We know for scripture that God doesn’t change Hebrews 13:8 says “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever!” which raises the question why is each Sunday so different?
Last Sunday I needed to clear the snow off the car and play the slip and slide game to drive to church (Obviously no motorcycle ride that day) and I heard good worship and an amazing message, I even quoted the pastor in the last BLOG post.
This Sunday beautiful weather and my son and I went for ride before church to get donuts and rode to church together. I felt like the pastor took the easy route on a message about the myth that all Christians are Republicans, but the worship was awesome. Not that it was musically better but I was truly swept into the presence of God.
So God doesn’t change but one week I am moved by teaching and the next buy music so it must be me that changes. After church I experienced another example of how I can experience things differently. In my religious upbringing I was taught to view church as a gathering of believers in any location, converted bowling allies, warehouses and store fronts were the norm. I learned to be suspicious of churches that were in “church building” with all that “religious hardware” where the gospel was watered down by “liberals”
Sunday I rode south to the Air Force Academy and visited the Cadet Chapel which is a beautiful structure that houses three separate chapels for Protestant, Catholic and Jewish cadets along with an “all faith” meeting areas for common services. My “training” would naturally reject such an building as having nothing to do with God but yesterday I was overwhelmed with the beauty of the place and the knowledge that Our God who is a warrior (Exodus 15:3 The LORD is a warrior, the LORD is His name.) sings over a gathering of young men and women who training to be warriors. God didn’t change but my heart did.
Each week I post something that is a call to adventure and focuses on the motorcycle ride but this week I am calling you an inner adventure (No Motorcycle Required) just the courage to look at things and places in your life with fresh eyes and an open heart, maybe the God who never changes has a whole new way of seeing things in store for you, and what an adventure it is to hear from the Father.
I know that this BLOG can feel like I’m poking you with a stick but my intent is not to be mean or uncaring but to see you released into the greatness you Father intends for you.
I came across a quote that explains it better than I can.
If I accept you as you are, I will make you worse; however, if I treat you as though you are what you are capable of becoming, I help you become that.
--Goethe
Monday, October 29, 2007
Monday, October 22, 2007
800 miles – 3 States – 4 Dead Presidents – 1 Day
“Some people run towards Vision and other run from Nightmares.”
- Pastor John Leach, Jubilee Fellowship Church - Lone Tree, CO
It was Sunday October 21st 2007 and it was easier than usual to find a seat at the 11:00am service because today was the first snow of the season in the Denver area as the pastor explained why he had given the massage three titles. It was because as he sees it the world is full of two kinds of people, those who run towards vision and those who run from nightmares. So he had a title for each kind of person and the third was the politically correct title. The point on this post is not his message but if I have peeked your interest feel free to listen to it for free at www.jfc.org it was a great message and well worth the time.
Some time back I included a survey on this BLOG and 50% of the respondents answered that they wouldn’t be caught dead on a motorcycle. Additionally, I have received e-mail warnings about the dangers of motorcycle including examples of people they know who were injured or worse due to motorcycle accidents. I have been confused as to why my invitation into adventure, any adventure not just those involving motorcycles would get that type of response. And this quote has made it clearer to me. I have defined adventure and any activity where you place yourself in a situation out of your control where you are intentionally at the risk of the unknown, where you’re well worn bag of tricks and talent isn’t enough and you need to rely on God. In short where you will need to face the “what will happen?” question. If you are the type of person who runs towards Vision “What will happen?” is very exciting but if you are a person who runs from nightmares “What will happen?” is the worse thing you can imagine. I am convinced that Eldridge is correct when he says in Wild at Heart that men bear the image of God in ways that require us to seek an “Adventure to Live” a place in a story that is larger then ourselves.
In my heart I hear the whisper of two voices, on calling me to adventure and the other warning me away from danger. All last week the weather man has predicted that Saturday would be nice but Sunday would be the first snow of the season in the Denver Metro area. Last weekend they were wrong by about 12 hours and my son and I were caught in the rain that wasn’t due until much later in the day. So one voice says take a nice long ride and enjoy the day and the other says don’t go and if you do stay close to home incase the snow comes early. Rain on a bike is inconvenient and uncomfortable but snow and ice can be downright dangerous.
For no particular reason I woke Saturday morning at 4:00am and something in my heart said go for it. So I got dressed, packed the bike and was underway at Zero-Dark-Thirty with no particular plan in mind. Then I remembered saying some time back that I wanted to see Mt. Rushmore which is only 400 miles away so north bound it is. The whole time I was thinking I would go part way and come home leaving such a long trip for the spring or summer of next year, after all an 800 mile round trip was way more than I have ever done on a bike in one day and I’m no 19 year old kid anymore. But at every gas and meal stop I decided to go farther, even playing a game in my head to determine what time it would be when I would get home if I turned around now. The choice was simple, choose the safe route and turn back or press on into the unknown. At each decision point I chose to press on and trust the outcome to my Father who loves me.
