"Was it a Good Ride?"

Like everyone in the group, I'm asked constantly if it was a "good ride," and I find that I'm not sure what they mean by the question. I thought it would be a good idea to wait and think and meditate on the matter before I made a post. My hope is that distance will bring perspective.

My initial response is that it was a very good ride. It was a very good ride for the reasons Ben and Dan have already mentioned in their recent posts. It was a challenging ride in great scenery. It was a chance to learn to ride efficiently with a great group of cyclists. It was a chance to challenge ourselves and thus learn about ourselves and each other. That's the physical aspect of the ride. It was good.

It was a good ride from a relational standpoint. I didn't know most of the guys before we began, and now view them as some of my fondest friends. We were all in the same foxhole, and that tends to create significant bonds. We teased and encouraged each other, and helped and served each other, and listened to each other's stories. We heard each other share with the people we met our own passion for Bible translation. That listening usually resulted in having your personal passion reinforced.

It was a good ride from the standpoint of raising awareness of Bible translation. Jamie Farr at Orlando said he thought we did more to raise awareness in six days than had been accomplished in two years due to the unusual nature of the delivery of our message (on bikes) and the idea of hanging musset bags on church doors along the route. Kudos to Beth Mersefelder for that stroke of genius!

Whether it was a good ride regarding our fundraising goal I don't know (yet), but that matter is ultimately in the hands of the One who kept us through thick and thin on the ride. No worries there!

It was a difficult ride with regard to Jon's injury and the troubles with the SAG van. We did our best planning, and occasionally had to engage in a "calf-scramble" when things surprised us. We'll learn from that, and do a better job next time, so even with the problems it was a good ride. ("No experiment is ever a total failure; it can always be used as a bad example" is a proverb from my chemistry-teacher days that comes to mind here :-))

Will I do it again? You bet! Will I do things differently? You bet! Will I get saddle-sores again after 400 miles? I hope not!!

Why Do WE Ride ?

I've been mulling over in my mind what to say about the "results" of our great experience.
It's part of our human nature to want to quantify some kind of results to know whether we have been "successful" or not, and thus justify our expenditure of time and resources. In an event such as this, the effects of our efforts are much more qualitative and the true "results" may not be known for years to come.

So why do we ride? What should I say to people who ask me "How did the ride go? Was it successful? Now why were you doing this?"

I would like to share a few conclusions from my simple mind.

Perhaps from curiosity, cycling draws people in today's world. It's a dynamic, upbeat event. We were able to use that as an entre' to present the Wycliffe opportunity. I think it's more unusual, and therfore more memorable to the people than just another Power Point or speech. Although the team God assembled I think was very well spoken, especially Doug and Ed.

We cyclists were blessed so much more than we could offer by our riding. Just think of all the prayers, the FOOD, the accomodation, the fellowship of beleivers, the scenery, the excercise.

It was good to see firsthand how God is at work in the churches, communities, and people we met. I knew a dear old saint who told me one time, "The hard part's just keeping on keeping on." Praise be to God for those who are salt and light through everyday drudgery and are willing to be keepers of the faith on our home front in the face of ever increasing secularism in the name of "political correctness". Praise for the young people who came out to see us off before school. Praise for the faithful ladies who made white bread tomato sandwiches, Kielbassa and krout stew, spaghetti, and all the other wonderful food. Praise for the opportunity to meet with pastors - and so much more. It renews my faith that we still live in a great country.

Lastly, thanks be to God for the pure joy of cycling. Tooling down a country road in a paceline, seeing Vidalia Onions in the field, horses running, live oaks and moss canopy. As a parent, and I assume as most parents, nothing gives me more pleasure than to see my children having a good time. I believe God our father delights in our joy as well.

The entre'
The fellowship
The blessings
The edfication
The joy

I feel it's proven itself to be a venue Wycliffe can use to connect with the community of faith and assist the realization of the 2025 vision. Most of all, I truly beleive God laid it on our hearts. We were all of one mind and heart in our mission. I pray that God will "enlarge our coasts" and provide the people and resources for the harvest, and let us sow some more seeds in future years.