Happy, happy, happy weekend!
Serving up only the Good Stuff for you right here:
Have you entered the treasury of snow?
Or have you seen the treasury of hail?
Oh to be an old romantic…
So happy to see her!
Round up of What’s Happening around the Farm
In which Aurora thinks about crows…
And Caleb isn’t happy with seven different candles he made…
And Aurora drops her phone…
Check in next week to Keep following Along
The Pull-Up Paradigm
A Call to Count the Cost
On January 20th, 2013 David Goggins, a former Navy Seal broke the world record for pull ups in a 24 hour period.
The previous mark was eclipsed by a margin as slim as nine pull-ups, with Goggins accomplishing an awe-inspiring total of 4,030 pull-ups in a mere seventeen hours.
The following is the first fifteen minutes of the record breaking 17 hours.
On a later podcast, talking about the successful record breaking attempt, Goggins broke down his mentality going into this gruelling feat.
“What separates me from a lot of people is they go into a daunting task, and the task is overwhelming.
– David Goggins on the Joe Rogan Experience
Like when I heard the pull-up record was 4020 pull-ups, and I was talking about breaking this record, people are like, [it’s impossible], I went right to a pen and paper.
They’re like, “What are you doing?”
I’m doing the math, man.
“What are you talking about?”
I’m open minded to the fact that, okay, if I do five pull-ups in a minute for so many hours, I can get so many pull-ups in.
How much time do I have to rest?
I was breaking the math down.”
Discipline is Part of Discipleship
In an era where the pursuit of instant gratification seems to eclipse the value of steadfast dedication, Goggins’ feat stands as a monument to the power of disciplined effort.
In a world that often preaches the gospel of “follow your heart,” Goggins’ narrative serves as a call to the virtues of discipline.
In a post-modern world that constantly emphasizes following you heart, it’s deeply refreshing to hear someone lay out a call to discipline, to embracing the cost and the pain of doing what is necessary – to emphasize that discipleship entails discipline, not just a call to a feeling.
In a secular culture often captivated by Five Minute Abs or One Easy Trick to XZY, the concept of discipline, especially in spiritually counting the cost, seems increasingly counter-cultural.
Unfortunately, this isn’t limited only to the secular; the western church often seems more enamoured with retreats, fog machines, and mountain top experiences, than it does in calling us to count the heavy cost of following Christ.
Count the Cost
Our Savior did not mince words when He spoke of what it took to follow Him. He spoke of a path marked not by ease and comfort but by sacrifice and self-denial.
Now great crowds accompanied him, and he turned and said to them, “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.
Luke 14:25-29
Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple. For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him.”
Luke records Christ’s radical words, emphasizing the necessity of bearing one’s cross and the sobering process of counting the cost of discipleship. It’s a process that demands a candid assessment of our willingness to forsake all for the sake of Christ.
This principle of disciplined commitment is not confined to the physical realm but extends to every facet of the spiritual. Goggins’ physical triumph is a temporal representation of this greater truth. His methodical approach—characterized by rigorous planning, relentless training, and an unwavering focus on the goal—mirrors the journey of spiritual growth.
Just as physical discipline can forge a body capable of feats that defy expectation, spiritual discipline shapes a soul that reflects the image of Christ more clearly with each passing day.
For a follower of Christ, some of the counting the cost will mean embracing the cost of the disciplines of prayer, the cost of spending time engaging with Scripture, and cost of service in the church. Counting the cost is the very means through which we grow into the fullness of our identity in Christ. They require a deliberate effort, a willing heart, and a spirit attuned to the transformative power of God’s grace.
In reflecting on Goggins’ extraordinary achievement, we are reminded that the path to glory set before us—is paved with the stones of discipline, sacrifice, and perseverance.
The call to follow Christ is both a love story, but also a call to discipline, to count the cost, and to embark on the journey of discipleship with our eyes fixed on the prize. It is a journey fraught with challenges but rich with the promise of transformation, a race not merely of a runners high but for those who, by God’s grace, endure to the end.
– written by Caleb Voskamp
Sometimes you just need the bestest of friends!
Five Minute Glass – Make each moment count; accompanied by a little tag saying: “Only one life, twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.“
Hammered Tin Wall Cross – This embossed cross is highlighted against the smooth metal background, creating a striking contrast.
To pause and contemplate and celebrate
the wonder of Keeping Company with Him…
On The Book Stack at The Farm
Read by Jennie Allen’s recent guest post:
What to do With Feelings That Are Meant to Be Felt, Not Fixed
Aurora and Melba have both been reading The Silmarillion
and loving it!
For all the clean freak out there…
Are wasabi vapours the new fungus killer?
Oh glory! Would you come along with us?
A bit of a renovation nerd?
We love this creative construction experimentation in Oklahoma!
This one this weekend!
To reveal the kingdom coming
And to reconcile the lost
To redeem the whole creation
You did not despise the cross
For even in Your suffering
You saw to the other side
Knowing this was our salvation
Jesus for our sake You died
[from our Facebook community – join us?]
It’s not about you making time for God
because He’s already made Time for you,
and is just waiting for you to come be with Him.
He loves being with us so much that He carved your name
into His hand and named Himself
“God with us.”
His commitment to you is more than written in stone–
He wrote it into Himself.
Spend time with Him.
He spent everything for you.
That’s all for this weekend, friends.
Go slow. Be God-struck. Grant grace. Live Truth.
Give Thanks. Love well. Re – joy, re- joy, ‘re- joys’ again
Share Whatever Is Good.
