May 31--Day 16
Canadian, Texas
Written by Rev
Well not EVERYTHING. Our Honda Ruckus' that have an amazing and powerful engine still are 49cc's and still go roughly 37 mph. But we are still the same size anyways, well for the most part. Sunburnt has played an effect into making some parts of us larger, although not too noticeable. We also do have this sweet ring around each of our eyes due to sunglasses being worn on the hot and sunny days.
We left Keystone State Park at 8:45 after having a pretty relaxing morning. The air mattress that I received barely fits in my tent, but it fits, so I am thankful for it! We played some catch and were soon on our way to Texas. We stopped for coffee at Aspen Cafe in Stillwater, OK which was a delight to stop and hangout for a bit.
We ate dinner at at a local cafe in Arnett, OK which is about 15 miles from the Texas border. So we pushed on in the heat and dry air.
The topography of the land was relatively flat with an occasional hill and lots and lots of wheat fields. Pretty much the most wheat that I have ever seen; I have definitely had enough of it. As we moved into Texas, the heat was seen clearly blazing up from the asphalt. Therefore, we made our way to a Dairy Queen after scoping out a camp site. After Dairy Queen we headed back to camp, pitched our tents and then went to watch REAL cowboys and cowgirls rope cattle.
There is something to say about this whole roping cattle thing. Something that I am totally not used too, so it is a totally brand new experience for me to see cowboys and cowgirls everywhere. But it is awesome! It has always been a dream of mine to live on a farm with horses, etc. But I guess you just got to live down here to actually have the real thing, because let me tell you--they know what they're doing down here.
The traffic was pretty sparse today as we were practically in the middle of nowhere. Although we did have about 10 semi-trucks pass us from behind and come back our way after dropping their load off. Also, if you want to get hit by bugs while driving anywhere, head to Oklahoma. It was brutal. I am pretty sure that I killed about 5 bugs every 30 minutes. There was big ones and small ones--yes the big ones hurt, a lot.
The towns are extremely small in these parts, therefore we didn't get to talk with many people today, but it is a good time to travel long distances because there isn't much to see. Well there is the random group of cattle in the pasture next to the road. As we drive by, they look at us like we are crazy. Maybe it is due to the extra loud volume of Wilberforce and maybe it is because we are crazy. Who knows?
Well today was a good day as Viking says as he heads to bed. I am on my way as well. We are both sunburnt quit badly and a good rest is greatly needed.
Thank you all for your prayers and support. We appreciate them each and every day and cannot thank you enough!
To God Be the Glory.
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Monday, May 30, 2011
Oooooooklahoma..
May 30 - Day 15
Sand Springs, OK
Written by Viking
..where the wind comes sweeping down the plain.. gusting at 35 knots! But that probably didn't sound good for the song, so they left it out.
This weekend was a delight. I love my family. I love the heart for God that my family has. Sunday we spoke at our first church of the trip. We were blessed to be able to talk with the youth group during Sunday school as well as sharing about our trip and ministry for a few minutes in the main service. I think the Sunday school was a benefit for both the students and the teachers, as God is continually revealing more and more about his heart for justice to Brady and I through questions and discussion. I shouldn't be surprised.
Our time with Luke (cousin) and Anne and their children was great. It was a full house, but they were very gracious hosts, and we enjoyed every second of it. I could go on for a while..
We ended up shoving off from their home around 10:15 this morning, continuing our westward trek. We passed a town today that had two different populations posted on two different signs. Not just a few digits off, either. One was four times higher than the other. We found that amusing. Harriet and Wilberforce are doing well. Harriet still hasn't had any problems. Wilberforce has grown quite a bit louder over the past week, but is still operating normal. She's actually faster than Harriet now due to some new parts last week. I predict another 18,000 miles out of her. If God has other plans, I'm thrilled to see what lessons he has to teach us about trusting his sovereign plan. We are planning to swing south a ways in an attempt to avoid the Rocky Mountains this week. We will have to cross them when we head east again, but we'll at least be further along.
Today was a very windy day with temps in the mid-90's. We've been blessed to avoid all of the severe weather that's been around the country in the past weeks. As Rev has mentioned, though, it has been a good thing, a moving thing for he and I to see the damage all over the south that these tornadoes have caused. It has served to scrape away the willful ignorance he and I both have regarding the trials that people just a day away from us are walking through.
We are just west of Tulsa, OK now at a rather pleasant campsite on a lake. The sun just went below the treeline. We arrived a couple hours ago and played a little catch (baseball) and have been writing and reading. And meeting some new friends of the duck variety. This is up there as one of my favorite evenings of the trip so far.
Just a brief aside, here. People have asked where our nicknames came from, so I shall tell you. Rev is obviously short for reverend. Brady has been pursuing his pasotral call since before I met him, so it just makes sense to call him Rev as a way of encouraging him in his pursuit. Viking was one of my multitude of nicknames in the Marine Corps. The Stockelands are of Norwegian heritage, and I was much larger at one time, so the moniker of Viking made logical sense.
