Articles with spiritual fitness

Jeff Cooper’s Principles of Personal Defense

A vertical image of Jeff Cooper's Situational Awareness color codes

Col. Jeff Cooper, creator of the “Color Code” that sharpens a person’s situational awareness, is also the author of the booklet, Principles of Personal Defense, in which he describes 7 characteristics a person should strengthen in themselves to best be able to ward off a violent attack. They’re primarily technique-oriented.

[ Read the SemperVerus article, The 5 Elements of Self-Defense Law ]

SemperVerus® has added the component of biblical insight as a foundation to each principle, in keeping with the understanding that Scripture inherently supports the right of self-defense as presented in the booklet, The Case for Biblical Self-Defense.

1. ALERTNESS — “Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.” 1 Peter 5:8 (NLT)

2. DECISIVENESS — “An indecisive man is unstable in all his ways.” James 1:8 (HCSB)

3. AGGRESSIVENESS — “Be angry and sin not.” Ephesians 4:26 (KJV)

4. SPEED — “With blinding speed and power he destroys the strong.” Amos 5:9 (NLT)

5. COOLNESS — “God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.” 2 Timothy 1:7 (ESV)

6. RUTHLESSNESS — “Hate what is evil.” Romans 12:9 (NIV)

7. SURPRISE — “Be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.” Matthew 10:16 (NIV)

Read in full the booklet, Principles of Personal Defense.


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Spiritual Fitness in the USA Military

The US Air Force defines spiritual fitness as “the ability to adhere to beliefs, principles, or values needed to persevere and prevail in accomplishing missions,” according to Air Force Instruction (AFI) 90-5001.

Spiritual fitness is one of the four pillars of Comprehensive Airman Fitness, which focuses on building a thriving US Air Force comprised of comprehensively balanced individuals who strive to be mentally, physically, socially and spiritually fit.

[ Read the SemperVerus article, Concealed Carry Daily Prayer ]

According to a 2013 RAND Corporation study commissioned by the Air Force, spiritual fitness “can affect an individual’s resilience and readiness to perform military duties” and “influence resilience and well-being by buffering stress.”

Be Faithful in the Little Things

Our first good look at David is in 1 Samuel 16:12–17.

David was sensitive enough to hear the whisper of God’s voice, “You will be the next king.” But as soon as the big moment was over and they turned out the lights, he was humbly back with his sheep. People had to actually pull him from the sheep to get him to do anything that was related to the limelight. In fact, I think that’s one of the reasons he was a man after God’s heart. He was always approachable, always believable, always authentic . . . and always faithful in the little things.

Read this article in full…


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