With your forbearance, this week’s post will depart from the pattern. Just a poem. A poem that expresses many of the concerns I’ve had for some time about the practice of our faith. A poem where I ask you to think, to pray, to ponder, to reflect. I would love to read your thoughts, either on Facebook or on the Unconventional site. Agree fully, disagree fully. Agree or disagree in part. Or questions. Concerns. Uncertainty. Yeah, pretty free wheelin’, like a long bike trip should be. What prompted this? We…
Read MoreOn our recent east coast trip we left DC on a warm October morning heading for a Hampton Inn in Danbury CN, leading to our return flight in Boston. So I loaded the address into Waze on Sheila’s cell, those marvelous silicon chips did their work and spat out the directions, with a distance of 286 miles. I hit start and followed what it told us. I trusted Waze; she’d never led us wrong. But…
Read MoreFive years back, Mick thought the right time had arrived to stop riding his bike. He looked back on many miles and a lot of trips with no problems, and a slew of great stories and memories. So he decided to quit while he was still ahead. To show his commitment, he gave his Honda Goldwing to his son-in-law. His riding days ended. But his wife…
Read MoreAn encounter with a squirrel opened up an interesting discussion about God and worship.
During a friend’s retirement party, while standing under a tree and talking to another old friend, he gently mouthed, “Squirrel.” I slowly turned, about one foot from my face was who I later learned was Albert. Apparently he wanted some of the food so freely available, and I held a finger up for him to sniff. He promptly yet gently bit it, almost as if to say, “No, squirrel food. Please.” Quite used to humans, he never flinched when I reached down for my phone to snap some pics of him. He seemed to pose. But yet another brief conversation with the wife of another old friend…
Read MoreDodging Obstacles
On the recent Alaska ride, Mick, Brad and I visited the most majestic cathedral I’ve experienced. HiWay 1, NorCal, The Avenue of the Giants. We slowly cruised through the redwoods that crept to the edge of the road and provided a canopy of boughs that kept us cool. And in awe. Then Brad spotted a sideroad we’d never taken, Mattole Road to the Big Tree Grove, so we yielded to temptation. If HiWay 1 was narrow, Mattole was just a faint…
Read MoreTrout, much like the cutthroat in the pic above (by usgs.gov), have taught me much about the finer aspects of the spiritual life. Honest. When fishing for the hatchery-raised idiots in California’s roadside streams, Power Bait works well with fish who don’t recognize genuine trout food. Scientific research has blended the scent trout love with a consistency that will stick on a hook, yet with no nutritive value. But I most love hiking into the backcountry to find…
Read MoreOn a late June morning we fired up the bikes and rode out of Kalispell, Montana, expecting great things at Glacier National Park. Early indications didn’t encourage us. The chill cut deep and we endured 30 miles of mostly urban traffic. So far, the shivers from cold and the frustrations from traffic seemed typical. Nothing awesome, just unpleasant conditions. Then we entered Glacier. The first ten miles or so were straight and slow and serene as we skirted Lake McDonald. Evergreens provided a covered archway and limited the visibility, and I relaxed in the slowness. The frustrations of the earlier morning ride seeped away and I sensed God’s presence again invading my soul. Serenity soon ended as…
Read MoreAt its core, worship celebrates the reality that God has more innate worth than anything we can find in heaven or earth. Our English word comes from “worthyship,” so in worship by definition we focus on him. Get that well, it forms the foundation of all that will follow. Similarly, the most common Greek word for worship is “proskuneo” (Matthew 4:10 for one example), to fall at the feet in adoration, or to acknowledge that God is our superior. That concept scares me. Greatly.
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