Category: Blogging

Well, this journey with DDP Yoga has continued into Week 3 for YFB!

As the icon and 3 Time World Heavyweight Champion says, “Don’t just think it, INK it!”

Thus, as I continue to rebuild this temple our Lord has temporarily given me (meaning be good to my body), I feel the itch to blog again.

Granted, there have been several AMAZING folks participating in DDP Yoga, and they are phenomenal at journaling their own journey. If you wish to follow their blogs, video logs, social media, etc. I strongly encourage you to!

So, here it goes…

Every time I complete one of these Beginner Plus workouts, say “No!” to poisons I use to consume on command like soda, sugar, etc. I continue to have a surge of not just seeing my goal reached in due time, but I feel the euphoria of something else…Hope.

Now, this part will get long-winded, so if you want to stop reading now, no hard feelings…

___

Since being a kid, I always embraced the struggle between good and evil and would cheer on the Good Guy. Maybe that is why it was so easy to embrace all characters of early WWE and WCW, such as Sting, Ricky Steamboat, Bret Hart, and of COURSE, Diamond Dallas Page. 

This actually started earlier than my interest in professional wrestling. It can actually be traced back to He-Man and the Masters of the Universe. Skeletor was the clear opposition to He-Man protecting the planet Eternia. If you have followed any form or re-formation of MOTU, you know the famous exclamation of “I HAVE THE POWER!!” As I got older, I embraced Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and other 90’s T.V. shows.

Yes, I am one of those “pre/post millennials”, depending on your or the internet’s interpretation. I was born in 1984 when MOTU was on the rise as well as the release of another iconic movie, “The Neverending Story”.

Cheering on the Good Guys was a reliable hope that hardly disappointed as a kid. Yet, this movie being watched through the eyes of an adult is a harsh reminder of how a sense of hopelessness can be just around the corner.

We seem too often to forget the secondary antagonist, the “extension” of the Nothing: a dark, terrifying werewolf named Gmork. The book’s depiction of this character is more vivid and bone-chilling than the movie adaptation, but for the sake of not prolonging this blog too much, I will remind you of a brief conversation between G’mork and Atreyu:

Atreyu: But why is Fantasia dying, then?

G’mork: Because people have begun to lose their hopes and forget their dreams. So, the Nothing grows stronger.

Atreyu: What IS the Nothing?

G’mork: It’s the emptiness that’s left. It’s like a despair, destroying this world. And I have been trying to help it.

Atreyu: But why?!

G’mork: Because people who have no hopes are easy to control; and whoever has the control has the power!

Now, I am NOT telling you to sit through this movie again, or to say that the despair perseveres, but it can be just as persistent as our efforts as we strive to better ourselves. 

Atreyu was required to undertake his quest alone and with no weapons. WE are equipped with many weapons to fight against hopelessness. None of us have to face our journey alone, nor should we. 

As we fight against complacency, addictions, vices, and all other hindrances, may we remember to seek God’s truth and stand shoulder to shoulder with our brothers and sisters in Christ, in Arms, and just in life in general.

Proverbs 27:17 says, “As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.” This means The Blacksmith of the Heavens will sharpen us. 

With sparks. 

With strikes! 

With friction. 

May our swords be sharpened according to His will, brothers and sisters! WE have the Power!

BANG!

• YFB

To be honest, Blockhead Nation, this blog has been a long time coming. 

I reached out to a dear friend of the podcast, and she gave me an idea for a blog. To say I have procrastinated would be an understatement! This was meant to be a Thanksgiving blog, but it turned into a Christmas blog due to my apathetic nature. On the heels of that statement, wouldn’t you agree that we can all be grateful for us adults who just persevered through the holiday? 

The older I get, the more Christmas becomes focused on Jesus and less on Santa Claus. But, it’s for the kiddos, too, right? So we persevere through the wishlists to the cornucopia of gifts around the tree.

Now, to attempt to get to the meat of this blog…

My readers and listeners are very aware of the fact that my favorite sport is Mixed Martial Arts. Even though the sport is all about the individual and it’s a sport of champions, I will tell you with the fullest confidence and with every ounce of faith I have that the greatest warrior ever was Jesus. Shocking? Wouldn’t the greatest champion of the Bible be someone like Samson? Let’s talk about that.

Judges 16 verses 28 – 30 describes Samson as full of strength, renewed by God, pushing down the pillars of the house of Dagon, a deity with the head of a man and the body of a fish. Samson, as MacArthur’s commentary clarifies, is NOT committing suicide. This is Israel’s victory. Samson is “bringing God’s judgment on his enemies” and is willing to leave his life or death in God’s hands.

Now to bring Jesus back to the spotlight where He rightfully should always be…

The well-known lyrics of the familiar Christmas hymn are “O Come O Come, Immanuel, and ransom captive Israel…” Jesus has come in a lowly birth! He is the Holy City’s champion…and in a few months, chronologically speaking, He has come to die as a criminal.

