Elevate Life

Starting your faith journey alone is difficult We want to help… So we created a Free 30 Day Devotional to help you begin! Easy to Read. Easy Actions. Link Below to download 🙌

A community of leaders @AustinEspeseth sharing his God story on stage at his church Full Video Link: youtu.be/LY5vCB5l9_M

Elevate Member @mike_schuessler shares his experience at our annual deadlift event hosted by @JRSmith_III Link to full interview below 👇

Elevate Interview #2 - @Jake_Wells_ A God story... Jake shares how he tore both patellar tendons and while laying on the floor thinking his life was over God then spoke to him Full Interview: youtu.be/Ok5ODGGe3NM

Elevate Interview #8 - @ScottSegit Scott shares his story of suffering a traumatic brain injury that left him struggling to form sentences and lost as to who he was To rebuilding his identity through God Full Interview: youtu.be/y-4lmA6SO_8

Elevate Interview #5 - @Nickmarsh99 Nick shares how he • Found God • Developed a brotherhood w/ like minded men • Struggled with UC and is now serving others to healthy life Full Interview: youtu.be/o8tQ6Z1iN4I

Elevate Interview #3 - @MattKall_ Matt shares how: • Joining Elevate changed his life • Experiencing our in person events • Up 30lbs, starting his own business, and finding God God is working Full interview: youtu.be/YoAPeaMw7m4

Elevate Prayer Requests @AustinEspeseth shares how we are lifting each other up in prayer inside of our community

@atsohom 🤝

@ElvtLife love seeing this. good way to help men begin their faith journey.

Starting your faith journey alone is difficult We want to help… So we created a Free 30 Day Devotional to help you begin! Easy to Read. Easy Actions. Link Below to download 🙌

The @ElvtLife backpacking vlog is LIVE! 42 miles. 6 men. 1 backpack. Watch Here: youtu.be/M1WsxhBnp0M?si…

42 miles backpacked in the mountains of Colorado 🏔️ We are @ElvtLife

Do you have a community that will call you out when you start turning back to old ways? Even Peter, the rock Jesus built His church on, was called out by Paul for doing exactly that (Galatians 2). ​ ​Context: ​ ​• Simon Peter was one of the original 12 disciples of Jesus. Jesus renamed him from Simon to Peter, meaning “the rock,” declaring that Peter would be the foundation upon which He would build His church. In the book of Acts—the beginning of the Church—we see Peter step into that calling with boldness, publicly proclaiming the gospel and baptizing over 3,000 people in a single day (Acts 2). ​ ​• Paul, once known as Saul, was a persecutor of Christians until he had a radical encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus. From that moment on, everything changed. God called him to be an apostle to the Gentiles, and he became one of the most influential voices in the early Church. Paul went on to plant churches across the Roman Empire, write much of the New Testament, and suffer greatly for the sake of the gospel—all while relentlessly preaching about Jesus Christ. ​ Now that we have laid the context I want to unpack scripture from Galatians where we see Paul boldly calls Peter out for hypocrisy. ​ Paul Confronts Peter 11 But when Peter came to Antioch, I had to oppose him to his face, for what he did was very wrong. 12 When he first arrived, he ate with the Gentile believers, who were not circumcised. But afterward, when some friends of James came, Peter wouldn’t eat with the Gentiles anymore. He was afraid of criticism from these people who insisted on the necessity of circumcision. 13 As a result, other Jewish believers followed Peter’s hypocrisy, and even Barnabas was led astray by their hypocrisy. ​ 14 When I saw that they were not following the truth of the gospel message, I said to Peter in front of all the others, “Since you, a Jew by birth, have discarded the Jewish laws and are living like a Gentile, why are you now trying to make these Gentiles follow the Jewish traditions? ​ 15 “You and I are Jews by birth, not ‘sinners’ like the Gentiles. 16 Yet we know that a person is made right with God by faith in Jesus Christ, not by obeying the law. And we have believed in Christ Jesus, so that we might be made right with God because of our faith in Christ, not because we have obeyed the law. For no one will ever be made right with God by obeying the law.” Even Peter had a moment where he turned back to old ways of living. In Galatians 2, we see him stop eating with Gentiles just because a group of Jews showed up. Why’d he do it? Back then, Jews and Gentiles didn’t mix. Different backgrounds, different rules, different ways of living. And even though Peter knew the Jesus tore down that division—that in Christ, all are one—he still felt the pressure. The fear of what his old friends might think crept in. So he gave in and faded back to an old identity. And Paul wasn’t having it. Paul stepped in and called him out—not to embarrass him, but to pull him back to truth. To remind him: we don’t live to please people. We live to share the truth that Jesus died for. And here’s why this matters for you. When you start following Jesus, it’s easy to feel pulled between the new life God’s calling you into… and the old life you came from. ​ That tension is real. But the right community won’t let you sit in that middle ground. They’ll remind you who you are in Jesus and call you higher. They’ll tell you the truth, even when it’s uncomfortable. So here’s the challenge: Don’t surround yourself with people who let you coast. Find a community that will call you higher. Who care more about your identity in Christ than your feelings. ​ ​P.S. - I have a FREE community of over 200 like minded men @ElvtLife

