Articles by Ron Rose at Heartlight

It Doesn't Require Better Skills

ron@faithfitness.net (Ron Rose) — Fri, 09 May 2008 00:00:00 -0500

In 2004 a low budget, independent film, called Napoleon Dynamite made a high school misfit named Napoleon into a pop culture icon. In one of the storylines, Napoleon wants to get a date with a popular girl named Trisha, but he doesn't think he's good enough. He talks openly with his new friend Pedro:

Napoleon: Well, nobody's going to go out with ME!

Pedro: Have you asked anybody yet?

Napoleon: No, but who would? I don't even have any good skills.

Pedro: What do you mean?

Napoleon: You know, like nunchuk skills, bow-hunting skills, computer hacking skills. Girls only want boyfriends who have great skills.

Pedro: Aren't you pretty good at drawing, like animals and warriors and stuff?

Napoleon: Yes ... probably the best that I know of.

Pedro: Just draw a picture of the girl you want to take out ... and give it to her for like a gift or something.

Napoleon: That's a pretty good idea.

Truth is, his drawings are horrible, but he doesn't know it. He is blissfully unaware of the social world around him, but he has an innate conviction that you have to have skills before anyone will care about you. Somewhere he has accepted the misconception that love is based on the right set of skills.

In real life, we struggle with a similar misconception. Deep down we wonder if we are good enough to be loved by the God who made us. At times, doubt wiggles its way into our alone moments ... Am I good enough or strong enough? Do I know enough? Am I right enough or skilled enough? Am I really worthy enough to be part of God's family, much less a faith giant in the kingdom?

No! You don't have access to enough "enough-ness" to make it ... but God does. It's all about him. God has a net of grace that works all the time in spite of our inadequacies and insufficiencies ... he is enough, more than enough. So work on; stretch out; try the impossible. He has the skills.

Ron Rose is a noted author and Director of Faith in Families. His new email minsitry, Faith Fitness, provides practical resources for growing faith. For more details, click here.

Website: Faith Fitness

Prayer out of Compassion

ron@faithfitness.net (Ron Rose) — Thu, 01 May 2008 00:00:00 -0500

In 1857, the US was deep in a spiritual depression, but God was about to invade the impossible. Jeremiah Lamphier, a struggling, middle-aged nobody, walked the streets of New York City with nothing but a overwhelming compassion for people.

He wasn't a preacher or church-guy. He was a nobody who knew how to pray into the presence of God. He used the 4th floor room of the old Dutch Reformed Church and invited merchants, mechanics, clerks, strangers and businessmen to join him each Wednesday for a prayer time at noon.

It all began on the 21st of September, 1857, with 6 strangers. On the following Wednesday, 20 showed up. By the 3rd week, there were 40. Soon they changed to daily prayer times and expanded to three floors of the old church.

God was showing up … invading the impossible everyday. By springtime, prayer meetings were being held in buildings throughout the city. The newspapers reported that over 6,000 were attending daily prayer meetings in New York, and the "prayer meeting" craze had spread to Pittsburgh, Washington DC, and Philadelphia.

By May, a prominent newspaper reported that New England had been profoundly changed by these prayer meetings. And, within the next two years, noonday prayer meetings were being held in 15,000 cities across America.

These meetings were not based on powerful sermons, special celebrity appearances, or popular musical groups; God was the power of these meetings. It was God's presence and the stories of his fingerprints in real lives that made it all happen.

The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective (James 5:16 TNIV).

Ron Rose is a noted author and Director of Faith in Families. His new email minsitry, Faith Fitness, provides practical resources for growing faith. For more details, click here.

Website: Faith Fitness

Collecting the Fingerprints of God

ron@faithfitness.net (Ron Rose) — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0500

Preparation

There were twenty strangers standing around, coffee in hand, scanning the crowd for familiar faces. We were all waiting for the training program to begin.

"They call me 'Buzzard,' the guy next to me blurted out, "not sure how it all got started but over the years I've grown used to it ... my mother even calls me Buzzard now." He looked like a normal guy, but I wasn't sure I wanted to continue a conversation.

As soon as I shared my name, he hit me with ... "So, what do you collect?" I know a lot of conversation starters and ice breaking questions, but this one seemed to be more than a little "off the wall."

