I have never had a ride like today's. Never!
I looked at my WeatherBug before taking off this morning and saw basically flat winds out of the southwest. I'm serious. The wind speed was mostly 0mph. I checked the predicted wind direction and it matched the southwest I was seeing. Ride direction wasn't a hard choice. Ride west into the wind.
I walked out to my bike, got my lights and water bottle situated, loaded up my sunglasses and garage door opener and stepped out onto my driveway. Soon I was clipped in and rolling north up Pine Street to the highway. A quick left turn at the high school set me on my journey west. I was quickly up to speed, pushing my pedals in smoothly in circles. My average climbed quickly and reached 17.9mph in less than five miles. I was feeling good. This was the hard part of the ride.
As I looked west from the Drouhards' house, I noticed dust blowing across the road a short distance up the road. I didn't think much about it. I've ridden through dust before. Usually, it's just a little annoyance and then smooth sailing again. I rode nonchalantly toward the brown cloud.
Just before I actually entered the dust storm, I noticed an odd shift in the wind. Suddenly it was out of the northwest and it was not flat! Windspeeds had to be in the 15-20mph range or higher. I struggled to move forward and to stay off the road. One eye, the one on the north side of my head, was shut tight and breathing was a bit labored. In less than a half mile my average speed dropped from 17.9mph to 16.9mph. I was creeping along in the 12mph range most of the time. It was all I could do to stay on the bike.
I made it through a little dirty, but none the worse for the wear. Then it happened again. The wind shifted. It returned to the southwest. It wasn't quite as strong, but certainly not the little patsy wind I'd dreamed of gazing at my WeatherBug twenty minutes earlier.
I rode on through Danville, my average speed still bleeding. I was down to 16.2mph. I was maintaining just over 15mph when a dog, a big black dog with nasty teeth and a not-so-nice look in his eyes, decided today was the day to chase a lonely cyclist. He was aggressive as any dog I've faced. I squirted him with Gatorade. I told him to go home in the firmest voice I could muster. He kept coming at me. I finally gave up on an easy exit and just accelerated into a sprint to drop him. He gave up and went back to sniff my Gatorade. I was safe again.
Then the wind shifted around to the northwest again. I kid you not. Did I mention that I have never had a ride like today's? Never has the wind shifted back and forth like it did this morning. In the ten miles out it shifted from southwest to northwest to southwest to northwest and, just before I turned around, back to southwest. Bizarre!
So I made it out to my turn around. I flipped a U-turn and headed back east. I rode hard and in just over five miles I was back up to 17.9mph. It was like none of the twilight zone, dust bowl stuff had ever happened. The wind was never gale force. It was never out of the north. I blasted down L'Alpe D'Anville, reaching a top speed of 38.8mph.
When I got within three miles of town, I decided I had time to turn back back west and pick up an extra five miles. I did that and ended my outing with 25.27 miles completed at 18.2mph.
Sure hope tomorrow's ride is less interesting.
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Monday, August 3, 2009
Bless your elders...
There is, according to the Bible, a proper way to treat the older generation. God’s treatment plan maintains their worth. His directions acknowledge every senior citizen’s right to life.
In Romans 13:7, Paul gives these words of instruction: “Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor.” (NIV)
I suppose that seems like a strange verse to start this discussion with. It doesn’t appear to directly address the issue at hand. What do taxes and revenue have to do with the treatment of the elderly? Nothing. But respect and honor are another story. Those who are older are worthy of both.
Tucked away in the book of Leviticus is a single sentence that will direct us in the proper treatment of our elders.
Listen to what God says to his people through Moses in Leviticus 19:32. “Rise in the presence of the aged, show respect for the elderly and revere your God. I am the LORD.” (NIV)
Give everyone what you owe him makes more sense now, doesn’t it? Respect is owed to those who are older. Those who do not respect seasoned saints are, as a matter of fact, guilty of irreverence toward God. That’s what this verse says. Respect for the elderly and reverence for God are tied together. They’re inseparable. You can’t neglect the one without neglecting the other. If you reverence God, you will respect your elders. Respect for those long in years is commanded by God.
