Click here to sign up for daily motivational text messages!
...
Click here to sign up for daily motivational text messages! ...
What’s the weekly mettle maker?
Training tips and educational info in support of our free programs, that’s what! What’s mettle? Mettle is, “The ability to meet a challenge or persevere under demanding circumstances; determination or resolve.”
Kylie (L), Fr. Mitch (C) and the Immortal Mark Hatmaker (R)
PRAYER REQUEST: Please pray for Kylie Hatmaker and her husband Mark (see pic on right). The brain tumor Kylie dealt with a few years back is growing again. Kylie is Mark’s primary co-conspirator, best friend, power animal, goddess, gourmet chef, pistol-packing bodyguard, and hoochie-coochie dancer in residence. A finer lady you’ll never meet. God give her strength, we pray thee, Amen.
Mettle maker #449: Tells
tell (tĕl) n. An unintentional or unconsciously exhibited behavior that reveals or betrays one's state of mind, as when playing poker.
How do you know when a confrontation is going to come to blows? Well, there are some “tells” — some sure signs and dead giveaways — that you can put to good use. Before we get to the “tells,” lets talk about preventative measures.
AVOIDING BAD SITUATIONS
Learn to identify and avoid social aggression. Social aggression is posturing, baiting, threatening, blustering behavior which human beings use in misguided attempts to assert dominance. You must be humble enough to ignore this sort of foolishness and leave the area. Entanglement in human threat displays is almost completely avoidable. These tells will help you determine if social aggression is about to make the transition to violence.
Violence is also avoidable, but less so. Most violence will be by surprise — no threat display, no bluster, no posturing. The tells that follow might not be applicable. Often without warning there will be a stab, a punch, a gun in your face, a shove to the ground, half a dozen fists flying at you. The only way to avoid most violence is with “warrior awareness” — which is relaxed engagement with your environment. See video below.
For more information on the P.A.D.E. continuum of prevention click here.
Now that we have the playing field straight, let’s talk about the “tells.”
FIVE COMMON “TELLS” — Ways Aggressors Reveal They’re About to Attack
Note: Do a personal survey. Do you present these tells? Recognize when you might be about to lose control and, if violence is unnecessary, mash the brakes and exit the situation. And, in case violence is necessary, start practicing your stoicism now so that you can maintain a calm exterior and a peaceful interior. Example: My tell is morbid laughter. When I feel that laugh begin to bubble up, I know that something inside is starting to take delight in malicious behavior. I’m not walking with Christ and I’m about to lose my temper. So I do everything humanly possible to change direction in mind, body, and spirit.
Facial expression. Sudden dramatic widening or narrowing of eyes or nostrils.
Discordant vocalizations. Speech or utterances inappropriate to the situation, such as a growling, morbid laughter, shrieking, etc.
Pacing. Sudden onset or cessation of restlessness or pacing. Watch for a sudden rigidity in stance or a pre-pounce wind-up.
Rising up on toes. This can be a subconscious attempt to appear larger or indicator of preparation to lunge.
Gestures covering surprise: People like to attack by surprise and they are poor fakers. Often they will pretend to leave by giving a dismissive wave or saying, “Forget you” or “I’m out of here.” Half way through their pretend turn to go, they will spring off the far foot, whirl, and attack.
Okay, so, you’ve practiced warrior awareness and you tried to leave. For whatever reason, you’re stuck. You can’t get out, and the person in front of you does something and you detect the tell. What do you do?
That’s a personal decision. But I suggest you attack with a formidable, but less-than-legal, self-defense method such as the dreaded Chin Jab.
Want to learn Rough ‘n’ Tumble fighting as a full-context, mind-body-spirit martial art? Sign up for the Rough ‘n’ Tumble Distance Learning Program today!
Holy Eucharist is LIVE on YouTube every Sunday at 10 am EASTERn. Click HERE to watch live. To view and print a copy of the program for holy Eucharist, CLICK HERE.
Homily for the Second Sunday of Lent 3/16/25 – Father Mitch
Readings: Genesis 15:5-12, 17-18, Psalm 27:1, 7-8, 8-9, 13-14, Philippians 3:17-4:1, Luke 9:28b-36
Luke 9:28b-36 World English Bible
Jesus he took with him Peter, John, and James, and went up onto the mountain to pray. 29 As he was praying, the appearance of his face was altered, and his clothing became white and dazzling. 30 Behold, two men were talking with him, who were Moses and Elijah, 31 who appeared in glory and spoke of his departure,† which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem.
32 Now Peter and those who were with him were heavy with sleep, but when they were fully awake, they saw his glory, and the two men who stood with him. 33 As they were parting from him, Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good for us to be here. Let’s make three tents: one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah,” not knowing what he said.
34 While he said these things, a cloud came and overshadowed them, and they were afraid as they entered into the cloud. 35 A voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is my beloved Son. Listen to him!” 36 When the voice came, Jesus was found alone. They were silent, and told no one in those days any of the things which they had seen.
Each year, for the seven days beginning on the 15th day of the month of Tishrei (usually sometime in September or October on the modern calendar), observant Jews celebrate Sukkot. Sukkot is perhaps the greatest of the three great feasts of the Jewish liturgical calendar. In English it is generally known as the Feast of Tabernacles.
The feast is primarily a commemoration of the forty years of trial and tribulation in the wilderness and a celebration of thanksgiving for being given a permanent home in the promised land (Leviticus 23:43), but it is also a harvest time celebration (Deuteronomy 16:13; Exodus 23:16). In Jesus’ time, the people were required to travel to Jerusalem and set up tents, booths, or small shanties in which they spent the entire duration of the seven-day festival, in accordance with the law of Leviticus 23:40. The first and last days are more solemn in character, with serious religious activities. But the days in between are set aside for social activities, fancy meals, dinners, parties, entertaining guests, and so on. Because so many came from far and wide and flooded places of encampment, rich and poor, high born and low, found themselves spending time together. So this was also a time for making new friends and expanding social circles.
It is believed that the events in today’s gospel reading happened during, or perhaps just before, the Feast of Tabernacles. This would explain why Peter offers to set up tents for Moses and Elijah. In a previous homily some years ago, I suggested that Peter was a silly goose for misunderstanding the significance of the event. If the Transfiguration of Jesus did actually happen during the Feast of Tabernacles, we should be much more understanding of Peter indeed.
What else was Peter to think? He did not know what was coming. He could not have known that the literal temple in Jerusalem was going to be destroyed, while the actual temple, Jesus Christ, would be destroyed and rebuilt – the immortal, indestructible, Son of God. How could he have known that there was going to be a new Jerusalem, the church of Jesus Christ, and he was going to be its head?
Peter could not know any of these things. Jesus gave him clues of course, telling him many things which he could not understand. It would not be until after Jesus died on a cross and rose from the dead that he would come to see the fuller truth. Peter knew that Abram made a material sacrifice and struck a covenant such that God’s people might receive a material promised land. But only after Jesus’ resurrection would Peter come to fully grasp that the true “promised land” was not a geographical location, but the Kingdom of Heaven.
At the time he offered to build tents, how could Peter have fully understood that through Jesus Christ all Christians would be called to enter into a new relationship: a spiritual sacrifice of hearts, mind, souls and bodies, to receive the new promised land of life everlasting.
————————————————————————-
† 9:31 literally, “exodus”