"Wall Clocks," I responded.

Then he proceeded to regale me with the glories of his spider collection.

Lyn and I have dedicated one wall in our family room to a rather pitiful collection of 24 wall clocks, but neither of us would be called collectors. My Dad was a collector; when he died his garage was a museum of junk.

Through the years I have gotten to know people with various kinds of collections: Ken collects native American art, Bud -- pocketknives, Joyce -- antique glass, Blake -- writing instruments, Teresa -- shoes, Gene -- police badges, and Robert built-on a 20x20 room over his garage to display his Bobbie hats.

Ask a person about what they collect and you are asking them to share something revealing and personal. You are stepping into their private world. Not such a strange crowd breaker question after all.

"So, what do you collect?"

Try this answer. "I collect the fingerprints of God. I look for his touches in my life and the lives of others; and when I find them I write about them, and I report them. Not long back ..." (Tell about a time when you saw or felt God in action in your world.)

You can talk about your faith without being religious or offensive.

Inspiration

In April of 2007, USA Today did a short story on Kevin Inciyaki, of Sierra Madre, California. The story focused on Kevin's love for trash. Kevin at the time was 9 years old, and fixated on garbage. He not only likes garbage, but he also likes garbage containers and garbage trucks, garbage books and garbage videos. His room is filled with everything garbage.

Early photos of him in the family scrapbook show an eager youngster inspecting trashcans at Sea World. He even has a photo collection called "Garbage Trucks of the World" taken for him by family friends on trips abroad.

Kevin's mother Marsha said, "It's been garbage since he was 2 years old. You have no idea what it is like having a child who has a passion for trash."

Maybe not, but God does.

Why not collect something that lasts forever and makes God proud in the process?

Motivation

Some collections are reflections of our passions, some take us down a dangerous path, some are nothing more than a diversion, or innocent dabbling, and others become obsessions. What are you collecting?

Join with me in the pioneering venture of building a network of believers who have become collectors of holy fingerprints.

Keep your eyes and ears open. As you travel, work, walk your neighborhood, share meals together, and attend social gatherings, look and listen for the fingerprints of God. He's working everywhere, sometimes in ways that may appear to be strange and bizarre, but he is still touching lives and healing hearts. When you hear an account of his touch ... write it down, save it, share it, and celebrate it.

Click here to submit a story from your collection.

Click here to tell me you are accepting the challenge to become a collector of holy fingerprints.

Ron Rose is a noted author and Director of Faith in Families. His new email minsitry, Faith Fitness, provides practical resources for growing faith. For more details, click here.

Website: Faith Fitness

He Saved My Life

ron@faithfitness.net (Ron Rose) — Sat, 29 Mar 2008 00:00:00 -0500

Preparation

The Bucket List is a dialogue-intensive movie about two dying men on a three-month adventure, a journey that transforms a bully into a buddy. The two old men -- pompous, arrogant, corporate billionaire Edward Cole and pensive, philosophical, car mechanic Carter Chambers -- are almost unbearably different. The only thing they have in common is their terminal illnesses.

While sharing a hospital room, they begin making a list of all the things they'd like to do before they kick the bucket ... It's their bucket list ... what began as a topic of conversation, became a timely to do list. When they were released to die, they took off, determined to complete as many items on the list as time permitted.

In the end, not everything was completed, but Ed and Carter had become best friends.

This is not one of those sentimental, heartrending relationship movies; these guys didn't have touchy-feely moments. But, during the Bucket List journey, both men found a missing part of their lives ... they didn't find it in some far off land; they found it in the treasure-trove of real unsuspicious, in-your-face, say anything, friendship.

Near the end of the movie Cole eulogies Carter ... "I loved him. And I miss him. Carter and I saw the world together. Which is amazing ... When you think that only three months ago, we were complete strangers! I hope that it doesn't sound selfish of me but ... the last months of his life were the best months of mine. He saved my life ... And he knew it before I did."

Just a movie ... right?

Inspiration

Lance Corporal Ryan McCurdy died in Iraq in 2006; but before he took his fatal hit, he saved his buddy's life. Corporal Trotter and Ryan were in charge of guarding the C-Mac complex. A large group of insurgents came upon their group of guards and started firing at them.