Along the way I experienced a beautiful sunrise in Cheyenne, WY, the magnificent desolation of the plains, the rugged beauty of the Black Hills and majesty of the Mt. Rushmore monument. Not to mention the best buffalo burger I have had in Custer, SD.
I could have easily chosen to run from Nightmares and I would have missed a great day. The next time you have the option to take an adventure (two wheeled or not) listen to the voice that is urging you on it is well worth it.
- Pastor John Leach, Jubilee Fellowship Church - Lone Tree, CO
It was Sunday October 21st 2007 and it was easier than usual to find a seat at the 11:00am service because today was the first snow of the season in the Denver area as the pastor explained why he had given the massage three titles. It was because as he sees it the world is full of two kinds of people, those who run towards vision and those who run from nightmares. So he had a title for each kind of person and the third was the politically correct title. The point on this post is not his message but if I have peeked your interest feel free to listen to it for free at www.jfc.org it was a great message and well worth the time.
Some time back I included a survey on this BLOG and 50% of the respondents answered that they wouldn’t be caught dead on a motorcycle. Additionally, I have received e-mail warnings about the dangers of motorcycle including examples of people they know who were injured or worse due to motorcycle accidents. I have been confused as to why my invitation into adventure, any adventure not just those involving motorcycles would get that type of response. And this quote has made it clearer to me. I have defined adventure and any activity where you place yourself in a situation out of your control where you are intentionally at the risk of the unknown, where you’re well worn bag of tricks and talent isn’t enough and you need to rely on God. In short where you will need to face the “what will happen?” question. If you are the type of person who runs towards Vision “What will happen?” is very exciting but if you are a person who runs from nightmares “What will happen?” is the worse thing you can imagine. I am convinced that Eldridge is correct when he says in Wild at Heart that men bear the image of God in ways that require us to seek an “Adventure to Live” a place in a story that is larger then ourselves.
In my heart I hear the whisper of two voices, on calling me to adventure and the other warning me away from danger. All last week the weather man has predicted that Saturday would be nice but Sunday would be the first snow of the season in the Denver Metro area. Last weekend they were wrong by about 12 hours and my son and I were caught in the rain that wasn’t due until much later in the day. So one voice says take a nice long ride and enjoy the day and the other says don’t go and if you do stay close to home incase the snow comes early. Rain on a bike is inconvenient and uncomfortable but snow and ice can be downright dangerous.
For no particular reason I woke Saturday morning at 4:00am and something in my heart said go for it. So I got dressed, packed the bike and was underway at Zero-Dark-Thirty with no particular plan in mind. Then I remembered saying some time back that I wanted to see Mt. Rushmore which is only 400 miles away so north bound it is. The whole time I was thinking I would go part way and come home leaving such a long trip for the spring or summer of next year, after all an 800 mile round trip was way more than I have ever done on a bike in one day and I’m no 19 year old kid anymore. But at every gas and meal stop I decided to go farther, even playing a game in my head to determine what time it would be when I would get home if I turned around now. The choice was simple, choose the safe route and turn back or press on into the unknown. At each decision point I chose to press on and trust the outcome to my Father who loves me.
Along the way I experienced a beautiful sunrise in Cheyenne, WY, the magnificent desolation of the plains, the rugged beauty of the Black Hills and majesty of the Mt. Rushmore monument. Not to mention the best buffalo burger I have had in Custer, SD.
I could have easily chosen to run from Nightmares and I would have missed a great day. The next time you have the option to take an adventure (two wheeled or not) listen to the voice that is urging you on it is well worth it.
Monday, October 15, 2007
Agreement
We have all learned from Sesame Street that “Cooperation makes it Happen” in short we should find a way to agree. Additionally, when disagreements arise we have learned to “Agree to Disagree agreeably” and always hold to the great social commandment… Be Nice!
I am a supporter of nice; I like nice people because they are... Nice. But when Nice is elevated as a virtue above truth, honor, valor than nice is not so nice after all.
I recently was reminded of another way that agreement can be deadly. I was telling my Brother-in-Law about a near accident on a ride when a car pulled out from a parking space and I had to swerve into the median to avoid the collision. He made a comment that something seems to happen to me on every ride. I agreed, recalling in my mind the near encounters with deers, cars, and others. I didn’t give it much thought until my next ride when I realized I was not having any fun at all. It was a nice day and a beautiful ride but my heart was caught up in fear of what might be over the next hill or around the next corner. It is a good idea to ride in a heightened state of alertness which is why those near encounters remained just that “Near” Encounters and not accidents. No one can control everything which is the point of having an adventure in the first place, but no one should put themselves in undue risk by riding a bike while on mental autopilot. The point is when I agreed with my brother-in-law the enemy whispered that I lacked the riding skill to return home without injury or worse. My brother-in-law meant no harm; he has good will in his heart towards me and loves me. His message to my heart was not that I was less than or that I didn’t measure up as a man. The enemy took that innocent comment and attached it to old wounds.