Today is Memorial Day. Memorial Day always makes me think. I always ask myself the question, "Am I living in such a way that I am taking advantage of the freedoms I have been given by those who have gone before me? Am I appreciating the smallest little things in life that some people will never experience?" I challenge myself, and I offer the challenge to others; enjoy life. Take advantage of the freedoms that we have been given. Thomas Gilbert, Jonathan Thornsberry, Jacob Neal, Brett Whitteveen, Kenny VanSlyke, and Andy Kim are six Marines that always enter my thoughts today. They are the Marines that I knew on some level or another who gave their lives in Iraq. For where God has Brady and I in our lives today, the best way we can honor their sacrifice is to spend time with my cousin's family (ESPECIALLY his children), ride our scooters across the open road, play baseball, and share the love of Christ with anyone who will listen. But on a greater scale, how can we use these freedoms and blessings for the everlasting Kingdom, for God's kingdom? There are many, many ways I see, but it's something I'd like people to be mindful of on Memorial Day.
"To whom much was given, much will be required." Luke 12:48
There have been times when the breath in my lungs felt like all the riches in the world being lavished on me. But as Americans (most of us, I am assuming), we have a tremendous blessing, and a tremendous responsibility to use what we've been given.
So, honor and memorialize and remember, but also be asking and praying about ways in which we can use the sacrifices of these men and women to bring glory to God.
Our day is done. Please continue to pray for opportunities to talk with people whose hearts God is preparing and cultivating. This is a relatively sparse area of the country this week, but we still want to be used by God, and appreciate and cherish your prayers to that end. Flagstaff, AZ is the goal for Sunday, if you are curious.
God is good.
Sand Springs, OK
Written by Viking
..where the wind comes sweeping down the plain.. gusting at 35 knots! But that probably didn't sound good for the song, so they left it out.
This weekend was a delight. I love my family. I love the heart for God that my family has. Sunday we spoke at our first church of the trip. We were blessed to be able to talk with the youth group during Sunday school as well as sharing about our trip and ministry for a few minutes in the main service. I think the Sunday school was a benefit for both the students and the teachers, as God is continually revealing more and more about his heart for justice to Brady and I through questions and discussion. I shouldn't be surprised.
Our time with Luke (cousin) and Anne and their children was great. It was a full house, but they were very gracious hosts, and we enjoyed every second of it. I could go on for a while..
We ended up shoving off from their home around 10:15 this morning, continuing our westward trek. We passed a town today that had two different populations posted on two different signs. Not just a few digits off, either. One was four times higher than the other. We found that amusing. Harriet and Wilberforce are doing well. Harriet still hasn't had any problems. Wilberforce has grown quite a bit louder over the past week, but is still operating normal. She's actually faster than Harriet now due to some new parts last week. I predict another 18,000 miles out of her. If God has other plans, I'm thrilled to see what lessons he has to teach us about trusting his sovereign plan. We are planning to swing south a ways in an attempt to avoid the Rocky Mountains this week. We will have to cross them when we head east again, but we'll at least be further along.
Today was a very windy day with temps in the mid-90's. We've been blessed to avoid all of the severe weather that's been around the country in the past weeks. As Rev has mentioned, though, it has been a good thing, a moving thing for he and I to see the damage all over the south that these tornadoes have caused. It has served to scrape away the willful ignorance he and I both have regarding the trials that people just a day away from us are walking through.
We are just west of Tulsa, OK now at a rather pleasant campsite on a lake. The sun just went below the treeline. We arrived a couple hours ago and played a little catch (baseball) and have been writing and reading. And meeting some new friends of the duck variety. This is up there as one of my favorite evenings of the trip so far.
Just a brief aside, here. People have asked where our nicknames came from, so I shall tell you. Rev is obviously short for reverend. Brady has been pursuing his pasotral call since before I met him, so it just makes sense to call him Rev as a way of encouraging him in his pursuit. Viking was one of my multitude of nicknames in the Marine Corps. The Stockelands are of Norwegian heritage, and I was much larger at one time, so the moniker of Viking made logical sense.
Today is Memorial Day. Memorial Day always makes me think. I always ask myself the question, "Am I living in such a way that I am taking advantage of the freedoms I have been given by those who have gone before me? Am I appreciating the smallest little things in life that some people will never experience?" I challenge myself, and I offer the challenge to others; enjoy life. Take advantage of the freedoms that we have been given. Thomas Gilbert, Jonathan Thornsberry, Jacob Neal, Brett Whitteveen, Kenny VanSlyke, and Andy Kim are six Marines that always enter my thoughts today. They are the Marines that I knew on some level or another who gave their lives in Iraq. For where God has Brady and I in our lives today, the best way we can honor their sacrifice is to spend time with my cousin's family (ESPECIALLY his children), ride our scooters across the open road, play baseball, and share the love of Christ with anyone who will listen. But on a greater scale, how can we use these freedoms and blessings for the everlasting Kingdom, for God's kingdom? There are many, many ways I see, but it's something I'd like people to be mindful of on Memorial Day.
"To whom much was given, much will be required." Luke 12:48
There have been times when the breath in my lungs felt like all the riches in the world being lavished on me. But as Americans (most of us, I am assuming), we have a tremendous blessing, and a tremendous responsibility to use what we've been given.
So, honor and memorialize and remember, but also be asking and praying about ways in which we can use the sacrifices of these men and women to bring glory to God.