Shortly after the firefight began, Trotter got shot in the neck in the carotid artery, Trotter recalled. "I couldn't talk. I just laid there in the street praying for my wife and unborn baby. I knew I was a goner."

Trotter continued, "Then out of nowhere, Ryan ran out, grabbed my legs and pulled me to safety." Within minutes Ryan took the hit that killed him.

It has taken months and several surgeries for Corporal Trotter to fully recover from his gunshot wound. His wife, Stephanie had their baby boy on March 25th, 2006 and they named him, Christian Ryan.

Once stateside, Trotter called Ryan's parents to tell them how their son saved his life. Toward the end of the call he said, "I still cry at night thinking about how Ryan lost his life saving mine."

Ryan's Mom responded, "Our son always cared deeply for his friends. That's the kind of thing Ryan would do for a friend without hesitation. He knew you had a wife and baby to raise. I know he wanted you to be able to do that, without giving his life a second thought."

Motivation

Regardless of how much we plan and protect there are times in life when each of us needs a buddy, a close friend who will step in and save us. Sometimes the buddy saves us from our enemies and sometimes the buddy saves us from ourselves. But real friends save lives!

Do you have a buddy that's saved you?

Do you want a buddy like that?

Be one!

Forward this Note to your life saving friends. Tell them how it happened.

Ron Rose is a noted author and Director of Faith in Families. His new email minsitry, Faith Fitness, provides practical resources for growing faith. For more details, click here.

Website: Faith Fitness

The Best Gifts

ron@faithfitness.net (Ron Rose) — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 00:00:00 -0600

Truth is, the best gifts of all are not meant to be kept or even possessed; they are intended to be given a way ... to be passed on from person to person.

Lewis Hyde, author of "The Gift," tells of a Massachusetts' pilgrim who is invited into a Native American lodge and welcomed with a ritual smoking of the peace pipe. After the ritual is completed, the Native Americans give the symbolic pipe to the pilgrim. The pipe is a peace offering and is traditionally circulated among the local tribes, staying in each lodge for a time, but always given away sooner or later. However, our pilgrim didn't know about the tradition. In his world, he now owned a valuable treasure ... his own personal peace pipe.

Months later, in a surprise visit, the leaders of a neighboring tribe shocked the pilgrim with the expectation that the pipe would given to them.

The pilgrim called them "Indian givers"! (Yes, that's where the phrase comes from, according to Hyde.) In his mind, these poor natives just didn't grasp the growing application and appreciating of "private property." In their minds, this poor pilgrim didn't grasp the true meaning of the gift.

Like the pilgrim, we tend to hold on to our gifts too long. I think sometimes we even try to possess them. We try to keep them safe and hold them tight, for fear we might lose them. This focus on self misses the point altogether. As the apostle Paul reminds us, "... the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive'" (Acts 20:35 TNIV).

One thing is for sure: the gifts we receive from God are all meant to be given. They are not ours to keep, they must be shared: they must be kept in circulation to bless others.

Do you have possessions that really need to be on the move, that need to be given to others? What gifts has God given you that need to be shared -- things like grace, forgiveness, second-chances, love, stuff, time, attention, tenderness, patience, and talent?

Isn't it time for some of your closely guarded private possessions to find a new home? You've been given a lot, so doesn't that mean you have a lot to give? Get creative and turn loose of what you "own" and find the greater grace in giving.

Ron Rose is a noted author and Director of Faith in Families. His new email minsitry, Faith Fitness, provides practical resources for growing faith. For more details, click here.

Website: Faith Fitness

Love Beyond the Ledger

ron@faithfitness.net (Ron Rose) — Tue, 27 Nov 2007 00:00:00 -0600

This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us (1 John 4:10-12 TNIV).

There was a time, before Television (BT), when families in the US would gather in their living rooms and listen to radio dramas. "One Man's Family," "Fibber Magee and Molly," "Groucho Marx," and "Burns and Allen," were just a few. One of the favorites was "The Jack Benny Program."

