True Identity – Follow up

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Note from one of the GMM Team Members (Brandon) about the GMM Conference:

Brothers,

I have walked away from the previous conferences I’ve attended with excitement, encouragement and motivation for what God is doing and wants to do in my heart, and in the hearts of the men in His city of Cheyenne. And I’m definitely not selling them all short either! But this year’s conference impacted me and hit a nerve in my heart that rocked me to my core! Like Erwin, I have always lived with low self worth and confidence. I doubted the gifts God Himself said He wanted to use for His kingdom and never fully invested in His purpose for my life because of fear. Yet since I was a kid my dreams and creative mind have always given me a desire to live amazing dreams: God-sized dreams that only God could bring to fruition.

It’s so refreshing to encounter the experience and desire and excitement of another man who has been given, not only the creative ideas and dreams that he so wants to live out, but an inspiration and power to live them out, all through the hand of God and His wanting to meet us in that creative realm of our imagination.

I’ve heard encouraging words and sermons on believing and receiving who God says I am and what He is calling me to. But Erwin brought it in a way that has empowered me and excited me to truly be the man of God He is turning me into and being fully alive, as that is the glory and desire of our God, as He dreams for me to be. I want to be the greatest husband, father and worshipper of God that I can be and touch the hearts of people all over the globe with the story God has written for my life through music, leadership and simply the way I live.

I am so thankful for the hard work, dedication and perseverance that every team member and every group has so faithfully and enthusiastically put into making this year’s conference happen. More and more my True Identity is being discovered as I seek Jesus and His will for my life. I choose to believe what He says and live out my imagination and dreams as if they were real, because eventually, one day they will be! I am so excited to be a part of something so big and, though it may seem impossible, I can’t wait to see how much more amazing it will be next year. But I’m filled with the love and grace of God and ask for your prayers, not only for me, but for every man who struggles with the fear of truly living out their dreams and goals, no matter how big they are. God bless you guys, and I can’t wait to catch up with you again at the retreat and see how God moved in your hearts!

Your brother in Christ,

Brandon Rodriguez

“True Identity” What is yours.

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Thumb Print with Cross          Well the Conference is over and it was a Big Success – and the message was brought.  But first of all I have to tell you “I have an AWESOME Wife” – she was my life saver.   She kept things flowing and fixed all the problems and most of all – if I came out of the Conference she chased me back in… LOL….  Then I was really blessed to have all 3 of my Sons there and a Special friend Brexton with me.  
     There were lots of Dads there with their sons – it was really special.
     Now back to the Conference – Between the main Speaker Erwin – and the 8 Pastors who brought powerful messages on True Identity and to finish off with a Challenge from Pastor Velcro – It was a WOW moment.   If you did not leave thinking about what your Identity was – then you missed the whole Conference. 
 Moses002     Erwin started off with the story of Moses and then ended up with the Faith Chapter…     Do you think Moses started off thinking he was going to be great with the obstacles that he had to overcome and he really blew it when he killed the Egyptian?   Does that sound something like your life – except for the Murder part, but we all have our obstacles to overcome and sin to be forgiven.  But Greatness was thrown upon Moses – and it will thrown upon us. 
    The verses of Hebrews 11: 1-2 – Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.  This is what the ancients were commended for.  
        Do we look at our now as being Successful with all of our Stuff and where our Christian life is at.   Or do we dream about where we can be and go for that dream.   We were created to do Great things but sometimes we get stuck in the ordinary.   This chapter talks about allot of Heroes of the Faith and they were people just like us.  They were not the Elite or the Pharisees – they were us.    The difference is that they were Obedient to the calling of God to do the extraordinary and so are we.
      So how does that fit into “True Identity”:   well God created us to be creative and to expand on what we see ourselves being – not the people we are at the present time?  It is the things that we do not see in the physical – but the things that we can Hope to be.  Obedience in Christ will get us there and Greatness will be thrust upon us. 
       Now the 8 Pastors that did the Blasts – followed up on this message and brought the Challenges to us about becoming our “True Identity”.   It is so great to see Christ bring all these different Pastors in and they all have a different message but it all comes together for one Cause…..    “Jesus”. 
          Then Pastor Velcro challenged us to take what we heard at the Conference and if we do not do anything with it – then we have failed to hear the message.  We should all be changed Men going forward for one Cause and that is to have a Thumbprint with Christ in the Center of our Identity.  Then we must take it to the next Level and be Great – Look around at the opportunities that are right there in front of us.