Our day is done. Please continue to pray for opportunities to talk with people whose hearts God is preparing and cultivating. This is a relatively sparse area of the country this week, but we still want to be used by God, and appreciate and cherish your prayers to that end. Flagstaff, AZ is the goal for Sunday, if you are curious.
God is good.
Sunday, May 29, 2011
West of Mississippi
May 26, 2011--Day 13
Green Forest, Arkansas
Written by Rev
We started out our day leaving the pool house in Corinth, MS and heading to the great Honda dealer in Corinth. We were in good spirits about this opportunity to fix Wilberforce. The owner checked Wilberforce out, but didn't find anything wrong with him, so we decided to press on. Memphis, TN was our destination for lunch, so we could cross into Arkansas in the afternoon.
After passing signs for Canaan and the Walls of Jericho, I was curious if we were in the Holy Land or still in America, especially after being in Athens and Corinth the day before. But anyways, we found we were still in America, which was some what disappointing to me, but thats okay.
Memphis provided a great place to eat lunch at the classic Panera Bread. A security guard offered to guard our bikes for us while we ate lunch. We were very thankful for his kindness and sincerity for watching our vehicles.
Memphis was awesome! My favorite part was driving right through the heart of it, dodging the potholes and then taking the interstate, yes, the interstate over the Mississippi River to get to Arkansas. That was a rather scary and crazy experience which I do not wish to ever go through again :)
We made it to Bald Knob, AR and ate supper and found ourselves in a hotel room provided from a very fine couple. Thank you very much. We prepped for Sunday, as we are speaking in a church in Green Forest. I was extremely exhausted and fell asleep with my notebook and Bible next to me and woke up at 3 AM and decided to get to sleep without my notebook on me.
We received some good rest and headed to Green Forest after eating some very good breakfast. Viking kept reminding me that we were just under a 100 miles. Very funny since we were definitely under 100 miles from getting there. He thought it was funny, since he was the one with the map and I am not, therefore I must guess when we will be at our destination when he knows. He thinks its funny. I do not. Well its okay.
It was rather a brisk and chilly morning, but warmed up and became extremely hot and muggy. We are now in Viking's cousin's families house where we will be staying and speaking at their church tomorrow morning as well as their youth group.
I want to make a few comments about what we have seen in these states that we have gone through
-it has been very interesting to see the way that people would interact with us in the different parts of the country. Going from Midwest, to East Coast, to the South and back in the Midwest has been interesting to compare the interactions that we have had.
-Tornadoes have devastated many towns in Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi from what we have seen. I have always seen clips and pictures of the after effects of tornadoes, but I have never seen them first hand. My heart ached. I couldn't believe all the devastation that has taken place in our country and I was so unaware of it. I was ashamed that I didn't know all the damage that had happened. My heart went out to them.
-Likewise, as we crossed the Mississippi River and came into eastern Arkansas, I realized that Arkansas is extremely flat in the eastern part. There were lots of fields, but there were so many fields that were flooded, as well as rivers, etc. The flooding was once again a huge effect on me to see houses have water half way up their side--crazy!
-God is good. There have been so many God-sightings on this trip that if we were to name all of them, we would still miss some. God is good.
To God Be the Glory.
Green Forest, Arkansas
Written by Rev
We started out our day leaving the pool house in Corinth, MS and heading to the great Honda dealer in Corinth. We were in good spirits about this opportunity to fix Wilberforce. The owner checked Wilberforce out, but didn't find anything wrong with him, so we decided to press on. Memphis, TN was our destination for lunch, so we could cross into Arkansas in the afternoon.
After passing signs for Canaan and the Walls of Jericho, I was curious if we were in the Holy Land or still in America, especially after being in Athens and Corinth the day before. But anyways, we found we were still in America, which was some what disappointing to me, but thats okay.
Memphis provided a great place to eat lunch at the classic Panera Bread. A security guard offered to guard our bikes for us while we ate lunch. We were very thankful for his kindness and sincerity for watching our vehicles.
Memphis was awesome! My favorite part was driving right through the heart of it, dodging the potholes and then taking the interstate, yes, the interstate over the Mississippi River to get to Arkansas. That was a rather scary and crazy experience which I do not wish to ever go through again :)
We made it to Bald Knob, AR and ate supper and found ourselves in a hotel room provided from a very fine couple. Thank you very much. We prepped for Sunday, as we are speaking in a church in Green Forest. I was extremely exhausted and fell asleep with my notebook and Bible next to me and woke up at 3 AM and decided to get to sleep without my notebook on me.
We received some good rest and headed to Green Forest after eating some very good breakfast. Viking kept reminding me that we were just under a 100 miles. Very funny since we were definitely under 100 miles from getting there. He thought it was funny, since he was the one with the map and I am not, therefore I must guess when we will be at our destination when he knows. He thinks its funny. I do not. Well its okay.
It was rather a brisk and chilly morning, but warmed up and became extremely hot and muggy. We are now in Viking's cousin's families house where we will be staying and speaking at their church tomorrow morning as well as their youth group.
I want to make a few comments about what we have seen in these states that we have gone through
-it has been very interesting to see the way that people would interact with us in the different parts of the country. Going from Midwest, to East Coast, to the South and back in the Midwest has been interesting to compare the interactions that we have had.