Jack Benny eventually made the transition to television as one of America's most popular comedians. His on-air persona presented him as a penny-pinching skinflint who would sooner die than part with a dollar. Yet in real life, his character was anything but -- the flesh and blood Jack Benny was a generous and kind man who treasured his friends, gave generously to charities, and dearly loved his wife.

Jack Benny (real name Benjamin Kubelsky) was married to Sayde Marks (better known as Mary Livingstone, the character she played on her husband's radio show) for 48 years. Their marriage was far from perfect. She was a quick-witted, high-maintenance, and a demanding woman. He was a bit of a philanderer.

After his death, Sayde claimed Benny's signature gesture of holding one hand to the side of his face came about from his attempting to conceal scratch marks she inflicted after she caught him on the phone with one of his female admirers.

Yet despite their shortcomings and imperfections, Jack loved his wife and wanted her to know his love would last a lifetime and beyond. For years, Sayde had received a long-stemmed red rose everyday. Then, even after Jack died in December of 1974, she continued to receive a rose.

When she called to remind the florist of her husband's death, she learned that Jack had included a provision for the flowers in his will. One red rose was to be delivered to Sadye every day for the rest of her life.

Sayde passed away nine years later. Nothing could stop Jack's love.

Too many of us have grown jaded and shallow in our love. We are often trapped in ledger sheet giving instead of genuine loving. You do this and I will repay you by doing that. Somewhere in the back of your mind, are you keeping track of giving and receiving, making sure to keep everything balanced?

You can see this ledger sheet giving this time of the year. You give me a present worth $100 and I must give something of equal value. That kind of giving robs us of the joy. It's void of spirit. We give, but there is something empty in the experience. Why do we put up with it?

So don't.

God has shown us how to give beyond the ledger sheet ... to break the mold ... to be an outrageous, unexpected giver who loves people just the way they are.

Giving up the ledger sheet habit is not easy, but it can be done. God has shown you how; he pioneered the way. He gave first! If you have unwrapped the gift of his love, you are a new version of what you used to be. Call it version 2.0. You now have an outrageous giver inside you, a generous and grateful reflection of his gift to you.

Remember, he still loves you just the way you are, now it's your turn!

Do you believe it?

Do you really believe it?

Tis' the season! So live as if you believe it!

Ron Rose is a noted author and Director of Faith in Families. His new email minsitry, Faith Fitness, provides practical resources for growing faith. For more details, click here.

Website: Faith Fitness

Kids Say the Most Important Things!

ron@faithfitness.net (Ron Rose) — Tue, 13 Nov 2007 00:00:00 -0600

And he [Jesus] said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 18:3 TNIV).

She couldn't wait to tell me about it. It was her story of faith.

"My little granddaughter, Tina, was in Children's Hospital, Santa Ana, California. We had requested prayers from area churches and we gathered in the waiting room the night before the surgery to pray for success. I had great faith, but I was still worried.

"The operation was serious. It was heart valve repair, but Tina wasn't concerned. This six-year old trooper was an inspiration.

"The next morning the surgery went well and we were thankful, but unprepared for what happened next. Tina was in the recovery area and barely conscience when the surgeon came by. The Doctor got out his stethoscope, listened a bit and said, 'Tina, everything went fine.'

"Tina opened her eyes and whispered, 'Doctor, did you see Jesus?'

"Stunned by the question, the doctor replied, 'No, was I supposed to?'

"'Well,' Tina said, 'he lives in my heart!'"

With tears of joy, this excited grandmother told me, "I will never be the same. Those words opened my eyes. I now look for Jesus in the most unexpected places."

Children often say things that break through all the clutter and open our eyes to spiritual realities, ones we have missed or ignored or misunderstood.

What words have you heard children or grandchildren say that touched your heart and changed your life?

Listen to the children this week. Listen for wonder!

Ron Rose is a noted author and Director of Faith in Families. His new email minsitry, Faith Fitness, provides practical resources for growing faith. For more details, click here.

Website: Faith Fitness

Out of the Shadows?

ron@faithfitness.net (Ron Rose) — Sat, 29 Sep 2007 00:00:00 -0500

Right now, somewhere in the world people are dealing with tragedy -- lost in a vortex of grief. In the last few months we've heard the news ... 32 killed on Virginia Tech campus; 6 trapped and 3 dead in Utah mine. Monstrous Greek fire death toll reaches 64. Minneapolis Bridge collapse kills 13. China bridge death toll rises to 64. Peru quake kills at least 519. And, perhaps during these months you, like me, have experienced grief on a personal level.