Society's version of "rest" is scrolling social media, binging Netflix, and eating junk food Since laying around on the couch all day has never left me feeling rested; I studied what the Bible teaches us about rest Lets dive into what I found...👇🏼 To truly understand rest we have to start in the beginning... Genesis; God creates man on day 6 and what did He decide to do on day 7? Rest. The question is "Why? Did God need rest?" Of course not He is God. So if He didn't need rest then why? Answer: To teach us to rest. From the beginning God set the standard that there is to a day of "sabbath" rest. The "Sabbath" is a day each week where followers of Jesus rest in the Lord. So God, in a week, created everything we see on earth, on day 6 creates man, and on day 7 He displayed we are to rest one day each week. Another key here, beyond showing us we need to prioritize a day of rest, God created man on day 6... So immediately after creating man, on day 7, God said "I want to do nothing with YOU." God is a relational being who desires to spend time with His children. So He carved out the first day, after creating man, to spend time with Adam. That takes me to lesson #1 on rest: • We are to do nothing... with God. Let me be clear... am I saying do absolutely nothing, lay on the couch, and stare at the wall? No, I am saying whats important here is the "with God" part of that statement. Thats the focus of rest. Rest can only be found in the Lord. Jesus said this: “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:28 "Come to me..." He didn't say turn to social media to distract yourself or binge TV to numb yourself. So tangibly what does "coming to Jesus" look like and what does it look like to "do nothing with God"? Lesson #2 • Seek Solitude Countless times Jesus withdrew to the wilderness to spend time alone with God. Jesus wasn't worn out from a long week and decided to go out with friends to "take the edge off" No a long week meant withdrawing to a place of solitude to just be with Jesus. "But Matt I don't have time..." If the Son of God had time on this earth than you do too. Let me unpack another example, because maybe we can't always withdraw to the woods: Marthy & Mary (Sisters): Luke 10 "Her sister, Mary, sat at the Lord’s feet, listening to what he taught. But Martha was distracted by the big dinner she was preparing. She came to Jesus and said, “Lord, doesn’t it seem unfair to you that my sister just sits here while I do all the work? Tell her to come and help me.” But the Lord said to her, “My dear Martha, you are worried and upset over all these details! There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her.” Notice these 2 sisters... Jesus and His disciples show up at their house: Martha responded by hurrying to clean up the house and prepare dinner in a haste Mary responded by simply sitting at the feet of Jesus. Sure Mary knew the house was a mess and dinner was to be prepared but she also knew what was the most important thing in that moment... Jesus. Read again what Jesus said: "There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her.” Lets be real for a second... the busyness of life isn't going anywhere. Your job will be there tomorrow, we will eat tomorrow just as we do today, the house will be messy again, and the kids will have 10 more things going on just like they did today... So at what point do we, like Mary, draw a line in the sand and say: "There is only one thing worth being concerned about. I have discovered it and it will not be taken away from me." What if we led from this place of rest? How would that effect our marriages, parenting, and our workplace? We are to do nothing with God. Lesson #3 • Childlike Trust As I reflect on rest this lesson came top of mind. Ever noticed children can sleep anywhere? A busy airport with thousands of people swarming and a child will peacefully sleep in their parents arms. Why? When a child is in their parents arms they trust that their parent will protect them, provide for them, and comfort them. If we are going to rest (no I am not just talking about sleep) we must have this childlike trust. Mind racing about bills that are due? Trust God. Mind racing about work that needs done? Trust God. As Jesus said "Come to me and I will give you rest" Like Mary in the midst of the chaos we must come to Him and say "I know all this is going on but I trust you take care of it." Phillipians tells us this: “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.” 4:6-7 That is where true rest begins. We are to do nothing with God. Before I go I want to be clear: It is less about the action you take and more about your acknowledgment of the 1 thing that truly matters. "With God." I don't know what a restful day looks like for you... It can be different than mine but both of our days are to be spent with the Lord. Foundational: • Prayer • Reading the Word • Worship Additional: (With God) • Breaking bread w/ loved ones • Playing games w/ friends • Hiking in nature • Training in the gym • Reading a good book • Insert healthy hobby here I pray this brought you clarity on what it means to find rest in the Lord. There is no "To Do list formula" to rest it is simply surrendering your time, tasks, and energy to acknowledge you want to Do nothing with God.