-Tornadoes have devastated many towns in Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi from what we have seen. I have always seen clips and pictures of the after effects of tornadoes, but I have never seen them first hand. My heart ached. I couldn't believe all the devastation that has taken place in our country and I was so unaware of it. I was ashamed that I didn't know all the damage that had happened. My heart went out to them.
-Likewise, as we crossed the Mississippi River and came into eastern Arkansas, I realized that Arkansas is extremely flat in the eastern part. There were lots of fields, but there were so many fields that were flooded, as well as rivers, etc. The flooding was once again a huge effect on me to see houses have water half way up their side--crazy!
-God is good. There have been so many God-sightings on this trip that if we were to name all of them, we would still miss some. God is good.
To God Be the Glory.
Friday, May 27, 2011
A Tale of Two ipads
On Saturday, May 7, I was at a Caribou Coffee working on a presentation for my church family in Minneapolis about my summer plans. In a valiant attempt to clear out my fridge and pantry before leaving, I had been on a steady of diet of cream of wheat and oatmeal for the past several days, and was looking for a little variety. I was being very careful with my finances, but I decided that a vegetarian burrito from Chipotle was a healthy addition to my dietary needs.
I placed the order for the burrito, but their stir fry peppers and whatnot weren't ready for a few minutes, so I said I'd wait. I decided to download a few things real quick. ...Do I admit what I was downloading? Okay, I will. Adventures in Odyssey episodes. I recently came across some old ones in my itunes and discovered that they put me to sleep very quickly. This comes in handy with my erratic sleep schedule.
Anyway, I had my ipad out. I went through the line, filling the burrito with everything they would allow. As I prepared to pay, the lady behind the register told me the burrito was on the house due to my wait time for the peppers. I was thrilled. And rejoicing. Maybe it's just me, but I saw God's hand in that small experience. I've been trying to be a good steward with my money, for the sake of the summer, and I saw this as a tremendous affirmation and blessing! I was smiling widely as I set my ipad down to pack my burrito in my bag. I strode out to Wilberforce and rode home. When I was home I made a quick phone call, read a text message, and went for my ipad so I could listen to some music. My ipad wasn't in my bag. It didn't take long for me to remember setting the ipad down at the restaurant, but I was struggling to remember putting it back in my bag. I ran to Wilberforce and sped (speed being relative, here) to Chipotle. It wasn't where I set it on the counter. I spoke briefly with the management there and they said they could check later to see if their cameras picked anything up.
I went home and dumped my bag out. Of course it wasn't in there. For the minutes between realizing what I had done and finding out it was gone I was frantic. I knew what my summer plans were for the ipad. I knew that it was a seemingly indispensable tool for the summer, as well as for my daily life. Seemingly. After returning home I went to my knees in my living room and prayed. I didn't know what to pray. Do I pray that I get it back? That didn't seem right. Could God have something to teach me through this? Most assuredly. A few weeks earlier my car had been broken into. That really didn't bother me, because my car is expendable. It's a blessing, to be sure, and God is keeping it running. but if it sprouted legs and walked off, I wouldn't lose a minute of sleep. But my ipad? I 'needed' that.
I was a little surprised to see my scooter still sitting outside the next morning. I scrambled to put my notes together for Sunday morning in a red notebook, and made my way to church. God had put joy in my heart. I called my mom (it was Mother's Day) and told my parents about it. I was excited. Maybe God was going to show me that I really can function as a human being and a follower of Christ without a computer! This is going to be such an interesting summer! And it was one of the TWO things I thought were critical to my summer's success! HA!
As I shared with my church my vision for my summer ministry, I mentioned as a disclaimer that my ipad, with most of my notes, had been stolen the night before. In the afternoon I concluded my Marine Corps and settled down to do some studying and reading.
I received a call from a family that they had something for me, if I had the chance to come by. So I did. When I arrived, they told me that they looked at each other when I mentioned my ipad being stolen, knowing exactly what the other was thinking. They seem to have a knack for that. They related that to me as they gave me a box. It was a sealed box that contained a brand new ipad. They had bought it several weeks earlier but hadn't bothered to open it yet. They insisted that I take it, and I accepted it, dumbfounded. This was not what I expected. God's lesson was supposed to be that I can function just fine without my precious little electronics. Right? I think that lesson remained, but there was a new lesson I saw.
I don't think I seemed very grateful when I received this gift because I didn't feel like I deserved it. That's where I received a lesson in grace. God's grace is undeserved, and yet is is lavished upon me every day. It wasn't even 24 hours and I was holding a newer, better ipad in my hands, graciously given to me despite my unprecedented absentmindedness. I felt like I hadn't even suffered long enough for my mistake. John Newton had it right, I think.
I mailed it to a friend I had sold my computer to a while earlier and he was able to upload almost everything I had on my previous ipad onto the new one and had it mailed back to me two days before this trip began. Every blog you have read, every email you have received, every photo you have seen, it has all been made possible by this ipad. Naturally, I am typing this very blog on it right now.
This was one of the first great provisions by God's hand through his people for this trip, and as you have read in the past weeks, it certainly hasn't been the last. Just today again some tremendous blessings were bestowed on us by people I don't even know yet.
It is a joy to write about and remember these blessings. I don't want them to fade with time. Rev and I intended to document every way God has worked in this trip, but it has already been innumerable. Should've known. We would be writing more than we would be riding. Oh, that was a pretty clever sentence... :)
So, I praise the Lord for the undeserved blessing of the ipad (it is no longer 'mine'), and I honor the family that was so encouraging and eager to be used as a blessing.