Unless we are there in the middle of the smell and pain of death, unless we are personally touched by the loss and grief, we may find that the news washes past us leaving us barely affected and only momentarily distracted. In fact, in the U.S. we have almost removed the death experience from our lives.

How many times have you watched someone die?

For the faith giant, death is not to be feared, nor is grief to be avoided. Death is not the end, not the period at the end of the sentence; it is a comma pointing the way to more, much more. And, grief -- the shadow of death -- is a window to God.

Every time we feel the grief, the sadness, the loss and pain, we are forced out of the shallows and into the deep. We don't like it, but that's the way life is. The non-believer sees only tragedy and pain; the faith giant sees God and hears his voice. God is always in the deep.

Hidden within the most quoted words of Israel's King David, there is a truth missed by many.

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I fear no evil, for You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
(Psalm 23:4 NASB)

How is comfort possible when I hurt so much? How is fear dispelled when I'm so shaken and uncertain about the future?

Answer: Look again at the beginning of the Psalm ... It is God who is guiding you in the paths of righteousness for his name sake ... those paths lead through the valley of the shadow of death ... For giants in the faith, God is more than a standard guide; he also knows the way and he also knows us. He loves us, and above all, he knows the pain of loss.

He has the touch, the comfort touch. And when everything is said and done, without explanation or reservation, his touch will have restored our souls.

Believe it. Count on it. You see, I've found him in the shadows, myself.

Our daughter, Julie, called to say they were at the hospital. "They're having trouble hearing the baby's heart beat and they want to check everything out." For twenty-three weeks everything had gone so well.

I wanted everything to be all right, but I didn't get what I wanted.

When Lyn and I walked into the hospital room, Julie was already in the patient garb and Scott, our son-in-law was fidgeting with something. A nurse was just finishing an Ultrasound, so we stood along the wall and waited.

"Mom, I don't feel any movement, no kicking!" Julie's eyes filled with tears and her voice broke. She was so brave!

We prayed for the baby, for Julie and Scott, for the nurses, for the doctors. We prayed for God to change what we feared had already happened.

Next, Julie's Doctor did the final Ultrasound, after a few minutes she put down the pad and looked up, "Julie, there is no heartbeat; the baby's dead."

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. I think the clock stopped. We were lost in shock. Before anyone could react, Julie cried out in a long wailing moan of agony that ripped at my heart. "Noooooooo!"

All I knew was that I wanted to comfort her, to hold her, to grieve with her. I took a step, one step toward the bed; but before I could take another, my heart was hit with a double whammy.

Julie reached up into the arms of Scott. He was her comforter. He was her first touch.

That day, March 30, 1999, we lost Madeline, our first grandchild. We mourned her before we even knew her. And, on that day I finally realized my oldest daughter had grown up and it hit me hard. Scott had taken my place. It was the way it should be, but the loss hurt just the same.

Only God knows how to comfort that kind of grief. And true to his promise he was more than a guide; his presence reassured us all and strengthened our faith. And I felt his touch and heard his voice.

And, before I knew what had happened, he had used those moments to restore my soul.

In the valley of the shadow of death we have a choice. Like so many around us, we can choose to see only pain and heartache and fear, or we can choose to look beyond what we see -- to see the unseen. So what will you do?

Pray! Faith giants feel his touch, sense his presence (the Rod), are renewed with his power (the Staff), and hear his voice (the Comfort). After all, he is the Master Comforter.

Remember, no one wants to go through the valley of the shadow; but when we do, we have a guide that's been there before. He knows the way and he will lead us through.

Ron Rose is a noted author and Director of Faith in Families. His new email minsitry, Faith Fitness, provides practical resources for growing faith. For more details, click here.

Website: Faith Fitness

A Little Washing

ron@faithfitness.net (Ron Rose) — Sun, 05 Aug 2007 00:00:00 -0500

The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged (Deuteronomy 31:8 TNIV).