 So the Questions come:

What is your Identity at the present time – has it become Stagnate?

Do you see in the invisible that you can become and are you going towards that in Faith of the unseen and making it real?

Are you being Obedient to what is Christ calling you to do NOW – no matter what your past looks like?  These are the Men that he takes and makes Great – read about the people in Hebrews Chapter 11.

Bobbyg

PS – we hope to get the all the messages on or Web Site in the next several months.
Here is someone that dreamed about where Christ could take him and made it real….

Deep water Ministries 1

Jonathan and His Armor Bearer You gotta be one or the other:

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** I attended several Promise Keepers conferences when they started in Boulder CO and moved to Denver CO. I believe Men need to fight the Battle with one or more Men beside them or they will fail. So this story about Jonathan was one of the reasons I do Men’s ministry. **

I have had a few conversations lately about doing something (Matthew West’s song) and also a few changes in the format of the GMM Conference.  The first year we put together the GMM Conference we had a couple of local Pastors do a 20 minute talk that focused on the GMM Theme.  Pastor Jeff did one on Jonathan and His Armor Bearer that really brought back doing something as a major item.

Here is the story:
1 Samuel 14: 1>14 – 1. One day Jonathan son of Saul said to his young armor-bearer, “Come, let’s go over to the Philistine outpost on the other side.” But he did not tell his father.  2. Saul was staying on the outskirts of Gibeah under a pomegranate tree in Migron. With him were about six hundred men, 3. among whom was Ahijah, who was wearing an ephod. He was a son of Ichabod’s brother Ahitub son of Phinehas, the son of Eli, the Lord’s priest in Shiloh. No one was aware that Jonathan had left.  4. On each side of the pass that Jonathan intended to cross to reach the Philistine outpost was a cliff; one was called Bozez and the other Seneh. 5. One cliff stood to the north toward Mikmash, the other to the south toward Geba.  6. Jonathan said to his young armor-bearer, “Come, let’s go over to the outpost of those uncircumcised men. Perhaps the Lord will act in our behalf. Nothing can hinder the Lord from saving, whether by many or by few.”  7. “Do all that you have in mind,” his armor-bearer said. “Go ahead; I am with you heart and soul.”    8. Jonathan said, “Come on, then; we will cross over toward them and let them see us. 9. If they say to us, ‘Wait there until we come to you,’ we will stay where we are and not go up to them. 10. But if they say, ‘Come up to us,’ we will climb up, because that will be our sign that the Lord has given them into our hands.”  11. So both of them showed themselves to the Philistine outpost. “Look!” said the Philistines. “The Hebrews are crawling out of the holes they were hiding in.” 12. The men of the outpost shouted to Jonathan and his armor-bearer, “Come up to us and we’ll teach you a lesson.”  So Jonathan said to his armor-bearer, “Climb up after me; the Lord has given them into the hand of Israel.”  13. Jonathan climbed up, using his hands and feet, with his armor-bearer right behind him. The Philistines fell before Jonathan, and his armor-bearer followed and killed behind him. 14. In that first attack Jonathan and his armor-bearer killed some twenty men in an area of about half an acre.

As Jeff had stated in his talk:  “We need to be one or the other – A “Jonathon” or A “Armor Bearer” = but we cannot sit back and do nothing.  What does each of these roles look like?