Often in life we encounter wounds to our hearts often at the hands of our fathers. In my case I didn’t meet my father until I was 19 and the message my heart heard was that I wasn’t worth his time and attention. I didn’t measure up and that I wasn’t a man. The real harm came when I agreed with those thoughts and accusations. Throughout me life that has played out in far too many ways from posing as a man to blatant acting out that has injured me and others. In the past few years I have worked to uncover those lies and break those agreements and the result has been liberating. This experience has illustrated that it is still far too easy to slip into agreement with the accusations of the enemy rather than agree with what my Father in Heaven has said about my heart.
The good news is that once I identified what was causing my fear I could surrender it to God and break the agreement with the enemy and enjoy the ride. This week a helmet I bought for my son arrived and we took a ride on Saturday. Just as we reached the mountains a cold front and rain hit so we had to turn for home. We rode on slick roads in pouring rain as the temperature fell from the 58 to the 42 in just a few minutes. While I was aware that I had my son’s safety in my hands I was not afraid because unlike the agreements I had made in the past, my Father has spoken to me heart to tell me I am Man Enough to be that boys father and I choose to agree with Him.
Exposing yourself to adventure is not always comfortable of even fun but it is a great place to hear from the Father.
I hope you agree.
I am a supporter of nice; I like nice people because they are... Nice. But when Nice is elevated as a virtue above truth, honor, valor than nice is not so nice after all.
I recently was reminded of another way that agreement can be deadly. I was telling my Brother-in-Law about a near accident on a ride when a car pulled out from a parking space and I had to swerve into the median to avoid the collision. He made a comment that something seems to happen to me on every ride. I agreed, recalling in my mind the near encounters with deers, cars, and others. I didn’t give it much thought until my next ride when I realized I was not having any fun at all. It was a nice day and a beautiful ride but my heart was caught up in fear of what might be over the next hill or around the next corner. It is a good idea to ride in a heightened state of alertness which is why those near encounters remained just that “Near” Encounters and not accidents. No one can control everything which is the point of having an adventure in the first place, but no one should put themselves in undue risk by riding a bike while on mental autopilot. The point is when I agreed with my brother-in-law the enemy whispered that I lacked the riding skill to return home without injury or worse. My brother-in-law meant no harm; he has good will in his heart towards me and loves me. His message to my heart was not that I was less than or that I didn’t measure up as a man. The enemy took that innocent comment and attached it to old wounds.
Often in life we encounter wounds to our hearts often at the hands of our fathers. In my case I didn’t meet my father until I was 19 and the message my heart heard was that I wasn’t worth his time and attention. I didn’t measure up and that I wasn’t a man. The real harm came when I agreed with those thoughts and accusations. Throughout me life that has played out in far too many ways from posing as a man to blatant acting out that has injured me and others. In the past few years I have worked to uncover those lies and break those agreements and the result has been liberating. This experience has illustrated that it is still far too easy to slip into agreement with the accusations of the enemy rather than agree with what my Father in Heaven has said about my heart.
The good news is that once I identified what was causing my fear I could surrender it to God and break the agreement with the enemy and enjoy the ride. This week a helmet I bought for my son arrived and we took a ride on Saturday. Just as we reached the mountains a cold front and rain hit so we had to turn for home. We rode on slick roads in pouring rain as the temperature fell from the 58 to the 42 in just a few minutes. While I was aware that I had my son’s safety in my hands I was not afraid because unlike the agreements I had made in the past, my Father has spoken to me heart to tell me I am Man Enough to be that boys father and I choose to agree with Him.
Exposing yourself to adventure is not always comfortable of even fun but it is a great place to hear from the Father.
I hope you agree.
Monday, October 1, 2007
Last ride in September
Saturday Sept. 29th the weather was threatening in the Denver Area with High winds and heavy clouds in most areas. I had plans for a ride the next day and was concerned that I might have to cancel due to weather. The next morning I woke to cloudless skies from horizon to horizon and no wind. After a good time at church and an early lunch I was on the road. I made the short trip to the mountains and a stop to top of the gas tank before doing the peak to peak highway which is a north south run on a one lane in each direction road from just east of Golden to Estes Park with as the name implies some impressing altitude changes and breathtaking views.
The first thing I noticed since last week was the amazing change in the Aspens as they change to fall colors. We saw spectacular colors last week but the change in one week was amazing. The second thing I noticed was snow on the high peaks which is an amazing sight. We moved to Denver from So. Cal. In December of last year and by then the mountains were mostly white. So to see the green of the pine and the vivid yellow of the aspen offset by a clear blue sky and the pristine white of the snow was almost too beautiful, how could anyone look at such a sight and not be convinced that God had done this.
