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SPAMMAN INDEX
AN ARTICLE ABOUT BOB IN THE OVIEDO VOICE AN ARTICLE ABOUT BOB IN THE FALLS NEWS PRESS
EAT MORE SPAM!
Bob eats SPAM at least 3-4 times per week. It's great!
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Weekly PowerBreak Messages PowerBreak is a weekly feature, designed to given you some power from God's Word as you begin your week. This internet newsletter has been sent out continuously for over three years as the list of recipients continues to grow. If you would like to receive PowerBreak messages via email each week, please send your request to SPAMMAN. The name PowerBreak was taken from Bob's endurance races where each water stop was a quick refueling, or a break for power on the go. Bob designed the PowerBreak to be that for all who receive the messages each week. A quick thought and power from the Word of God for people on the go. KEEP SCROLLING DOWN PowerBreak Messages for December, 2000 PowerBreak Message for December 26, 2000 BEFORE YOU MAKE YOUR PLANS FOR 2001… MAKE A LIST AND CHECK IT TWICE! How much success did you have over the past year? How many good things happened to you? How blessed have you been in the year 2000? Before you dream your dreams, write out your goals, and make your plans for the coming year -- wouldn't it be great to take some time in the coming week to celebrate the success and the blessings of the year 2000? If not, your heart of hearts will assume there is no reason to drive you to the goal ahead if there is no celebration. I have been offering Jan rewards for years to try to bribe her to run a marathon but she never would bite the bait. This past fall, without any coercion on my part, she announced that she was going to run a marathon and began training seriously for the race. One of the great things about watching her progress through her training regimen is seeing her celebrate the little victories of increased distances. Each Saturday she adds some miles on her long run and can't wait to finish the run and celebrate her success. It's been really enjoyable to see her progress but even more enjoyable to celebrate her success with her. On the other hand it's made me take a second look at the way I have taken the little successes for granted, focusing instead on the missed goals in races, and the big events still out there. All of us are much like the children of Israel in the Old Testament who had seen God do one great thing after another delivering them out of Egyptian bondage. When they came to the promised land, God instructed Moses to send in twelve spies to get a feel for how great the promised land was. All but two spies focused on the impossibility of taking the promised land. Two spies, Joshua and Caleb, focused on what God had done in the past so they were ready to move forward. It's a great lesson because if you haven't taken time to celebrate the successes, the victories, and the blessings of 2000 -you aren't ready for the challenges of 2001. Take some time this week to CELEBRATE SUCCESS. GODSPEED! Bob Brubaker, a.k.a. "SPAM MAN" PowerBreak Message for December 18, 2000 DEALING WITH A PAIN IN THE … We all have 'em - it may be the boss, a co-worker, a parent of one of your kid's teammates, a neighbor - that person who just rubs you the wrong way, who seems to get under your skin, who seems to always try to get one up on you. What ever the tactic and no matter the position we find ourselves there seems to always be that one person who seems to be planted in our path to torment us. So what do you do? The easy thing would be to beat 'em up, tell 'em off, or play the "back atcha" game - returning to them what they give to you. Knowing that none of the above will really work to get rid of the problem let's look at an example in the Bible. There's a guy in the Old Testament named Nehemiah whose life is a leadership text book. He took on the job of rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem and throughout the project he received harassment after harassment from two guys: Sanballat and Tobiah. They did everything from making fun of the project, to bringing threats, to falsely accusing Nehemiah, to trying to trick Nehemiah into meeting with them so they could do him in. Nehemiah did not waver. Rather than focus on Sanballat and Tobiah - HE FOCUSED ON THE JOB HE HAD TO DO. With each new scheme to torment Nehemiah and those working with him, Nehemiah prayed. Listen to Nehemiah's account: Nehemiah 6:9 (NIV) They were all trying to frighten us, thinking, "Their hands will get too weak for the work, and it will not be completed." But I prayed, "Now strengthen my hands." Nehemiah gives us two great ways to deal with those who are the pain in the ….