Jonathon:   As you see – he is the one that got tired of sitting under the tree and said “let’s go over to the Philistine outpost”.  He needed to be doing something – and doing nothing was not an option – even if it meant failure..    One of the major things that hit me was – he was not going to do it alone, he wanted someone to go with him.  As Jonathon we also need to go forward with someone beside us to watch our back and give us a hand when it is needed.  (The Armor Bearer Responded  “Go Ahead: I am with you heart and soul”)

The Armor Bearer:   His role was a support role and like Jonathon – it was not an option to sit back and do nothing.   He was there to be Jonathan’s right hand man and he would have died along side of him doing God’s work.

**As you can see at the end – they were successful and God did his work through them because of their Obedience of going forward.

So my question is:   What are you doing in going forward?   Sometimes as Jonathon we do not have a very clear picture of what God is calling us to do…   But sitting back and doing nothing is not an option…    Also the next question is:   Who is going along side of you or who are you going along side of in doing God’s work?   But as you see – we need to be in the position of one or the other….   We need to be a Jonathon or the Armor Bearer.

***I really enjoy helping someone in going forward with their vision of what God is working through them…   There is nothing more fulfilling to help someone be successful as God is working through them…  I could be an Armor Bearer all the time….

So go forward as a Jonathan or a Armor Bearer – even if you are not sure of the outcome!!
Sitting under a tree is not an option – and obedience requires that we do something….

Bobbyg

 

What if you were on Trial? Would you be found Guilty?

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        Pastor Shaun is preaching on Titus this month and the first Chapter has the qualifications of an Elder.   But the most important part of Pastor Shaun’s message is that most of these qualifications – we as Christians should strive to have the same attributes. 
          Here is a list of them:  Titus 1:  6 > 9 – an elder must be:

  1. Blameless,
  2. Faithful to his wife,
  3. A man whose children believe and are not open to the charge of being wild and disobedient.
  4. An overseer manages God’s household
  5. He must be blameless—not overbearing
  6. Not quick-tempered
  7. Not given to drunkenness
  8. Not violent
  9. Not pursuing dishonest gain
  10. He must be hospitable
  11. One who loves what is good
  12. Who is self-controlled,
  13. Upright
  14. Holy
  15. Disciplined
  16. He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it.

     As you read this list – you can see that most of these can pertain to all of us…   During Pastor Shaun’s message he talked about the Movie “Do You Believe” and it has a section where someone is going on trial for sharing his faith.    Then the question comes up “If you were ever convicted of being a Christian – Would there be enough evidence to convict you?”     WOW – what a powerful question!!!!!!!!!!!!   You need to watch this movie..
      When you look at the Attributes above from the Book of Titus – this would be a great area to start to determine if you would be convicted of being a Christian.     I have to tell you that I personally will have to be praying for a few of these items that Christ can work through me to accomplish them.   My hope is that if I am on Trial — I will be found Guilty…

 So where do you stand on these qualifications?

Do you need to work on a few of them?

But the Biggest Question is – will you be found Guilty of being a Christian?

Bobbyg

 The Song “We Believe” from the News Boys is played during this Movie trailer and it has a powerful message…   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WjZ01FcK0yk
 
 
 

We Must Be Like Tigers and Rhinos

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I will be bringing back some of my favorite Blogs for the next few weeks – starting Friday we will be doing a 21 day Prayer Vigil for the upcoming Conference – Please check out the Prayers and join us.

I just had to bring this Blog back — it was a book that motivated me to help in getting GMM Started…  and since our main Speaker is Erwin McManus this year – it is really special.    If you have not read the book   “The Barbarian Way”  you need too.   This is the first Blog that I ever posted… and most of it comes from the book…   I have always wanted a GMM Theme called…    “Going forward like a Crash of Rhinos”  —  but I just cannot get the GMM Team to go along with me………    Someday it will happen…                      ENJOY

Excerpts from the Barbarian Way (Erwin Raphael McManus)
Although the force of one person fully committed to God is tremendous, it pales in comparison to the force of God’s people moving together.  One barbarian wandering through civilization can be discarded as nothing more than an oddity.  But when members of the barbarian tribe line up across the battlefield side by side, something amazing begins to happen;  Dark kingdoms tremble; the dungeons and prisons that hold men, women, and children captive crumble; prison doors open; chains unlock; and multitudes come to freedom.  Whenever the barbarians of Christ pass through civilization, the oppressed and forgotten are soon found dancing in the streets.