I've had the first line of the doxology rolling around in my head for some time now..
"Praise God from whom all blessings flow"
I placed the order for the burrito, but their stir fry peppers and whatnot weren't ready for a few minutes, so I said I'd wait. I decided to download a few things real quick. ...Do I admit what I was downloading? Okay, I will. Adventures in Odyssey episodes. I recently came across some old ones in my itunes and discovered that they put me to sleep very quickly. This comes in handy with my erratic sleep schedule.
Anyway, I had my ipad out. I went through the line, filling the burrito with everything they would allow. As I prepared to pay, the lady behind the register told me the burrito was on the house due to my wait time for the peppers. I was thrilled. And rejoicing. Maybe it's just me, but I saw God's hand in that small experience. I've been trying to be a good steward with my money, for the sake of the summer, and I saw this as a tremendous affirmation and blessing! I was smiling widely as I set my ipad down to pack my burrito in my bag. I strode out to Wilberforce and rode home. When I was home I made a quick phone call, read a text message, and went for my ipad so I could listen to some music. My ipad wasn't in my bag. It didn't take long for me to remember setting the ipad down at the restaurant, but I was struggling to remember putting it back in my bag. I ran to Wilberforce and sped (speed being relative, here) to Chipotle. It wasn't where I set it on the counter. I spoke briefly with the management there and they said they could check later to see if their cameras picked anything up.
I went home and dumped my bag out. Of course it wasn't in there. For the minutes between realizing what I had done and finding out it was gone I was frantic. I knew what my summer plans were for the ipad. I knew that it was a seemingly indispensable tool for the summer, as well as for my daily life. Seemingly. After returning home I went to my knees in my living room and prayed. I didn't know what to pray. Do I pray that I get it back? That didn't seem right. Could God have something to teach me through this? Most assuredly. A few weeks earlier my car had been broken into. That really didn't bother me, because my car is expendable. It's a blessing, to be sure, and God is keeping it running. but if it sprouted legs and walked off, I wouldn't lose a minute of sleep. But my ipad? I 'needed' that.
I was a little surprised to see my scooter still sitting outside the next morning. I scrambled to put my notes together for Sunday morning in a red notebook, and made my way to church. God had put joy in my heart. I called my mom (it was Mother's Day) and told my parents about it. I was excited. Maybe God was going to show me that I really can function as a human being and a follower of Christ without a computer! This is going to be such an interesting summer! And it was one of the TWO things I thought were critical to my summer's success! HA!
As I shared with my church my vision for my summer ministry, I mentioned as a disclaimer that my ipad, with most of my notes, had been stolen the night before. In the afternoon I concluded my Marine Corps and settled down to do some studying and reading.
I received a call from a family that they had something for me, if I had the chance to come by. So I did. When I arrived, they told me that they looked at each other when I mentioned my ipad being stolen, knowing exactly what the other was thinking. They seem to have a knack for that. They related that to me as they gave me a box. It was a sealed box that contained a brand new ipad. They had bought it several weeks earlier but hadn't bothered to open it yet. They insisted that I take it, and I accepted it, dumbfounded. This was not what I expected. God's lesson was supposed to be that I can function just fine without my precious little electronics. Right? I think that lesson remained, but there was a new lesson I saw.
I don't think I seemed very grateful when I received this gift because I didn't feel like I deserved it. That's where I received a lesson in grace. God's grace is undeserved, and yet is is lavished upon me every day. It wasn't even 24 hours and I was holding a newer, better ipad in my hands, graciously given to me despite my unprecedented absentmindedness. I felt like I hadn't even suffered long enough for my mistake. John Newton had it right, I think.
I mailed it to a friend I had sold my computer to a while earlier and he was able to upload almost everything I had on my previous ipad onto the new one and had it mailed back to me two days before this trip began. Every blog you have read, every email you have received, every photo you have seen, it has all been made possible by this ipad. Naturally, I am typing this very blog on it right now.
This was one of the first great provisions by God's hand through his people for this trip, and as you have read in the past weeks, it certainly hasn't been the last. Just today again some tremendous blessings were bestowed on us by people I don't even know yet.
It is a joy to write about and remember these blessings. I don't want them to fade with time. Rev and I intended to document every way God has worked in this trip, but it has already been innumerable. Should've known. We would be writing more than we would be riding. Oh, that was a pretty clever sentence... :)
So, I praise the Lord for the undeserved blessing of the ipad (it is no longer 'mine'), and I honor the family that was so encouraging and eager to be used as a blessing.
I've had the first line of the doxology rolling around in my head for some time now..
"Praise God from whom all blessings flow"
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Sweet Home Alabama
May 26, 2011 - Day 11
Corinth, Mississippi
Written By Viking
Our day began in Georgia and is ending in Mississippi. In between was a great experience. However, there is something that is heavy on my mind that I will write about first. As we pulled off the road to get our picture with the Mississippi state sign this evening, Wilberforce began emitting another unfamiliar and discomforting whine. We made is another 30 miles or so to Corinth, where one of the first buildings we saw was a magnanimous Honda dealer. So, we will be going there first thing in the morning to receive a diagnostic evaluation. I have some speculations as to the problem, but I will not reveal my mechanical ignorance just yet.
