Yesterday I was privileged to speak to about 800 students at North Central University in Minneapolis. It was an awesome experience with a wonderful group of young people. As I prepared for my talk I got a new perspective on a familiar Scripture story. You can read the entire passage (The Sheep And The Goats), […]
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Where Does It Begin?
A couple of friends suggested that the Mississippi River provides a pretty good metaphor for this project. I think the river also offers some lessons about dreams in general. So as we crank along together I’d like to share some observations about the river we’re following. It’s interesting to look at the source of the […]
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Happy Monday. Week two on the road with Rich’s Ride, and we’re immersed in the word-of-the-week… CONTINUE When you’re in the middle of an adventure, sometimes you just need to continue. The excitement of beginning has faded, the conclusion’s far off. You didn’t think much about the time in the middle when you planned and […]
Continue readingMore TagBlessed Are The Flexible
As we pulled out of Fort Collins, Pastor Mark Orphan imparted one final bit of wisdom: Blessed are the flexible, for they shall not be broken. I don’t think he was quoting the Beatitudes, but we’re discovering it’s great advice for operating on the road. We had a great first week of Rich’s Ride, but […]
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Week one’s in the books–195 miles and still going. Here’s a video wrap-up of some thoughts as we pursure this big dream together.. If you can’t see the video, click here.
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Some days you get stuff done early. The blog post is complete, the email’s all answered, and you’re just on top of everything. Some days are Friday and you needed some extra sleep and you just need to be honest about it. Today is Friday. Yesterday’s ride was … fine. Long stretches of highway, no […]
Continue readingMore TagAvoiding Burnout–Repost
This article originally appeared on July 15, 2010. I needed to re-visit and apply the contents to this intense bike ride. Do you have a purpose? A sense of purpose is absolutely essential to any great endeavor. People will stretch the limits of endurance and sacrifice for a purpose in which they believe. I’d like to look […]
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… will never get it. Whatever “it” is for you—maybe a dream or a passion or an idea—some people will never get it. As we get more media attention for Rich’s Ride the common question is “Why?” And no matter how carefully I explain, the headline says something like “Guy Rides To Raise Money For […]
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Hi. My name is Monte, and I’m Rich’s service dog, the good-looking one in all those photos. Rich asked me to write some blog posts for him, so I guess I’m your official Thursday blogger for the next few weeks. Not exactly sure why—something about being “too busy” with some big project. Since I’m going […]
Continue readingMore TagDid It Have To Be Leeches?
If I had to choose the name for the huge lake I encountered on day 2, I wouldn’t have chosen “Leech Lake.” Having leeches as the predominate feature doesn’t make me excited to go swimming. How about taking a ride with me along a wonderful trail on the second day of Rich’s Ride? Please excuse the heavy […]
Continue readingMore TagWhat Keeps Me Accountable?
What (or who) keeps you accountable? People keep asking me why I’m doing this ride. I’m finding that my internal answer is evolving as the journey begins. It’s true that this project fulfills a personal dream, that we’re having a lot of fun, that it’s a once-in-a-lifetime adventure. I’m grateful for all that, but the […]
Continue readingMore TagBabe The Blue Ox
Day one of Rich’s Ride…wow! We experienced a gorgeous beginning, a prayer shared with friends and strangers, a crash, a wonderful ride through pristine north woods country, some unanticipated media coverage, and a meeting with Paul Bunyan and a big blue ox. At 8:00 am we had the Mississippi Headwaters area all to ourselves. About […]
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