical life is built upon healthy nutrition. God gives us our daily bread. That's the food that we need to sustain our bodies.
SPEAKER_04Not gluttony, Dave. Brought that up, not gluttony, not food as pleasure, but food as sustenance.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. God Himself blesses us with these means to bless bodily life with long longevity, quality of life, ability to function and serve others.
SPEAKER_04Have you ever thought about your ability to serve others when you sit down at the dinner table and eat Obi? Or so here was one of my problems. When I sat down to eat at any meal, I was thinking about my gut and making my gut happy. I was not thinking about the reality that maybe if I eat well and have good nutrition, I'll be better able to serve my wife, my son, maybe even the guys on the MLC. Crazy.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. Um, the scriptures guide us to avoid gluttony and to respect and give things for the sources of healthy nutrition, which God provides.
SPEAKER_05Nice.
SPEAKER_04Right. You can see why guys are guys are peeling off the call now because all of a sudden our eating habits have to do with our ability to say. This is a hard teaching. Remember the argument came to Jesus. This is a hard teaching.
SPEAKER_01Who can follow it? And and slowly they begin to turn away, for it was hard. Um physical life is strengthened through regular exercise. That means God has created us as embodied and embedded beings with a many with many meaningful physical purpose. Work, leisure, play.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, nice, nice, right? Uh-huh. God cares about our leisure and our play.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. Absolutely. Our physical life is to be enjoyed by living in community. That means that each of us is a member of the body of Christ. Each one of you, each one of us has a purpose, and we are not the same. It is like our bodies that were so intricately created, each organ, cell, in our system plays a vital role role in order for the whole body to function properly. In a similar way, it's we are part of community. It is important for us to be good stewards with our physical health, not only for our own benefit, but for the benefit of our brothers in the body of Christ.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, this is huge. So we live in, you know, the worship of the we worship the individual uh in the United States of America and in our culture, which means then when it comes to our physical health and wellness, we we do it by ourselves. It's a lone wolf mentality when it comes to our physical health and wellness, and that's a lie.
SPEAKER_01Um, we see the effects of leading to thriving uh with less than physical love, leads to thriving with less anxiety. We see the effects of stress, fear, and worry on our minds, the innumerable anxiety disorders in our culture becoming the norm and our spirits, but also clearly on our bodies with the physical sequalia of anxiety, heart disease, hypertension and stroke, digestive disorders, obesity, diabetes, and eating disorders, dementia, and even death itself.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, and I looked at this and I'm like, wow, look at what this can do to people. I have three or four of them, or have had three or four of them, hypertension, digestive disorders. I had a foot of my colon taken out due to diverticulitis based on a bad diet, you know, an eating disorder. Uh, I found out that, you know, uh when when I'm stressed, guess what I do? I eat. Anybody else do that? You know, so I was looking at this like the whole American cultural Christianity. Wow, look at what this does to other people, and it smacked me in the face. This is me. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. Well, how about this leadership bomb from our uh Jocko Willink? He's there in that that's that's me.
SPEAKER_04I just put his face on the body, just so you know.
SPEAKER_01It was a lot easier to do it that way. He's a retired Navy SEAL author, podcaster, and motivational speaker.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_01To calm the mind, exhaust the body.
SPEAKER_04And actually, that's in scripture too. So to bring calmness or to uh to to be able to you know ease your mind, peace, shalom, exhaust your body.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, that's huge, yeah. Andy, yeah, go ahead, Dave. I think a lot of us have pets, and that's one of the things we're told is take them on walks and exercise them. Sometimes letting them sniff wears them out as much as walking them because it works their mind and exhausts their mind on all the stuff they have to factor in and process. And so why wouldn't it make sense for it to be the same with us? Not that we have to sniff everybody, but definitely do the exercise part to help calm things down a little.
SPEAKER_04But you bring up a huge aspect of what how in the world is our physical health and wellness connected to our spiritual, mental, emotional, all that. How come they're all intra intricately connected? Well, God gave us the five senses that we have. You're talking about sniffing, but God gave us our five senses to be engaged in the world, which, you know, is not just exercise, but it's taste and smell and hearing and seeing and you know, all these uh, you know, you know, these aspects, but we re we rip and remove the spirituality aspect, Obi, apart from that. And we actually do what the world tells us to do, which is a lie, is then treat our bodies like empty meat bags.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. Not so. We're gonna end with uh Matthew 6, 25 to 33. Very appropriate way to end. Uh, that says, Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, they neither sow nor reap, nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly father feeds them. Are you not more valuable than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow. They neither toil nor spin. Yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you? Oh you have little faith. Therefore do not be anxious, saying, What shall we eat, or what shall we drink, or what shall we wear? For the Gentiles seek after all of these things, and your faith, heavenly father, knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all of these things will be added unto you.
SPEAKER_04And Obi, go back to that real quick. Well, I want to wrap up with this that last two lines, right? Your heavenly father knows that you need them all, but have Christ at the center first, and then all these things will be added to you. And that's what we're talking about is Christ at the center. That's what this entire set of verses is. Christ at the center of every aspect of our health and well-being. But these verses are aimed at our anxiety over our physical needs, right? That then cause anxiety in our mental and emotional health and wellness. And this is going to be the segue into next Friday, which we hope not only show up next Friday, but invite as many guys as you know. And we're going to talk about the the huge impact of men getting together and talking about their mental and emotional health and wellness with one another and why that's so huge.
SPEAKER_01So, yeah, Obi, you want to pray us out? Yeah, absolutely. A lot of information, but we didn't want to skimp out on it, guys, because it'd be disservice to you. Um, Lord, we thank you so much for the bodies that you've given us. Um, you've entrusted them to us. And I pray that as we're hearing your word and reading your word, that your Holy Spirit moves us and stirs us to a change of life. If we have not been good stewards of our body, that you allow your word to read us and to show us that there is a better way, that we are to care for this temple that you've given us. And it's so that we are able to be better heralds of your word, so that we're able to be better fathers, brothers, friends, workers. Allow your word to speak to us, and let your Holy Spirit move us towards a healthier lifestyle that is important. We want to be able to perform well. We want to be able to be attuned to your word, to be attuned to our spirit, and we ask you to lead us, and it's in your name we pray.
SPEAKER_00Amen. Thanks for joining and listening. We hope that you were truly blessed. Now you can join the live call every Friday morning at 7 a.m. Central Standard Time, and please bring a friend. And to learn more about the MLC, visit our website at the MLC.life. That's the MLC. Have a great day.