Wouldn't it be great to apply that and experience the freedom in overcoming the torture of those who get you down? It's possible - just not in your own strength. The Bible says that with God on our side we are more than conquerors. Nehemiah not only finished the wall but was not turned aside by those who tried to stop him. Rather than conquer his foes - HE DID FINISHED THE JOB DESPITE THEM. So can you! GODSPEED! Bob Brubaker, a.k.a. "SPAM MAN" PowerBreak Message for December 11, 2000 TRAINING TO WIN A friend and I were licking our wounds after finishing a race with a less than desired result. We thought we were ready, we trained hard, did all the preparations necessary, remained focused on the goal during the race but both of us fell short of our goals. In the midst of full defeat, Karl came up with something really profound: "Do we train to race or race to train?" Great question because both of us had agreed during our long training sessions that the training was so beneficial - physically, emotionally, and spiritually that even if we didn't do well in the race we had already won a victory - even from the training. His question helped both of us snap out of the "defeated" mode and enjoy the victory that was being overlooked. That moment was brought to mind the other day as I was planning for my upcoming marathon. As I was focusing more and more on my time goals and expectations, I found myself feeling the pressure and losing the enjoyment of what had already been achieved in the training. It's really easy to get so focused on something we fail to enjoy the moments and the achievements along the way. You might call it: TRAINING TO WIN. If your focus is on all that is wrong, all that was missed, all the "woulda, coulda, and shouldas" of life you'll never feel like a winner. If you can focus on the good and the benefits along the way - you'll enjoy a WINNER'S ATTITUDE which can only help propel you forward. Here's what the Bible says: Philippians 4:8-9 (NIV) Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things. 9 Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me--put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you. It's very simple. TRAIN TO WIN. Think like a winner, enjoy the moments of victory, be thankful and keep going. In the Old Testament there is the account of the children of Israel coming to the edge of the land promised to them by God. They sent twelve spies into the land as instructed by God. The spies came back and reported that the land was as good as God had promised. However, ten of the twelve focused on all that was wrong with the scene: walled cities, strong people, even giants. Joshua and Caleb focused on the victories God has already provided and his promise to give them the land. The result: Joshua and Caleb were the only ones allowed into the land. You and I get so focused on what we think a situation should be that we too develop an attitude of defeat when things don't go just as planned. It is during those times we especially need to step back and enjoy what God has already given us in the way of little victories and things provided, and keep moving forward. In the words of the famous philosopher, Yogi Berra, "It ain't over 'til it's over." My friend and I were thinking it was over because we had failed to meet our goals in the race, but the real race continues and in order to finish strong we needed to TRAIN OURSELVES TO WIN - focus on what was good and go forward to the next challenge. GODSPEED! Bob Brubaker, a.k.a. "SPAM MAN" PowerBreak Message for December 4, 2000 Big Fires Start As Little Sparks In the book of Zechariah we find the prophet delivering a message of rebuke to the people of his day from God. The rebuke was a result of the people being discouraged, thinking something that the effort to rebuild the Temple of God - because it wasn’t as consuming as the original was inferior. So they started in this "What’s the use" type of attitude. Ever been there? Done that? We all have a tendency to get discouraged when the response of people to a project is not as great as we had anticipated. We get shattered when we don’t lose weight as quickly as we thought. We get distraught when people with whom we are working are not doing what we think they should be doing. In other words when we are not getting the results that we want we have a tendency to want to cash it in. But listen to the words of God to His people. Zechariah 4:10 (NIV) 10 Who despises the day of small things? Men will rejoice when they see the plumb line in the hand of Zerubbabel. King Zerubbabel was responsible for the building project and the people although the people were not happy about the results - God said that the results will come… Don’t give up! What a Great Lesson Don’t give up - when you don’t get instant results. Don’t give up - when you don’t get the numbers you thought you should. Don’t give up - when people are not as responsive as you think they should be. Don’t despise the small things, the little responses, the minute things that may be there even if you can’t see them. Don’t give up! Leave the results to God - just keep on keeping on - doing what you are supposed to do. What a lesson for us in business, in physical training, in leading, in whatever we are doing in life. Don’t despise the little things that may be happening. The big fire started as a little spark and the little sparks you may see can catch and grow into a fanning flame at any time. Don’t despise them and put them out with your discouragement. I have to confess that many times I focus on the people who have not responded, the miles yet to go, the things left undone, as and think no progress is being made. But I believe God has given me this message for a reason; to encourage you and me to keep going no matter how little the response is to your business, to your physical training, to your pursuit of the goal in any area of your life. Don’t give up - God says, "Don’t despise the small things." Jesus told the story of three people with talents and the person who only received one talent went and buried it, really showing animosity for how little it was. Jesus not only condemned his actions but in the story Jesus said that the one talent was actually taken from him and given to one who had the most. Great lesson from Jesus… If we aren’t careful, we’ll despise the small responses so much that we’ll end up losing those. Remember a journey of a thousand miles begin with the first few steps. I remember watching video of one of the expeditions on Mt. Everest and was I ever inspired by the perseverance of the climbers. Think about it - every little step was as very important to reaching the summit. Same with you - every thing you do this week - today - no matter how small - is important to taking you to your goal. Don’t give up! Don’t despise the small things and you’ll have a great week. GODSPEED! Bob Brubaker, a.k.a. "SPAM MAN" |
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CONTACTING BOB Bob Brubaker Email:Bob Brubaker |
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