Tigers

A tiger will defeat a lion in battle; but five lions will defeat five tigers because lions fight together and the tigers do not, so the five lions take on one tiger at a time.

**Do our church’s today look like this – battle by them self only to be defeated by a group of advocates who would like to see the church fold – what if the church’s banded together – a powerful force would be going forward.

     Barbarians are far more tiger than lion.  I am convinced the old adage is true, at least in this case, that a tiger can never change its stripes.  More than that, we do not want to domesticate the tiger.  We don’t even want the tiger to try to become more like the lion.  But imagine what it would be like if tigers could learn how to move together, it tigers would choose to stand side by side and engage in battle as one tribe.

  **That is what GMM is trying to do – each church is unique but if they were going side by side fighting the Spiritual Battle that is real – then they could not be defeated.

    Jesus description that “the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold if it (Matthew 11:12) – is a call for tigers to move together, not for our untamed faith to be domesticated.
 

Rhinos

Rhinos can run at thirty miles an hour, which is pretty fast when you consider how much weight they’re pulling.  Running at thirty miles an hour is faster than a used Pinto will go – just one problem with this phenomenon:  Rhinos can see only thirty feet in front of them.  Can you imagine something that large moving in concert as a group, plowing ahead at thirty miles an hour with no idea what’s at thirty one feet?  You would think that they would be for too timid to pick up full stream, that their inability to see far enough ahead would paralyze them to immobility.  But with that horn pointing the way, rhinos run forward full steam ahead without apprehension.

  **What if the men of GOD would go forward like a Rhino with Christ at the point.   When Christ calls us to go forward – how many times do we stop because of the unknown – we should be like that Rhino running at full steam…

     Now this leads us to what a group of Rhinos are called.   Rhinos moving together at full speed are known as a CRASH.  Even when they’re just hanging around enjoying the watershed, they’re called a crash because of their potential.  You’ve got to love that.  I think that’s what we’re supposed to be.  That’s what happens when we become barbarians and shake free of domestication and civility.  The church becomes a crash.  We become an unstoppable force.  We don’t have to pretend we know the future.  Who cares that we can only thirty feet ahead?  Whatever’s at thirty-one feet needs to care that we’re coming and better get out of the way.
We need to move together as God’s people, a barbarian tribe, and become the human version of the Rhino Crash.  The future is uncertain, but we need to move toward it with confidence.  There’s a future to be created, a humanity to be liberated.  We need to stop wasting our time and stop being afraid of what we cannot see and do not know.  We need to move forward full force because of what we do know.

**GMM is pushing men to step up to the plate and be the men that GOD had planned for them to be.  We cannot sit back and wait – we must go FORWARD and it must be at full force.

Bobbyg

Be Still………….

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      I am having one of those seasons in life where everything seems to be piling up – Family – Work – Ministry and at times it gets to be overwhelming.   So today my great friend Jim Schamerhorn and I took a road trip to Scottsbluff NE to pass on some information about our upcoming GMM Conference.   
          You know God does great work through a variety of people and this was no exception.   We had a great talk on the way there and back about how God is working in our lives – but the work God is doing in Scottsbluff is inspiring.    Everyone needs a road trip once in a while with a great friend.
**Nebraska just passed a Bill to make this week National Christian Heritage Week and we were able to join the local radio station to talk about that in the first part of the show.   There has been a push with the Governors to pass this in every state.  By the way – Jim and I were on the KCMI Radio station for @ hour interviewing with the DJ – he kept calling us Jim-Bob – Lots of fun.    Then we enjoyed sharing about the GMM Conference during the last part of the show.  We had a great time visiting with the people at the Radio Station.
                    When we were finished we had lunch with Pastor Tyson Lambertson from “The Rock” Church in Scottsbluff.   Pastor Tyson has blessed me in some great ways from our conversation and it was great to hear his story…   He made my day…       God is doing some great things through this Pastor.   Thank You Pastor Tyson… 
          So after all of that it brought me back to my Wife’s favorite verse and all the stuff that seems to be overwhelming me at the present time.
          Psalms 46:10 – He says, “Be still, and know that I am God;            I had to remind myself that God is at work in all aspects of my life and I need to understand that He will get me through it all.   The most important thing I need to remember is     “Jesus”       and that He is the   “I AM”.         Jesus is at work – I just need to stop and Be Still – Then I need to look and listen…  Then I can see Him as I did in Scottsbluff today – He will be at work in my Life also>  AMEN 

So what are your life challenges for today?