@MattSMoore_ Cmon!

Just logged the longest run of my life 20 miles! God is so good ❤️

The Bible can be overwhelming if you're first starting out Over the last 5 years of daily reading; I have learned 3 tips that have helped me approach and digest the Bible👇🏼 1. The Bible is "alive and active." Sounds weird but let me explain: “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” Hebrews 4:12 What does this mean? The Bible is NOT outdated. It is the "living Word of God" - meaning it speaks to us across generations, cultures, and life scenarios. The words you read today can and will have new meaning to you in a decade. Now don't make this key mistake which takes me into 2. Context is key - You must get context around what the Bible is saying. Let me give an example... A verse you've probably heard: "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Phillipians 4:13 This verse is often thrown around in the self development world as a motivational slogan for personal gain/success. Paul wrote this verse in PRISON where he has nothing... except? Christ's strength. He isn't referring to leveraging the strength of Christ for a promotion or a PR in the gym... In context Paul is talking about enduring the trials that come with following Jesus because he is content with Christ alone as his strength. To be real with you that is one of the more shallow examples of how context can really define a verse. Before you dive into a book do a quick google search on context: • Who is the author of this? (If known) • What kind of personality was the author? (Author's voice matters) • Who was the audience they were writing/speaking to? (Audiences situation matters) The Word is alive and speaking to you especially when you dive deep into the context to fully unpack what God is trying to say. Which takes me to my most actionable point of all... 3. Meditate on God's Word (No, don't sit with your legs crossed, eyes closed, humming like you're some guru) I am saying sit with the Word • Take it with you in the car • Sticky note on your computer at work • Conversations on that verse with friends over dinner • Dry erase marker on the bathroom mirror (my favorite) • Listen to music that contains that verse • Read other books that revolve around that scripture • Pull up a podcast on that scripture while you're working out or running. The list goes on... but my point is do not let it go in one ear and out the other Joshua 1:8 tells us we are to meditate on the word day and night. Let it be the lamp that guides your feet as it says in Psalms If you were in the dark of the night how close would you keep that lamp to you? It would never leave your side. That is how we are to treat the Word of God. If you do this I promise this book will not only begin to make sense but it will change your life. Last thing: The goal is to read this book for the rest of your life... so settle in, give yourself some grace, and understand its a marathon not a sprint my friend. As always much love ❤️

Jesus spent his ministry walking hundreds of miles, fasting regularly, and eating only food that came from God. He set the standard for Christians to be in shape.

Christians should be the fittest people on this earth I mean the Bible literally tells us to honor our bodies because God Himself died for them We were bought at a price my brothers and sisters

@MattSMoore_ ❤️

Thank you Jesus ❤️

@PFDisrespecter LETS GOOOO!

Want to be around men that challenge you, encourage you, pray for you & grow together in all areas? Then this event is for YOU! Join our FREE Christian men’s discord group @ElvtLife to find out more!

I can’t say enough about how incredible and what a life changing of an experience this is!! Meeting so many brothers who are always rooting for you and lifting you up in many ways is priceless!! I can’t wait to go back and have you join us!! 🔥 God is Working!!