I've owned Wilberforce a week short of a year now, and it pains me to see her struggling like she has been the past few days. Brady and I have been seeing what God can do with these scooters, and we don't want some mechanical problems to hinder that. But check it out, God is good. All the time.
We were extremely grateful to have been spared from the thunderstorms that rolled through Tennessee and Georgia (and Most of America) last night. We headed to a coffee shop this morning to do some reading, writing, and make a plan of attack for the further storms we saw rolling our way. Just after 8am we decided that we should make a break for Huntsville, Alabama, which was maybe a 3 hour ride away. We didn't want to be trapped by storms for a whole day, and we saw a window in the fronts. The ride was beautiful. We saw some great views and rode some fun roads. Any time that the song 'Dueling Banjos' (youtube it) pops into my head because of a road, it's a good road. We stopped for fuel just east of Huntsville, and after looking at the looming black clouds and examining the radar, we donned full rain gear. What's left of it, anyway. There's only so much that duct tape can fix. The rain gear was a good idea, as we were met with our hardest rain of the trip. The thunderstorm only lasted 10 minutes or so, but it was enough to get us pretty well saturated.
As we made our way through Huntsville it was discovered that I had popped my tire a while back and was losing air. This was the spare tire that was put on less than 24 hours earlier. So, we plugged it, were blessed with free air at an oil change, and continued on, pressing west to avoid further rain. We decided to find lunch in Athens, AL. This would turn out to be one of the better decisions of the trip. (the tire is leaking air, though, so it will need to be addressed soon..)
I've been noticing that this style of travel does not allow for much prior planning. As a result, many, many decisions must be made on the fly. When to get up, when to leave for the day, what route to take, how long to ride, when to stop to explore an abandoned house, when to get gas, where to eat, and the most stressful of all, where to sleep. We really don't want to be arrested for sleeping somewhere we shouldn't, but we also don't want to pay to sleep. Well anyway, we've been praying that God would very clearly direct our paths.
We saw nothing on the main road of Athens, but downtowns have been good to us, so we headed there. We saw some nice looking eateries. I pointed out a deli to Brady, but decided to turn the other direction. We parked, but both agreed that the deli looked and sounded better. We parked out front and were ripping off our rain suits (quite literally, as Brady ripped his coat in half. Again.) when a lady walked out and asked if we were eating there. We were a little befuddled, but expressed our desire to enjoy a bite to eat. The lady said, "Good. It's on the house." We hadn't even been inside yet!!
If you ever are within a days drive of Athens, Alabama, you should make a detour to the Wildwood Deli in downtown Athens. Here, check them out on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/theWildwoodDeli
Or, you can look at their website at http://www.wildwooddeli.com/
Their food is wonderful, but their staff is amazing. We also had some wonderful conversations with the other customers, and an all around fantastic experience. I would go on, but it's getting late. Which reminds me, we passed into the Central Time Zone today. Whee. Athens was great, Brady and I were blessed beyond words, and we even prayed together in the deli! How great is that?! God is good.
Today was really a fun day of riding. It didn't seem long, but we covered several hundred miles. There was one moment that nearly gave us both a heart attack. We keep a close eye on the traffic behind us, and at this moment we were on a downhill stretch, and two semis were bearing down on us, probably one-hundred yards behind or so. Well all of a sudden Brady and I heard a horn go off that sounded like it was 2 inches from our ears. Talking afterward, we both thought some semi was screaming down on us and not stopping. After our hearts stopped beating, we saw a train flying past us through some trees, and connected the train whistle with the noise. Just a small example of being the bottom of the food chain on America's roadways.
Aside from that, there was lots of singing southern songs, 'racing' up and down hills, and spitting water from our camel baks at each other. No moms, no other cars were around at the time. Today was also an unprecedented day for waving. We waved wildly at anyone who would even remotely look our way, and some even waved first! We also passed our fourth car for the trip, a tractor. We're keeping track.
Time to wrap up. We ate at a Sonic this evening. I'm pretty anti-fast-food, but we decided a Sonic needed to be experienced on this trip. In-N-Out will be the other fast food concession of the trip.
We were looking for a place to hide.. er.. camp near the Honda dealer, and we found a church with a huge lawn. Long story short, we were unable to get a hold of a pastor or anyone to clear us to sleep on the lawn, but someone at the church had some family that has graciously blessed us with a pool house to sleep in.
I don't want to make this sound all humdrum and regular for you. This is HUGE! This is the fifth night in a row that we have been given a place to sleep! I figured on 3 or four times for the trip, but this has been an incredible blessing. I've really only shared a few of the more poignant blessings with you, and that is just from one day.
We hope that you are excited to see how God is providing for Brady and I on our trip. We hope that you are encouraged to read about these things and that your faith is strengthened by our testimony to his faithfulness. Ours certainly is. We pray that it will prompt others to be emboldened to take courageous and faithful steps, trusting God for our daily bread.
If you are interested, an article was recently published in the New York Times about a raid on a brothel in India by IJM, the organization Brady and I visited earlier in our trip.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/26/opinion/26kristof.html?_r=1
This isn't meant to be an afterthought.. this is the best news of the entire blog. Praise the Lord.