Have they become overwhelming?

Have you paused to turn them over to Jesus?

Are you being Still so He can do His work and you can know that he is God?

 Bobbyg

Facing the Giants:

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     My wife handed me the movie “Facing the Giants” this last weekend and said let’s watch this.   For those of you who have not watched it – I would highly recommend it – along with another movie I mentioned “War Room”.
          As you know in Real life when the problems start to build up they always seem to come in 3’s and sometimes even more… as they did in the movie.  As for the coach he turned to Jesus to get him where he needed to be…   He did not pray that Jesus would fix his problems.  The Coach prayed that he would be doing God’s will and praising Him through the victories and the losses (then he led the other coaches and player on the same journey).   In the end they defeated the Giants… 
           I went with my oldest son this week to church at Element and Pastor Jeff had a Scripture that hit the spot for me in facing the Giants. 

Matthew 19:26:  Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

          As you read the stories in the Old Testament – you can see this unfold.  Pastor Jeff told a story at our very 1st GMM conference about Jonathan and his Armor bearer that has always come back to me.    The part of the story that I like is when Jonathan makes the Decision to go forward and meet his Giants.

“Jonathan said to his young armor-bearer, “Come, let’s go over to the outpost of those uncircumcised men. Perhaps the Lord will act in our behalf. Nothing can hinder the Lord from saving, whether by many or by few.”

     I am always reminded that Like Jonathan I must be active in what I do – I cannot sit under the tree and wait for an answer.   As I encounter the problems of the world – I too cannot give up.   The Coach and Jonathan kept going forward trusting that God would help them defeat the Giants and they were successful. As I face the Giants in my life at the present time – I too must be reminded that with Jesus I can defeat them also.   Nothing is impossible with Him fighting the Battle for me.

 So what are the Giants that you are facing?

Are you doing it alone or trusting in others to walk beside you?

Do you believe all things are possible with Jesus?

Are you praising Him through the good and the bad?

Bobbyg

 
 

Are you an Effective Christian?

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My Pastor (Shaun) is starting his teaching in 2 Timothy this week and one section of the 1st Chapter got my attention:

2 Timothy 1: 7. For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline. 8. So do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord or of me his prisoner. Rather, join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God.

  Paul is sending a letter to Timothy and in these verses he describes three Characteristics of an effective Christian which are available with the Holy Spirit working within us. 
 Power:   Acts 1:8 “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
          To be a witness for Jesus takes Boldness that the Holy Spirit will equip us with – Verse 8 talks about not being Ashamed of our Testimony and especially of those that God has put in our path.
 Love:   My good Friend Nick – has a favorite quote    “Love Wins”      and it is a powerful gift when we use it in the right way.   The Spirit gives us the Power to love those we really do not want to be around…. it is through Grace that we can do this.  This is one the most powerful gifts we can have…
 Self-Discipline:  Here is a quote I pulled from the Web on this:  

1. Discipline and training of oneself, usually for improvement: Acquiring the habit of promptness requires self-discipline. “Self-discipline appears in various forms, such as perseverance, restraint, endurance, thinking before acting, finishing what you start doing, and as the ability to carry out one’s decisions and plans, in spite of inconvenience, hardships or obstacles.”

This gift can be shown in many different ways – and this is just a few examples…
     So I took these 3 Characteristics and did a self-evaluation on myself to see where I stood on being an Effective Christian…   I have to tell you that I need to work a little harder on all of these characteristics…   It will be something that I will focus on doing this week.

