Last weekend I tried Mountain Biking for the very first time. My brother-in-law is training for the Tour Divide Race (a month long biking journey from Canada to Mexico), and I thought it would be awesome to go single track riding through the woods w/ him. And I was right! It was fun! And I learned a little about me, about God, and about life in the process. What you're about to read is not a definitive work of the experience, but rather the "edited to run in the time allotted" TV version. Hang on! :)
Riding is always better with friends.
God built us to want community and to desire the company of others. I probably would've liked riding the trails just fine had I gone alone - but I REALLY enjoyed it because I was with my brother-in-law, and for a little while, my sister (*more on that later). It was fun to talk back and forth, making witty cracks about this or that; or stop and watch each other fly down hills with reckless abandon; or laugh together about barely missing the tree that would've ended your life (or at least your ride that day). Because I chose to ride with others, the morning twice as nice!
We also came across a couple of bikers on the trail, one of whom's chain had broken. We loaned him a chain tool and then went on our way. About 10 minutes later, his friend chased us down to borrow it for a second repair. Had his friend not been there to ride after us, he'd have been out of luck.
The beauty of how God designed the Christian life is both shared experience, and shared burden.
Learn from someone who knows more than you.
Multiple times in scripture we see instructions to teach by being a living example; or for the older women to teach the younger women; Moses learned from Jethro, Joshua learned from Moses; Elisha learned from Elijah...the list goes on.
My brother in law knows about biking - he knows the equipment, how to attack the trail, etc. (He better or he's not going to make it past Colorado on the Tour Divide!) I watched how he put the front tire on the bike. I followed his lines through the curves in the trails. I listened for him to gear up or down as we approached hills, curves, etc. I could've ignored him and did it all on my own, but why? My ride was much more fun simply because I canned pride and was willing to take advantage of his knowledge.
Don't look at where you are; look at where you're going.
Something I learned very quickly while trying to dodge the trees and branches on the windy trail is to look ahead. If you're looking at where your bike is, then everything that comes at you is a surprise and you're gonna crash. More than once I dodged a root in the trail, only to look up and see a curve and multiple trees looming right on top of me! I had to slam on my brakes to keep from running into them! (Fortunately, there was no one behind me to run into me or I'd have several bike tire tracks all over my back!)
When I looked AHEAD to where I was going, where I actually was at the moment took care of itself! I saw the root in the trail and adjusted for it before I even got there; so when I got to the root I was in position and already looking at the trees and curve that was ahead. It makes so much more sense!
Paul reminded us to keep our eyes on the Prize; and Peter walked on water as long as he kept his eyes on Jesus - only when he looked away from Jesus to the wind and waves did he start to sink. This tells me that as we go through life, we cannot put our focus on the hazards that come our way each day. Satan will throw his entire arsenal at if you if he needs to; but as long as you keep looking toward Christ you'll be just fine.
Adversity will come. It's how you deal with it that makes or breaks you.
Jesus said, "In this world, you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world!" (John 16:33) Whew! Glad that is out in the open. You will have trouble. I will have trouble. We're all gonna have trouble. Jesus said it, so it's true! BUT, do we let the adversity conquer us, or do we use it to our advantage.
About 20 minutes into the ride, I destroyed the crank on my brother in law's bike. I didn't have any gear of my own, so I was borrowing his old stuff. He tuned it up before we came, but somehow the mammoth overpowering of my massively amazing quads was too much for the crank and I broke it right off the bike! (Actually, I think that the bolt holding it on jiggled loose somehow and came out - so it was gonna fall out anyway!) Knowing it was my first ride, my sister graciously volunteered to let me ride her bike, and she sat out and read a book while her husband and I rode.
This problem could've ruined the day. Instead, we had a laugh together and Amy (my sister) sacrificed her fun to enable me to ride; and Tony (my brother-in-law), used it a reminder to himself to check the tightness of the gears in the future when he checks his bike for each day's ride on the Tour Divide.
Sometimes, your butt is just gonna hurt.
After the ride, my backside was REALLY sore! Those bike seats are not designed with comfort in mind; and comfortable or not, that amount of biking is going to make you sore. Period. It's just a consequence of riding. I'm told that after a while you toughen up somewhat and it really doesn't bother you as much...or so they say. For me, it's been 5 days and I'm still sore. But I'm looking forward to the next time to see if they're right!
In life, it's the same thing! You are going to encounter things that hurt you. It's just a part of the journey. The more you endure hurtful things, the more you're equipped to handle them and they become less hurtful. The more your faith is tested, the stronger it becomes and the easier it is to exercise faith in the future. Get it? If you run from anything that's hurtful or challenging, you'll never grow. BUT, if you lean on God and persevere through it, you'll come out better on the flip side!
That's it! I hope this little banter encouraged you and made you laugh. If you have more to add, I encourage you to leave a comment. I bet there's much more to learn about life from Mountain Biking from you guys who have been doing it awhile!
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