I will not boast in anything; no gifts, no power, no wisdom. But I will boast in Jesus Christ, his death and resurrection.
Corinth, Mississippi
Written By Viking
Our day began in Georgia and is ending in Mississippi. In between was a great experience. However, there is something that is heavy on my mind that I will write about first. As we pulled off the road to get our picture with the Mississippi state sign this evening, Wilberforce began emitting another unfamiliar and discomforting whine. We made is another 30 miles or so to Corinth, where one of the first buildings we saw was a magnanimous Honda dealer. So, we will be going there first thing in the morning to receive a diagnostic evaluation. I have some speculations as to the problem, but I will not reveal my mechanical ignorance just yet.
I've owned Wilberforce a week short of a year now, and it pains me to see her struggling like she has been the past few days. Brady and I have been seeing what God can do with these scooters, and we don't want some mechanical problems to hinder that. But check it out, God is good. All the time.
We were extremely grateful to have been spared from the thunderstorms that rolled through Tennessee and Georgia (and Most of America) last night. We headed to a coffee shop this morning to do some reading, writing, and make a plan of attack for the further storms we saw rolling our way. Just after 8am we decided that we should make a break for Huntsville, Alabama, which was maybe a 3 hour ride away. We didn't want to be trapped by storms for a whole day, and we saw a window in the fronts. The ride was beautiful. We saw some great views and rode some fun roads. Any time that the song 'Dueling Banjos' (youtube it) pops into my head because of a road, it's a good road. We stopped for fuel just east of Huntsville, and after looking at the looming black clouds and examining the radar, we donned full rain gear. What's left of it, anyway. There's only so much that duct tape can fix. The rain gear was a good idea, as we were met with our hardest rain of the trip. The thunderstorm only lasted 10 minutes or so, but it was enough to get us pretty well saturated.
As we made our way through Huntsville it was discovered that I had popped my tire a while back and was losing air. This was the spare tire that was put on less than 24 hours earlier. So, we plugged it, were blessed with free air at an oil change, and continued on, pressing west to avoid further rain. We decided to find lunch in Athens, AL. This would turn out to be one of the better decisions of the trip. (the tire is leaking air, though, so it will need to be addressed soon..)
I've been noticing that this style of travel does not allow for much prior planning. As a result, many, many decisions must be made on the fly. When to get up, when to leave for the day, what route to take, how long to ride, when to stop to explore an abandoned house, when to get gas, where to eat, and the most stressful of all, where to sleep. We really don't want to be arrested for sleeping somewhere we shouldn't, but we also don't want to pay to sleep. Well anyway, we've been praying that God would very clearly direct our paths.
We saw nothing on the main road of Athens, but downtowns have been good to us, so we headed there. We saw some nice looking eateries. I pointed out a deli to Brady, but decided to turn the other direction. We parked, but both agreed that the deli looked and sounded better. We parked out front and were ripping off our rain suits (quite literally, as Brady ripped his coat in half. Again.) when a lady walked out and asked if we were eating there. We were a little befuddled, but expressed our desire to enjoy a bite to eat. The lady said, "Good. It's on the house." We hadn't even been inside yet!!
If you ever are within a days drive of Athens, Alabama, you should make a detour to the Wildwood Deli in downtown Athens. Here, check them out on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/theWildwoodDeli
Or, you can look at their website at http://www.wildwooddeli.com/
Their food is wonderful, but their staff is amazing. We also had some wonderful conversations with the other customers, and an all around fantastic experience. I would go on, but it's getting late. Which reminds me, we passed into the Central Time Zone today. Whee. Athens was great, Brady and I were blessed beyond words, and we even prayed together in the deli! How great is that?! God is good.
Today was really a fun day of riding. It didn't seem long, but we covered several hundred miles. There was one moment that nearly gave us both a heart attack. We keep a close eye on the traffic behind us, and at this moment we were on a downhill stretch, and two semis were bearing down on us, probably one-hundred yards behind or so. Well all of a sudden Brady and I heard a horn go off that sounded like it was 2 inches from our ears. Talking afterward, we both thought some semi was screaming down on us and not stopping. After our hearts stopped beating, we saw a train flying past us through some trees, and connected the train whistle with the noise. Just a small example of being the bottom of the food chain on America's roadways.
Aside from that, there was lots of singing southern songs, 'racing' up and down hills, and spitting water from our camel baks at each other. No moms, no other cars were around at the time. Today was also an unprecedented day for waving. We waved wildly at anyone who would even remotely look our way, and some even waved first! We also passed our fourth car for the trip, a tractor. We're keeping track.
Time to wrap up. We ate at a Sonic this evening. I'm pretty anti-fast-food, but we decided a Sonic needed to be experienced on this trip. In-N-Out will be the other fast food concession of the trip.
We were looking for a place to hide.. er.. camp near the Honda dealer, and we found a church with a huge lawn. Long story short, we were unable to get a hold of a pastor or anyone to clear us to sleep on the lawn, but someone at the church had some family that has graciously blessed us with a pool house to sleep in.
I don't want to make this sound all humdrum and regular for you. This is HUGE! This is the fifth night in a row that we have been given a place to sleep! I figured on 3 or four times for the trip, but this has been an incredible blessing. I've really only shared a few of the more poignant blessings with you, and that is just from one day.