 So how do you stand on these three characteristics?

Are you an effective Christian?

Let the Holy Spirit do the work through you and focus on these during the week.

Bobbyg

Do you have a “War Room”?

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      My wife said we needed a date night last Saturday – so we went to dinner and a show at the Loveland outlet mall.   The movie was “War Room” – it is a spiritual based movie and it is a movie you need to go see.   Guys take your wife to this movie, you will not regret it.   I will try not to write too much about the Movie so that it will not ruin it for you when you go.
      The main character Miss Clara has allot of Wisdom that she shares during this movie and one of the points that hit home for me was.   We seem to be in all these Battles that we are trying to win alone – As Miss Clara would say:

    • “We fight for power. We fight for riches. We fight for rights. We fight for freedom,” she says. “There always seems to be something to fight about.”

 

“Very few of us know how to fight the right way.”

 

.” If we hope to thwart Satan’s schemes, to counter his cunning strategies to divide us, we’ll need a beefy battle strategy. A strategy that can come from only one place: time spent asking for God’s guidance in our prayer closet.”

 
       Miss Clara’s “War Room” was a prayer closet – it is where she fought her Battles.  She stated that we need the help of Jesus to fight our Battles for us and we need to get out of his way.   
    Prayer A   I have been fighting one of those battles that I cannot win and it is one that can only be won by Jesus.   My wife reminded me that even the Archangel Michael could not fight Satan on his own:     Jude 1:9 >But Michael the archangel, when he disputed with the devil and argued about the body of Moses, did not dare pronounce against him a railing judgment, but said, “The Lord rebuke you!”
      I must do the same – I must fight my Battles with the Help of Jesus and this must come through my own “War Room” and I need to stay out of His way.
           At the end of the movie Miss Clara gives this mighty Prayer and it was based on the verse:   2 Chronicles 7:14 > if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.
       Her prayer was a Battle cry for us to step up and do what is required to win the Battle and that is to turn to Jesus…  
     You will have to watch the movie – It is the first time that I heard applause during a movie – it happened about 3 times.

 So what Battles are you fighting?

Are you turning them over to Jesus?

Are you getting out of his way?

Do you have a “War Room”?

Bobbyg

 

How are you winning the Battle?

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            I had a great weekend drafting my Fantasy Football team with my Son’s – Family – and Friends.   I have to tell you that I am starting a week of being extremely thankful of who God has put into my life. 
           There is this Spiritual Battle that I have been in for a little while and the presence of Christ is at its fullest at the present time.    A friend (Steve CZ.) sent an article to me on: “Harbinger Man: Now is the time to prepare” and I believe we are in those times.  The future for Christians going forward is going to require us to be founded in our Faith and we will be challenged.  I enjoyed reading this and towards the end of the article it really put an emphasis on Christians to: “Decide no matter what the majority does you will follow the Lord. You have decided to follow Jesus, no turning back. God will anoint those who do not compromise.”
        So going back to my first part of the Blog – I am extremely thankful for the people God has put into my life.    As we go through life we need to be surrounded by those people we can depend upon to help fight the Battle.   I have been blessed with a Faithful Wife who keeps me grounded and several Guys I call my 2am Guys – then I have a couple of Pastors who give me wisdom.   
       I can feel the Battle being won at the present time and it is because of Presence of Christ guiding me.   Then the people who surround me are covering me with prayer and it is a must if I am going to succeed.  
        One of my Face Book Friends (Sherry L.) posted this inspiration and it is a great prayer of thankfulness towards GOD. “The deepest level of worship is praising God in spite of the pain, thanking God during the trials, trusting Him when we’re tempted to lose Hope and LOVING HIM when He seems so distant and far away.   At my lowest, God is my hope, at my darkest, God is my light.  At my weakest, God is my strength.  At my saddest, God is my comforter. “
 

 So where do you stand in the Battle?

Are you prepared and feel the presence of Christ?

Who do you have alongside of you?

 Bobbyg
 PS —  I drafted an Awesome Fantasy Football team……..