1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:05,440 Well, welcome back everyone to Rising 365. If you're new to this podcast, this podcast 2 00:00:05,440 --> 00:00:10,800 is committed to inspiring and supporting others who embrace the opportunity to rise with each 3 00:00:10,800 --> 00:00:17,240 new day. I'm Mike Penney and I know that Rising Daily can be a challenge for many, including 4 00:00:17,240 --> 00:00:23,760 myself. And it is my hope that what you hear in these episodes will assist you in rising 5 00:00:23,760 --> 00:00:25,640 every day of the year. 6 00:00:25,640 --> 00:00:32,600 Thank you for tuning in for episode 22 entitled Friction. It's been a while since I recorded 7 00:00:32,600 --> 00:00:39,480 a podcast because we had just ended our summer ministry of summer good news clubs here in 8 00:00:39,480 --> 00:00:44,680 central Nebraska. A little backstory for you if this is your first time my family and I 9 00:00:44,680 --> 00:00:50,920 are full time missionaries as we oversee the ministry of child evangelism fellowship here 10 00:00:50,920 --> 00:00:57,760 in central Nebraska. And during the summer, we train teens to go out and lead vacation 11 00:00:57,760 --> 00:01:05,160 Bible goals in the sense all throughout central Nebraska, we go into little communities and 12 00:01:05,160 --> 00:01:12,480 go into the community parks and just have a great time with the local kids they're sharing 13 00:01:12,480 --> 00:01:19,360 Bible lessons and stories and we last Thursday that all concluded and so we're excited to 14 00:01:19,360 --> 00:01:25,640 be transitioning out of the summer straight into the school year where we do good news 15 00:01:25,640 --> 00:01:35,380 clubs which are afternoon clubs for elementary age students and we train. So yeah, our ministry 16 00:01:35,380 --> 00:01:41,640 is year round and it's exciting. So that's the reason for the delay in episodes being 17 00:01:41,640 --> 00:01:47,840 put out. But here in episode 22, we're talking about the importance of friction. Now rising 18 00:01:47,840 --> 00:01:59,400 365 like I shared, it's all about the capability and getting stronger for each new day you're 19 00:01:59,400 --> 00:02:07,920 getting in the only way we can get stronger is if we face friction in our life and friction 20 00:02:07,920 --> 00:02:13,320 is needed. Friction saves lives. We know when it comes to friction, it starts fires. It 21 00:02:13,320 --> 00:02:22,400 helps us stop our vehicles when we are driving. It helps build muscle. If you're out exercising 22 00:02:22,400 --> 00:02:29,480 without putting our bodies underneath friction, there's no growth. There's no increase in 23 00:02:29,480 --> 00:02:37,400 strength. So it's needed. Sadly, in our culture, we try to alleviate all friction that could 24 00:02:37,400 --> 00:02:45,480 possibly encounter in our lives. If a relationship isn't going well, what do people say? Well, 25 00:02:45,480 --> 00:02:50,520 just get a divorce and move on. If a job isn't going well, well, that job is not meant for 26 00:02:50,520 --> 00:02:57,760 you. Go put that job and find another one. But that's not necessarily the case. Not everything 27 00:02:57,760 --> 00:03:04,200 in life is going to be perfect for you. It doesn't take much to see that. What we have 28 00:03:04,200 --> 00:03:09,920 to do is understand that this friction in our life is good. It's strengthening us. It's 29 00:03:09,920 --> 00:03:19,320 giving us the ability to grow each and every day with each thing we face and overcome. 30 00:03:19,320 --> 00:03:27,280 Ecclesiastes says that in chapter four, it talks about the need for friction. When you 31 00:03:27,280 --> 00:03:32,480 look at relationships, we can't go around solo in our lives. We have to have people 32 00:03:32,480 --> 00:03:39,760 in our lives that bring about positive friction. Ecclesiastes four talks about two people are 33 00:03:39,760 --> 00:03:45,560 better than one because two people, when one falls down, the other one can reach down and 34 00:03:45,560 --> 00:03:50,160 come up. When they are cold, they can keep each other warm. It goes on and says that 35 00:03:50,160 --> 00:04:00,560 a three braided rope isn't easily broken because those three braids, friction and tied together 36 00:04:00,560 --> 00:04:06,120 as they are stretched become even stronger. I was always amazed as my time in the United 37 00:04:06,120 --> 00:04:13,080 States Coast Guard when we'd be on these big giant ships and how just a little strand of 38 00:04:13,080 --> 00:04:22,600 rope could hold that big giant ship to its moorings all because of that friction and 39 00:04:22,600 --> 00:04:32,480 the strength that it provides. What are you trying to avoid in your life that you see 40 00:04:32,480 --> 00:04:38,040 as negative friction? We know what happens when friction is taken out of our lives as 41 00:04:38,040 --> 00:04:44,040 here in the Midwest. I'm not afraid of many things, but I am afraid of driving on icy 42 00:04:44,040 --> 00:04:49,160 winter days, especially that black ice that's not easy to see. You'd be driving down the 43 00:04:49,160 --> 00:04:55,040 road and everything seems going perfectly fine. Then all of a sudden during the winter, 44 00:04:55,040 --> 00:05:01,120 you hit this shiny black ice and it doesn't matter if you have a four wheel drive truck, 45 00:05:01,120 --> 00:05:09,200 canes on, black ice does not care. You lose the friction needed to stop, to drive, to 46 00:05:09,200 --> 00:05:16,320 control your vehicle. Accidents happen. That's what it's like when we remove the friction 47 00:05:16,320 --> 00:05:24,200 from our lives. What's meant to make us stronger and keep us going and build us up and stop 48 00:05:24,200 --> 00:05:33,020 us from going a certain direction is meant to strengthen us. So it enables us to rise 49 00:05:33,020 --> 00:05:42,840 each and every new day. So we have to address the friction on our lives, the good things. 