We picked up some new riders on Tuesday.
Several weeks ago Becky contacted the folks at Pikes Peak Christian Church. As they learned about our mission, Triva Wilson jumped in with both feet and made things happen. Their community got excited about the possibilities, and an incredible partnership was born.
So they hosted us Tuesday night and fed us like royalty, but for several folks that wasn’t enough. They wanted to be involved in the ride itself.
Tuesday morning four cyclists joined us in Castle Rock for the entire 62-mile ride back to their church. The team really enjoyed the extra push through the incredible scenery over Palmer Divide, and it was great to see the extra-long line of orange, blue, and white jerseys cruising along the back roads together.
After lunch six more riders joined in for the final ten miles, and the church welcomed 23 hot, tired, happy cyclists as they cruised in a couple of hours later.
All of this came from a phone call, then an email, then more conversations as Becky and Triva discovered in each other a shared passion for exploited women and children. Jesus connects people in amazing ways.
My friend John says the new links between churches will be missional rather than theological/denominational. We see that in action–no one ever asks what denomination we’re from. They only care about our mission and our heart for Jesus.
Several of the PPCC folks sported purple streamers to honor the individual donors who sponsored their ride. It’s a cool look and a cool idea, something we may consider for future FREEDOM TOURS.
Tuesday’s word-of-the-day was BLESSED. And we are blessed, to be on this tour, to have this mission, to be able to do this work.
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I have to offer a special shout-out to Kent.
Kent rides a recumbent trike, which is by design slower climbing hills. Kent’s solution to Tuesday’s big climb was to start early…like 5:00 am early. Honestly, I wasn’t convinced he could get to the top ahead of the team, even with a two-hour head start.
I was wrong, and I’m humbled by Kent’s incredible accomplishment. He was waiting patiently at the lunch stop, resting comfortably under a tree, when the team finally arrived.
Kent isn’t as fast as some of the two-wheelers, but the guy is a pedaling machine. This isn’t a race, but this was one day I was happy to see one team member fly away!