Jesus said, “I…appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain.” 

– John 15:16

Dr. Charles Stanley put it this way in his daily commentary:

“Jesus reveals to us things that we can never know any other way, and He enables us to do things we could never do by any other source of power. Jesus teaches us not only God’s commandments and how to apply them…, but He empowers us to keep and to do God’s commandments.”

Friends, readers, and listeners, Jesus is my Champion and I pray you will accept Him as yours.

Referring back to Samson, Charles Spurgeon describes it like this:

“He has many sad flaws and failings, but his heart is right towards his God; he does trust in the Lord, and he does give himself up as a man consecrated to his Lord’s service, and, therefore, he is saved.’ I look upon Samson’s case as a great wonder, put in Scripture for the encouragement of great sinners”

To conclude, if you came to this blog looking for Peanuts references, I saved them for this moment.

Robert L. Short says this in his book, Parables of Peanuts: “Man will cling to whatever false foundation he has built his life on until there is absolutely no ground left for him to stand on.” Snoopy sleeping on top of his doghouse can only last so long. Linus can only cling to his security blanket for so long…unless, of course, he fulfills his promise to turn it into a sport coat. You can only trust the fighting spirit so much. May you see the comparison to Samson’s death as a victory for Israel just as Jesus’ death on the Cross fulfills every prophecy of the Old Testament and is THE victory you can cling to! Amen.

Thank you all so much for checking out the blog and taking a few minutes of your holiday to embrace YFB’s thoughts and what is truly on my heart. Now, I have a BIG goal to share with you for 2024…

The BIG goal is to produce a high-quality 2024 YFB Christmas Special on YouTube and Facebook live! Friends will be invited and there will be guest stars throughout the broadcast. I get to do one thing: be the gracious host. I cannot wait!

See you all in 2024!

Love, Respect, and A Mug of Root Beer in hand,

YFB

Growing up, there was a Christmas Eve tradition that I generated, somehow. At 7pm, the Christmas movie It’s A Wonderful Life would start on prime time television. Promptly at this time, I would “play Santa” and hand out gifts under the tree to be unwrapped. I always insisted that the order of opening presents would begin with Dad opening one present first. Then, Mom would open one. Then, I would open one of mine. Thus, the rotation of “you, Mom, me” would continue until the cornucopia of presents pouring out of the base of the Christmas tree would cease. For years, Dad would quote that one simplistic line at some point during the evening of Christmas Eve; “you, Mom, me.”

Now that I am older, I catch more life lessons from the movie than I ever thought I would. One moment in the movie really stands out. In the infamous Christmas classic, It’s A Wonderful Life, George Bailey falls prey to deceitful treachery by old man Potter.

In Bob Beaudine’s book, The Power of Who, he recounts the story like this: “Facing bankruptcy and possible jail time for fraud, George immediately does what you or I would do. He goes to those who know him, who love and trust him. He turns to his friends, right? Wrong! Unaware who has stolen the money he goes to Mr. Potter for help! Isn’t it interesting that George seeks help from the one man guaranteed not to provide it?”

Readers, aren’t we all guilty of this? Instead of when we are struggling through the storms of life, on Christmas or not, we find ourselves on the receiving end of a parent or loved one asking the tough question for us to answer without pride dripping from our lips, “Why didn’t you just come to me?!”

I am not sure what season you are in currently, friends. If you are the one who can help your family or neighbors in need, or you are George Bailey at the town bar crying out a prayer of desperation, I want you to be assured that there is a greater gift that is free to you any time you are ready to accept it.

In Timothy Keller’s book, Every Good Endeavor, Keller writes about how the material world does matter and that the world God created was good. “According to the Bible, this world is a forerunner of the new heavens and new earth, which will be purified, restored, and enhanced…” “In Psalm 65: 9-10,…we find God cultivating the ground by watering it through the rain showers, and, through His Holy Spirit, ‘renewing the face of the ground’.”

David Guzik’s commentary on Blue Letter Bible describes this passage as the earth being blessed and grateful. “God cares for the earth and makes sure it has what it needs. He provides rivers of water and grain for the earth.”

Isaiah 55:10 speaks on this, as well. Israel is called to receive a gift it did not earn and can not pay back the debt. What is the gift I am speaking of? What is the analogy in Isaiah 55 referring to?

Mercy and grace from God.

We are all familiar with the story of the reason for the season. This Savior was born in the city of David. The child and family that the innkeeper did not make room for came to deliver us.

My prayer, readers, is that while you enjoy family time and gifts around the tree in your own “You, Mom, Me” fashion, may you know the peace of God’s mercy and His grace that are free gifts that will “renew the face” of your heart. Just as the earth God created is blessed and grateful, may you never be too prideful to reach out to loved ones that WILL help you in times of trouble, and may you envelope yourself in the assured gifts of grace and mercy supplied only by the True, Living, Savior of the world!