Will you choose to be obedient to God’s command? Think of a mature believer who blesses you regularly. Rise and call them. Pray with them. Thank God for them. Bless them.
To receive my once or twice weekly message via email, send a blank email to webmessage-subscribe@associate.com. Past messages are available at freegroups.net/groups/webmessage.
In Romans 13:7, Paul gives these words of instruction: “Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor.” (NIV)
I suppose that seems like a strange verse to start this discussion with. It doesn’t appear to directly address the issue at hand. What do taxes and revenue have to do with the treatment of the elderly? Nothing. But respect and honor are another story. Those who are older are worthy of both.
Tucked away in the book of Leviticus is a single sentence that will direct us in the proper treatment of our elders.
Listen to what God says to his people through Moses in Leviticus 19:32. “Rise in the presence of the aged, show respect for the elderly and revere your God. I am the LORD.” (NIV)
Give everyone what you owe him makes more sense now, doesn’t it? Respect is owed to those who are older. Those who do not respect seasoned saints are, as a matter of fact, guilty of irreverence toward God. That’s what this verse says. Respect for the elderly and reverence for God are tied together. They’re inseparable. You can’t neglect the one without neglecting the other. If you reverence God, you will respect your elders. Respect for those long in years is commanded by God.
Will you choose to be obedient to God’s command? Think of a mature believer who blesses you regularly. Rise and call them. Pray with them. Thank God for them. Bless them.
To receive my once or twice weekly message via email, send a blank email to webmessage-subscribe@associate.com. Past messages are available at freegroups.net/groups/webmessage.
New church van...
I'm excited about a new church van...and it's not even "mine". Plains Church (formerly Argonia Wesleyan) received the van pictured here as a gift. The graphic wrap was part of the donation. I pray God uses this vehicle to bless Plains Church and those they will reach in Sumner and Harper counties.
Sunday, August 2, 2009
What kind of pastor?
So we're eating lunch and talking about a couple we know who are getting married in a couple of weeks when something crazy comes out of my middle daughter's mouth. I had barely finished saying of the bridegroom-to-be, "He's been a pastor for a year or more already," when she blurted out, "What kind of pastor, youth or real?" We all burst out laughing.
Poor youth pastors...they get no respect. They're always hearing that age-old question, "So when are you going to grow up and become a senior pastor?" Let me apologize to all the youth pastors out there on behalf of those who unthinkingly say such things. They don't mean to sound like what you do is a stepping stone position...or as my daughter accidentally implied, a position for those who aren't yet "real" pastors. Give them grace and keep on loving and serving the younger set, teaching them clearly from God's Word and preparing them for life's many surprises and complications.
Poor youth pastors...they get no respect. They're always hearing that age-old question, "So when are you going to grow up and become a senior pastor?" Let me apologize to all the youth pastors out there on behalf of those who unthinkingly say such things. They don't mean to sound like what you do is a stepping stone position...or as my daughter accidentally implied, a position for those who aren't yet "real" pastors. Give them grace and keep on loving and serving the younger set, teaching them clearly from God's Word and preparing them for life's many surprises and complications.
Moving up in the world...
A while back, I complained that I just couldn't get out of 1,191st place in the Where Have You Been? trivia question game on Facebook. Well, there must've been an error back then, because I have moved up in the world.
As of today, my 303 correct and 177 incorrect answers have moved me up to 374th place! Yippee! The only Facebook friend of mine who is ahead of me is Michelle Murray currently in 249th place. If you're on Facebook, play the game! It's a blast!
A word on health care reform...
I was disturbed by a bit of news that came across my desktop this past week. It had to do with the Health Care Reform bill that President Obama is pressuring Congress to pass.
Hidden within the thousand-plus-page document is a requirement that those who receive Medicare benefits undergo end of life counseling at least every five years. A repeat session would be required of those who get sick in between their regular meetings.
What is end of life counseling, you ask? It is, at best, a “you don’t really need life-prolonging medical care because it’s too expensive to sustain you” pep talk. At worst, it is a “you need to take action to end your life soon so you won’t be a burden to your children or your government or your friends” browbeating.
