“Our guest speaker today is Monte.” Monday morning, 500 kids in a middle school gym, and that’s how the principal introduced the program. Monte stood, walked calmly out to the middle of the floor, turned around, and looked at the audience. I almost expected him to start talking. If nothing else, we certainly had their […]
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The Heart Of The Father
I have a problem with human trafficking awareness events. I’ve attended a few of them, and I’d estimate that 80-90% of the people I meet are women. Most of the speakers are women. The majority of the organizers seem to be women. An observer might conclude that human trafficking, and sex trafficking in particular, are […]
Continue readingMore TagHow Can You Transform In Anger?
What do you do when you’re angry? I grew up in an environment in which “losing your temper” was a normal, accepted way to express anger. Yelling, name-calling, cursing, and violence were just part of the background. As a result, those became my habits as well. I’ve learned that there are better ways to deal with […]
Continue readingMore TagRevisiting Hope On Wheels
The FRONT RANGE FREEDOM TOUR is forever linked to the story of RICH’S RIDE. Four years ago, Becky, Monte, and I were in New Orleans celebrating the end of our original 1500-mile journey. We thought that ride was a one-time deal. We had no idea what God had in mind, but the “trip-of-a-lifetime” turned out […]
Continue readingMore TagWhy Is Community So Important?
At the FREEDOM TOUR we’re real clear about what we want to accomplish. Create a community in which people are empowered to trust God, work together as servant leaders, and offer hope to others. Sure, we ride bikes. We raise funds for the kids at the HOME OF HOPE. We promote awareness about human trafficking. We do […]
Continue readingMore TagGod And Greasy Bike Parts
Can you talk about human trafficking among piles of greasy bike parts? Picture an enormous convention hall filled with vendors selling any cycling-related product you can imagine. Brand new, expensive, high-end bikes and used garage-sale wrecks. Endless varieties of clothing and accessories. Year-end clearance specials. Rows of specialized wheels, components, and other associated gear. If it had anything to […]
Continue readingMore TagWho’s Allowed To Enter?
“Who’s your target audience?” It’s a common question as we talk to people about plans for FRONT RANGE FREEDOM TOUR 2016. Of course we have some folks in mind, but as I think about this question a related issue comes to mind. Vision: Create a community in which people are empowered to trust God, work together as […]
Continue readingMore TagWhy Should We Prime The Pump?
My friend Jim likes to sing on long bike rides. Jim knows one verse of about a million songs. We’ll be cranking along and he’ll just start singing in his rich, baritone voice, the sort of voice that imprints a chorus on your brain so it pops up weeks later when you’re riding alone and […]
Continue readingMore TagGreat Advice From The Cheshire Cat
I’m a bit of a Lewis Carroll fan. He’s best remembered as the author of Alice In Wonderland, but he was also a mathematician who incorporated a good deal of logical argument into his writing. I used a lot of his writing in math lessons; Humpty Dumpty, The Mad Hatter, and The Queen Of Hearts always inspired curiosity. […]
Continue readingMore TagMoving Or Organizing?
I’m not a fan of rules. During the last decade or so of my career as a classroom teacher I discovered that the reasons behind a lot of rules were “it’s just common sense,” “that’s how I like to do it,” “we’ve always done it that way,” or “because I said so.” Those didn’t seem like they […]
Continue readingMore TagDon’t Stare At The Score
How much money did we raise? When you get involved with something like the FREEDOM TOUR you need a scoreboard. Dollars collected. Miles covered. People involved. Those numbers matter. You keep score so you can track progress and write reports. But it’s important not to stare at the scoreboard. Focusing on results is a great way to […]
Continue readingMore TagWho’s Watching?
On the recent FREEDOM TOUR, our team basically commandeered the patio at the Sonic restaurant in Trinidad–twice. Friday we celebrated our century ride with cold drinks and ice cream. Saturday we returned for lunch following our summit of Raton Pass. Sixteen individual orders shouted over all sorts of laughter and stories of conquest, on a busy day […]
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