With each ride I am challenged by my hope for adventure and the surprise and discomfort that can and often do accompany it and this ride was not acceptation. Be careful what you ask for, you might just get it. As I mentioned I saw snow in the high country and was on a road with large elevation changes. While I did not encounter any snow I did experience very large temperature changes and stopped often to add or remove layers of clothes and while it is easy to put on a jacket I don’t have a solution for getting long johns on under my jeans on the side of the road so my legs were very cold. Your suggestions are welcomed on this topic.
The second challenge came in the higher elevations where the winter snow and the chemical and mechanical snow removal solutions have left a degraded road surface so it was common to enter a curve to find a disturbing lack of grip. Suffice it to say that a sliding front tire on a motorcycle is a moment you don’t soon forget but nothing that was too dangerous or reason to abandon the trip. After all I have close to 50,000 miles of saddle time. Then it happened, a reminder that man does not live from his bag of talents and skills. I crested a peak in the middle of a curve and had crossed to the windward side on the mountain. All at once the combination of centrifugal force, poor road surface and a gust of wind worked together to take me off the road into god knows what. Well as you can guess by the fact that I am writing this and you have not received the “John is in the hospital prayer request e-mail chain” all ended well and the deflection of my intended course did not exceed the limits of the road.
This does raise the question of trusting God not only when you get the desired outcome but also when things go badly. In this case only my ego was bruised and my body was left without a mark. None the less the instinct of my flesh was a combination of anger at God and embarrassment that someone might have seen the less than perfect line through the corner. Then I had to remind myself that I am not all powerful and the best solution is always to turn towards God.
I want on this ride to enjoy the views and feed my soul, God alone knew that my ego needed some of His unique attention on the last day of September 2007 and a windy curve on the mountains between Golden and Estes Park was as good a place as any. Nothing is wasted in the hands of God.
I return with a little more humility (I Hope) and a greater appreciation of my Father in Heaven and His boundless love for me.
Please embark on an adventure because you never know what lesson God has just around the next corner. As the famous quote says “I took the road less traveled and that made all the difference.”
The first thing I noticed since last week was the amazing change in the Aspens as they change to fall colors. We saw spectacular colors last week but the change in one week was amazing. The second thing I noticed was snow on the high peaks which is an amazing sight. We moved to Denver from So. Cal. In December of last year and by then the mountains were mostly white. So to see the green of the pine and the vivid yellow of the aspen offset by a clear blue sky and the pristine white of the snow was almost too beautiful, how could anyone look at such a sight and not be convinced that God had done this.
With each ride I am challenged by my hope for adventure and the surprise and discomfort that can and often do accompany it and this ride was not acceptation. Be careful what you ask for, you might just get it. As I mentioned I saw snow in the high country and was on a road with large elevation changes. While I did not encounter any snow I did experience very large temperature changes and stopped often to add or remove layers of clothes and while it is easy to put on a jacket I don’t have a solution for getting long johns on under my jeans on the side of the road so my legs were very cold. Your suggestions are welcomed on this topic.
The second challenge came in the higher elevations where the winter snow and the chemical and mechanical snow removal solutions have left a degraded road surface so it was common to enter a curve to find a disturbing lack of grip. Suffice it to say that a sliding front tire on a motorcycle is a moment you don’t soon forget but nothing that was too dangerous or reason to abandon the trip. After all I have close to 50,000 miles of saddle time. Then it happened, a reminder that man does not live from his bag of talents and skills. I crested a peak in the middle of a curve and had crossed to the windward side on the mountain. All at once the combination of centrifugal force, poor road surface and a gust of wind worked together to take me off the road into god knows what. Well as you can guess by the fact that I am writing this and you have not received the “John is in the hospital prayer request e-mail chain” all ended well and the deflection of my intended course did not exceed the limits of the road.
This does raise the question of trusting God not only when you get the desired outcome but also when things go badly. In this case only my ego was bruised and my body was left without a mark. None the less the instinct of my flesh was a combination of anger at God and embarrassment that someone might have seen the less than perfect line through the corner. Then I had to remind myself that I am not all powerful and the best solution is always to turn towards God.
I want on this ride to enjoy the views and feed my soul, God alone knew that my ego needed some of His unique attention on the last day of September 2007 and a windy curve on the mountains between Golden and Estes Park was as good a place as any. Nothing is wasted in the hands of God.
I return with a little more humility (I Hope) and a greater appreciation of my Father in Heaven and His boundless love for me.
Please embark on an adventure because you never know what lesson God has just around the next corner. As the famous quote says “I took the road less traveled and that made all the difference.”
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