Government employees encouraging suicide! How crazy is that? In my wildest dreams, I never imagined a day when such morally reprehensible nonsense could be given serious consideration by elected officials in America.
Our own Declaration of Independence shouts foul in the face of such lunacy. “We hold these Truths to be self-evident,” Thomas Jefferson penned, “that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness…”
Whether all three of these rights have biblical backing is debatable, but the one Creator-endowed right that is clearly scriptural is the right to life. All men are created equal and have the right to life which includes the preservation of life! Ignoring this, the Supreme Court in 1973 denied the right of unborn children to be protected in the womb. In 2009, will Congress and the President deny this right to the elderly of our land? I pray not.
Now, let me make this personal for all of you. Look around you. Everywhere you look, there are people whom you love who will, if this bill passes, be receiving end of life counseling. People you love will be told that their life isn’t as valuable as a healthy young person’s life. Unrepentant Uncle Scrooge, er, I mean Uncle Sam may say to your friends, your loved ones, “Die…and decrease the surplus population.”
And what happens if this way of thinking continues on to its logical conclusion? Denial of life-sustaining care will come and not just to the elderly. Government execution of the elderly and disabled – they’ll call it physician-assisted suicide – is not out of the question. Call me alarmist if you like, but I don’t think either of these scenarios is all that outlandish or far fetched.
Now, please understand. I’m not trying to be political here. All I’m doing is stating the truth as I see it about this particular part of the health care reform plan. Though I freely admit that modern medicine and technology has forced us to face difficult questions and ethical dilemmas that we were likely not intended to face, I believe that denying life-sustaining medical care is morally questionable. I further believe that encouraging or forcing suicide on a person because of age or disability or disease is, without question, an immoral assault on that person’s right to life, a right that God has given to all.
Hidden within the thousand-plus-page document is a requirement that those who receive Medicare benefits undergo end of life counseling at least every five years. A repeat session would be required of those who get sick in between their regular meetings.
What is end of life counseling, you ask? It is, at best, a “you don’t really need life-prolonging medical care because it’s too expensive to sustain you” pep talk. At worst, it is a “you need to take action to end your life soon so you won’t be a burden to your children or your government or your friends” browbeating.
Government employees encouraging suicide! How crazy is that? In my wildest dreams, I never imagined a day when such morally reprehensible nonsense could be given serious consideration by elected officials in America.
Our own Declaration of Independence shouts foul in the face of such lunacy. “We hold these Truths to be self-evident,” Thomas Jefferson penned, “that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness…”
Whether all three of these rights have biblical backing is debatable, but the one Creator-endowed right that is clearly scriptural is the right to life. All men are created equal and have the right to life which includes the preservation of life! Ignoring this, the Supreme Court in 1973 denied the right of unborn children to be protected in the womb. In 2009, will Congress and the President deny this right to the elderly of our land? I pray not.
Now, let me make this personal for all of you. Look around you. Everywhere you look, there are people whom you love who will, if this bill passes, be receiving end of life counseling. People you love will be told that their life isn’t as valuable as a healthy young person’s life. Unrepentant Uncle Scrooge, er, I mean Uncle Sam may say to your friends, your loved ones, “Die…and decrease the surplus population.”
And what happens if this way of thinking continues on to its logical conclusion? Denial of life-sustaining care will come and not just to the elderly. Government execution of the elderly and disabled – they’ll call it physician-assisted suicide – is not out of the question. Call me alarmist if you like, but I don’t think either of these scenarios is all that outlandish or far fetched.
Now, please understand. I’m not trying to be political here. All I’m doing is stating the truth as I see it about this particular part of the health care reform plan. Though I freely admit that modern medicine and technology has forced us to face difficult questions and ethical dilemmas that we were likely not intended to face, I believe that denying life-sustaining medical care is morally questionable. I further believe that encouraging or forcing suicide on a person because of age or disability or disease is, without question, an immoral assault on that person’s right to life, a right that God has given to all.
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