Love to you all,

YFB

There are certain albums that are especially profound to my childhood. One of my all-time favorites is Garth Brooks’ ‘Ropin’ the Wind’. A hidden gem on this album in relation to unmatched, good-ole-fashioned storytelling is a song called “Cold Shoulder”. This masterful narrative will be a key focal point for this blog I am writing tonight.

Brooks proceeds to illustrate for the listener a couple in the warmth of their home enjoying the luxuries of a relaxing evening: a glass of red wine, candlelight, a crackling fire, and soothing music. We are abruptly brought into reality with the following lyrics:

Currently, I am reading about a “prolific lake-effect snowstorm” that dumped several feet of snow on parts of the Buffalo and Watertown areas. Dover, Delaware, is no exception to the areas around the Great Lakes that will endure these storms.

No matter where you are, readers, our weary truck drivers will face these storms head-on to deliver all items necessary, on time or at a delayed time, so that you can trample each other on Black Friday.

Brooks also refers to the highway in the second verse of this song as “the Mistress that keeps me from the ones that I love.”

Friends, I hope you know that I am not deliberately targeting any of you that go out and enjoy Black Friday and visit your beloved stores. What I AM trying to bring awareness to is that there are many that are caught this time of year in the Thanksgiving/Black Friday ‘crossfire’:

• Truckers
• Retail workers
• Our Brave Military
• Gas Station Attendants
• Nurses
• Police Officers

I am sure that I am unintentionally leaving others off this list, and I apologize. May these “Cold Shoulder” laborers not be forgotten nor ignored this year, friends!

Recently, I found a YouTube podcast that listened to this song and reacted in a very negative way. They even had the audacity to refer to this song as a “Bathroom Break” song during a concert where you would get up and go to the concession stand or the restroom. Maybe I can give a rebuttal to this by sharing Garth Brooks’ reasoning for writing this song:

“Garth Brooks got the idea for this classic country cut about a lonely trucker while he was driving home for Christmas and spotted a semi-tractor trailer rig parked on the shoulder of the road. ‘I knew that’s how this guy’s going to spend Christmas Eve before going to work all day Christmas Day…’ he explained in his 2017 book The Anthology Part 1: The First Five Years. ‘I started thinking, Wow, if we could take the listener from where they’re thinking he’s in this warm place, painting this nice, pleasing picture where everything’s just great, and then hit them with the truth, that it’s a harsh reality, hard work, work that takes you away from your family.’” (songfacts.com)

My prayer is, readers, that we enjoy Thanksgiving. Be patient when there are delays in your day on Friday. Be courteous and speak gently to those who are working and sacrificing their holiday to accommodate you. May we continue to be law-abiding citizens and be mindful of our neighbors’ needs. May we heed the truths in the book of 2 Corinthians 9:11:

“Being enriched in every thing to all bountifulness, which causeth through us thanksgiving to God.“

Blessings to You, Your Loved Ones, and those “hugging the unrelenting cold shoulder”,

-YFB

**This blog contains affiliate links. If you click the link and make a purchase, YFB receives a small commission at no extra cost to you.**

The title of this blog was inspired by none other than the Little Red-Haired Girl, herself.

Many of you in the Blockhead Nation seem to be curious about what a typical summer day looks like for a teacher-by-day, podcaster-by-weekend like me.

Your wish is my command, readers…

***

Today being Monday, my morning consisted of feeding the dogs around 6am and attempting to keep them preoccupied with chew toys as I showered to get ready to go!… Go get a fresh coffee from town, that is.

While driving the YFB-Mobile, debating which dark roast to purchase, I listened to a podcast about stocks and options trading. As a “chaser”, I went back to my Audible library and listened to a few crucial chapters by Benjamin Graham in The Intelligent Investor.

As I sipped my coffee traveling back to the Blockhead Mansion, YFB slipped on his swimsuit and flip-flops to prepare for the first summer swim in the community pool for our suburb.

Completely alone, surrounded only by clear blue skies and the morning sun, YFB submerged into the crystal clear water…well, somewhat clear. Aside from the colony of Junebugs and abandoned swim trunks at the bottom of the deep end, it was a fantastic swim.

Upon returning to the Blockhead Mansion, I decided to sit down and write this blog for your enjoyment and at your convenience. So, I guess this is where it is “best practices” to plug my affiliate links for my two favorite websites I promote when blogging:

• Summer deals for UrthBox
• Summer steals on “TOP DAD” t-shirts from Five Finger Tees (FYI, Top Gun: Maverick is a MUST WATCH!)

While attempting to focus on this, I have on HBOMax, watching exactly what irritates the Little Red-Haired Girl: “cartoons and stupid stuff”. She is always teasing me when I need my daily dose of cartoons such as The Peanuts, Looney Tunes, Tom and Jerry, etc. followed up by shows like Aqua Teen Hunger Force on Cartoon Network and other mindless drivel on YouTube.

As Daniel Stern used to say on The Wonder Years, “Well, there ya had it.”

See ya next time, Blockhead Nation!

-YFB