50 00:05:42,840 --> 00:05:54,680 That's why they say opposites attract in marriage relationships. If both spouses were like-minded, 51 00:05:54,680 --> 00:05:59,880 there would be no friction in the marriage and everything would always look hunky-dory. 52 00:05:59,880 --> 00:06:07,600 But would there be growth in the marriage? Would the negative personalities of the individuals 53 00:06:07,600 --> 00:06:18,040 be clean? It takes really close relationships in a marriage and a friendship for there to 54 00:06:18,040 --> 00:06:24,080 be positive friction where in this relationship people can say, hey, you know what? You're 55 00:06:24,080 --> 00:06:33,840 not making the best choices here in your life. Drinking the substance abuse you're using, 56 00:06:33,840 --> 00:06:38,200 you know, that's not the friction you want in your life. So they challenge you to be 57 00:06:38,200 --> 00:06:48,400 better than what you are. We can't see ourselves gruelly. That's why it's important to have 58 00:06:48,400 --> 00:06:54,920 those around us who really know us and us to be transparent with them so they can encourage 59 00:06:54,920 --> 00:07:08,280 us when we're embarking on the wrong paths. It's always said the path with least resistance 60 00:07:08,280 --> 00:07:18,920 is the one commonly followed, but the results leave you with nothing. You feel empty when 61 00:07:18,920 --> 00:07:25,120 you don't achieve it because you didn't have to accomplish anything, overcome many obstacles 62 00:07:25,120 --> 00:07:32,720 or hardships or gain new wisdom and skills. So it's a kind of an empty achievement. It's 63 00:07:32,720 --> 00:07:39,280 those achievements that we have to overcome so much friction, so much growth is required 64 00:07:39,280 --> 00:07:46,320 of us. When we look back, when we finally get to the point where we feel satisfied, 65 00:07:46,320 --> 00:07:54,800 you can look back and be really proud of yourself. That's why I'm encouraging you in this episode. 66 00:07:54,800 --> 00:08:02,680 Don't shy away from the friction in your life. Yes, address the negative things that aren't 67 00:08:02,680 --> 00:08:10,640 good for you. Get rid of them, but then look for things that will challenge you, that will 68 00:08:10,640 --> 00:08:19,160 bring about new growth in your life. But you know you're going to have to put some effort 69 00:08:19,160 --> 00:08:23,680 into it because you're going to, in the long run, be proud of yourself. You're going to 70 00:08:23,680 --> 00:08:31,240 see that you're capable of doing more than you thought you were able to ever do because 71 00:08:31,240 --> 00:08:38,520 you weren't afraid of a little friction in your life. And if you need professional help 72 00:08:38,520 --> 00:08:45,040 to see what negative frictions are in your life to help you get rid of that or to see 73 00:08:45,040 --> 00:08:53,000 and set new positive frictions in your life and what those look like, I recommend an online 74 00:08:53,000 --> 00:08:59,680 source called BetterHelp. You know they've helped me when I needed it the most when it 75 00:08:59,680 --> 00:09:06,160 came to counseling and just having some talk therapy of addressing some issues in my life 76 00:09:06,160 --> 00:09:18,600 that I was struggling to face and having a professional help walk you through that is 77 00:09:18,600 --> 00:09:27,960 the best thing. So you know look at your life, take an inventory of it, grab a pen and paper 78 00:09:27,960 --> 00:09:37,520 and make two columns. One column, what's the positive friction in your life? And work towards 79 00:09:37,520 --> 00:09:45,920 those, what will you need to do to get strong in those areas? And the other column, negative 80 00:09:45,920 --> 00:09:50,980 frictions. Frictions that you know if you continue down that path is only going to lead 81 00:09:50,980 --> 00:10:02,860 to hardships and heartbreak and hurt. So like always the choice is up to you. You just got 82 00:10:02,860 --> 00:10:11,080 to take it one day at a time. And in that day you take it one second at a time. And 83 00:10:11,080 --> 00:10:17,680 allow yourself to get overwhelmed. Breathe and know you're capable of more than you've 84 00:10:17,680 --> 00:10:23,760 ever imagined. So thank you for tuning in. I hope each episode brings you inspiration 85 00:10:23,760 --> 00:10:29,020 to embrace every new day. To support this podcast consider booking me as a speaker for 86 00:10:29,020 --> 00:10:34,240 your next conference, school assembly, youth event, Bible study or any special occasion 87 00:10:34,240 --> 00:10:41,000 where I can share the message of Rising 365. To arrange this just simply email me or message 88 00:10:41,000 --> 00:10:49,120 me at rising247365.gmail.com. Additionally, you can support by liking, sharing and rating 89 00:10:49,120 --> 00:10:54,840 the podcast on your preferred listening platform. Again, we are full-time missionaries with 90 00:10:54,840 --> 00:10:59,440 CEF of Central Nebraska so you can go to our website provided in the show notes and you 91 00:10:59,440 --> 00:11:05,040 can support us there. Until we meet again, I'm Mike Pena reminding you to rise and seize 92 00:11:05,040 --> 00:11:12,040 the gift of a new day where you are destined for this moment.