I like the circulating story about rain in the Wal-Mart parking lot. If you recall a crowd has gathered at the exit doors waiting for the downpour to end and a little red-haired girl is trying to convince her mother that they need to run in the rain.

Finally the mom says, "No, we'll get soaked if we do."

"No, we won't, Mom, remember what you said this morning?" the young girl said as she tugged at her mom's arm.

"This morning? When did I say we could run through the rain and not get wet?"

"Don't you remember? When you were talking to Daddy about his cancer, you said, 'If God can get us through this, He can get us through anything!'"

Some will hurry on past moments like this and miss the faith-point. But this mom didn't.

"Honey, you are absolutely right, let's run through the rain. If God let's us get wet, well maybe we just needed washing."

Maybe we all need a little washing!

Rather than trying to control your life, why not step off into adventure with the Lord and see where he leads you!

Ron Rose is a noted author and Director of Faith in Families. His new email minsitry, Faith Fitness, provides practical resources for growing faith. For more details, click here.

Website: Faith Fitness

When Endings Are Complicated, God Is Still Gracious

ron@faithfitness.net (Ron Rose) — Sat, 28 Jul 2007 00:00:00 -0500

When all our enemies heard about this, all the surrounding nations were afraid and lost their self-confidence, because they realized that this work had been done with the help of our God (Nehemiah 6:16 TNIV).

Not all stories for faith work out like we would like. Giants of the faith don't have life experiences that always get wrapped up neatly, tied with a bow, and presented for everyone to celebrate. Faith, especially strong faith, is often born out of tragedies that at first glance seem hopeless. Faith shines the strongest in chaos.

On June 20, 1985, Jack Carter, his son Dave, and his grandsons, Dustin and Caleb, set out for a much anticipated wilderness camping trip in Yellowstone National Park. On there journey across the lake to their favorite staging site, a freak storm came up and within seconds they were capsized and tossed into the rough and frigid 35 degree water. They were only 75 yards from the shore, but regardless of how hard they tried, the wind and water seem to push them further and further from the shore.

Jack and little Dustin ended up together, clinging on a floating seat cushion; but, Dave and Caleb were lost.

After a while, the waves calmed a bit and Jack and Dustin began to feel a surge of hope. "We're going to make it, Grandpa, We're going to make it," Dustin kept saying.

The water was just too cold. Soon Dustin's words were slurred and less frequent. Jack kept urging to keep talking, but in the end, it was too much for Dustin.

"I tried," Jack said, "to keep Dustin's face out of the water. I thought I might be able to revive him once we reached the shore, but I couldn't grip him tight enough. It was only a few yards from the shore when he slipped out of my frozen hands and into eternity."

After more than three hours of fighting to stay alive, a wave finally drove Jack against an old tree and he was able to gradually make his way out of the water. He found a make-due shelter between two fallen trees and rested till morning.

Early the next morning, he found a ranger cabin and within hours he was transported to Yellowstone Hospital. "I watched, almost indifferently, as the doctors worked to restore my circulation and body temperature," Jack remembered. "They seemed to care a whole lot more than I did. Occasionally one of them remarked about my strength and how it had saved me. I was too weak to tell them how wrong they were. I could only remember that moment when my fingers could no longer grip and I lost my hold on Dustin. I could still see Dustin's face sinking into the water as my strength failed."

They had been so eager to begin their wilderness adventure; now, only Jack remained.

Looking back Jack responds, "God gave my son and my grandsons the ultimate adventure; they got to go home to heaven. And, that same God gave me a tragedy to share that will give people hope. If God can help me through this, he can help you through anything."

The task this week is to look back. Search your past for forgotten moments, tragedies, those difficult times when God changed your heart, opened your eyes, gave you comfort, and put his fingerprints on your life. Some of these may have been resolved in ways that obviously show the hand of God. Others, however, may not have been resolved so cleanly, but took the grit and resolve of your spirit and the faithfulness of God's grace to see you through.

Find someone who will listen and tell your story ... Hope needs your story to be told and people need to know what tragedies you've overcome.

Ron Rose is a noted author and Director of Faith in Families. His new email minsitry, Faith Fitness, provides practical resources for growing faith. For more details, click here.

Website: Faith Fitness