Are you following THE BIBLE series on The History Channel? I listened to an interview with a pastor who served as an advisor to the producers. He provided a helpful perspective. The series tries to tell the big, overarching story of the Bible in a relatively brief time frame. The challenge-which events, characters, and stories […]
Continue readingBetter Than I Expected
One common joke among guys of every age is “we’re trying to figure out what we want to be when we grow up.” The real joke, as any woman will happily tell you, is most of us never actually get to the growing up part. Once in a while I manage to chip away at […]
Continue readingWhat About Lent?
I’ve never really made internal sense of Lent. I get the symbolism, abstaining or fasting from something meaningful to honor Jesus’ forty-day wilderness temptation. I’ve tried the abstaining thing a few times, but honestly I’ve never noticed much change. I’ve talked to friends who observe Lent. It appears to mean a great deal to them, […]
Continue readingWhat Do You Learn On The Journey?
A guy takes a bike tour. At the end of the tour he’s learned an important lesson. His story can make a difference. It seems like a bold statement, but he’s pretty sure he has something important to share. That might seem sort of silly for someone who’s been writing and speaking for several years. […]
Continue readingStudy
Happy Monday! I’m often too literal, which leads in a roundabout way to today’s word-of-the-week… STUDY I’m not very good at poetry. I seldom understand the imagery and symbolism until someone explains. Then I nod appreciatively while I think, “How was I supposed to see that?” I think my literal brain explains why I struggle […]
Continue readingGod’s Questions
Yesterday I talked about visiting a church last Sunday and some lessons from a sermon titled The Still, Small Voice of God. In the story from 1 Kings 19:10-19, there’s an interaction between God and Elijah that begins when God asks, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” It’s sort of an odd question. God obviously […]
Continue readingA Still Small Voice
I’ve said one of the enjoyable things about the bike tours is visiting new churches. I like dropping into the middle of a sermon series. I’m forced to listen carefully for a theme or key idea I can take away. Last Sunday our friends Matt and Amy Switzer invited us to speak to two groups […]
Continue readingGod-Opened Doors
Some will see only coincidence. We’re home. The tour’s over, except for some residual effects from the Skunk-Ape attack (click the link if you missed the story). It’s time to reflect. I think I learned from FLORIDA HOPE TOUR 2013. Over the next few days I’ll share what I observed, hoping you’ll find some application […]
Continue readingGot An Easy Answer?
Two months. A thousand miles of cycling—more or less. Twenty-nine speaking events. It’s been an amazing tour, an absolutely incredible experience. Who would have imagined that the very last question at the very last event would be perhaps the most challenging of the entire trip? I’m re-posting this from the RICH’S RIDE blog because I […]
Continue readingTwo Windows
The events of FLORIDA HOPE TOUR 2013 are oddly bracketed by two windows. On January 21 at one of our initial stops in Memphis, we gazed out the window through which James Earl Ray fired the bullet that killed Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Last Saturday we looked through a window on the sixth floor […]
Continue readingBlur
Happy Monday! Winding down our latest bike tour inspires today’s word-of-the-week… BLUR Life passes so quickly. One moment she’s a tiny baby. Then it’s kindergarten, graduation, wedding, and grandchildren. We’re often left saying, “Seems like only yesterday…” FLORIDA HOPE TOUR 2013 seems like a blur. Seems like one day we were in Jacksonville preparing to […]
Continue readingEasy Answers
Two months. A thousand miles of cycling—more or less. Twenty-nine speaking events. It’s been an amazing tour, an absolutely incredible experience. Who would have imagined that the very last question at the very last event would be perhaps the most challenging of the entire trip? We met Sunday evening with the youth group at Alsbury […]
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