We hope that you are excited to see how God is providing for Brady and I on our trip. We hope that you are encouraged to read about these things and that your faith is strengthened by our testimony to his faithfulness. Ours certainly is. We pray that it will prompt others to be emboldened to take courageous and faithful steps, trusting God for our daily bread.
If you are interested, an article was recently published in the New York Times about a raid on a brothel in India by IJM, the organization Brady and I visited earlier in our trip.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/26/opinion/26kristof.html?_r=1
This isn't meant to be an afterthought.. this is the best news of the entire blog. Praise the Lord.
I will not boast in anything; no gifts, no power, no wisdom. But I will boast in Jesus Christ, his death and resurrection.
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
The Great Smokies
Day 10--May 25, 2011
Lookout Mountain, Georgia
Written by Rev
Well here we are. Yesterday was spent scootering up and down the Blue Ridge and Smoky Mountains. This was very beautiful, but time-consuming. We would slowly stroll up the hills at a pace of 20-25 mph. Then, at the crest of the mountain, we would pick up speed and race down the other side at a rapid pace of 43 mph. Viking even leaned far into a turn and 'laid his bike down'. For all of you 'non-bikers' out there, this is a term that biker's use when they are going around a curve and their bike scrapes the ground. This is awesome and my friend Viking did this. Very impressive. We even attacked the curves so hard that a vehicle pulled over to let us pass. That was a first.
Anyway, after the mountains we were eagerly anticipating our thrill ride on the Tail of the Dragon. For those of you who don't know what that is, it is a road that is 11 miles long with 318 curves. This is a biker hit down in these parts. Bikers come from all over America just to ride this stretch of road coming from North Carolina to Tennessee. We filled up with gas about 20 minutes before the beginning of the Tail of the Dragon. As we were going down a mountain to the beginning, Wilberforce decided to backfire twice. We still don't know why, but it was pretty cool having a Honda Ruckus flying down a mountain and a little flame coming out of the muffler :)
As we pulled into the motel-gas station-store at the beginning of the Tail of the Dragon around 8:00 PM, we noticed Wilberforce making a clanking noise. This didn't seem right. This is where the story gets so great.
A man comes over and asked us if we needed help; of course we did! He told us to take it over to the group of guys outside this motel and they could take a look at it. I was extremely intimidated as we rode our little bikes over there for two reasons: a)I know nothing about mechanics and b)they were bikers. BUT my intimidation soon faded away as they welcomed us and within 15 minutes of us being there by the group--a man came up and asked where we have been staying. We told him where we had been, but had no clue where tonight we would stay. He told us to stay at the motel with him because he had 2 people in his room and there were 4 beds and 2 futons. We just smiled at each other. God is good.
We stayed there last night and were welcomed greatly by each of them. We got to listen to biker crash stories around the fire and were blessed with some burgers and good company. It was awesome. God is good.
We started early again this morning and rode the Trail of the Dragon. We decided it wasn't as exciting as we hoped due to the curves and mountains we had to take to get to that point in the road. But it was still cool to say that two Honda Ruckus' did that 11 miles stretch. We made our way to a Honda dealer in Athens, Tennessee to see if we could fix Wilberforce. The guys last night diagnosed the problem as the clutch, but the man at the shop took both clutches off and decided that it was the main bearing in the crank shaft. So that was devastating news because it takes a lot of time to fix this, therefore the labor is very expensive. But the good news was that we can still ride Wilberforce because it might go 20,000 more miles or just 20 miles. We decided to keep going for it with some minor repairs to Wilberforce.
Just before entering into Georgia, we stopped at a church and laid out in their lawn and took a nap. Very good idea since we were both exhausted. I told Viking that we shouldn't go into Georgia because of the mountains and we should stay away from them. But he insisted that there wasn't mountains in Georgia because where we were going was elevation of 600 feet. This was hilarious to me as we were going up and down the mountains.
That's not the best part. We were supposed to head south into Georgia a little ways and then head west, but Viking was turned around by an ambiguous map and we ended up by Covenant College, about 2 miles from the Tennessee border. So funny. We were both in high spirits for some reason as we pulled into the famous Rock City. We enjoyed a great view of 7 states, as well as the town from where we had just come.
We then asked the Starbucks man where a good place to eat was. He advised us to head to Hill City Pizza. So lo and behold we did. Great pizza, I might add. Anyway, as we were sitting there watching the news, we couldn't believe the terrible weather that we were about to have.
It seemed that we only had a couple of choices: We could ride through the night and then get a hotel, drive a little way and camp, or just camp where we were. Our pizza came, and we said a prayer about where we would stay and discernment on what to do. Within 1 minute, in an empty restaurant, a lady walks up to us after getting her order to go. She asked us about our trip, etc. and then asked where we were staying tonight. We replied that we had no idea. She said she would try and find us a place to sleep, she took our number and called us back 20 minutes later telling us to come to her place. God is good.
So I am writing this from the comfort of a home, praising God for answered prayer. Also, we drove through two towns that had been devastated by tornadoes. So praise God for this home and family tonight.
We have been extremely blessed on this trip so far. We could be headed into bad weather these next couple of days as we head to Arkansas, but we are trusting God to guide us, keep us safe and help us discern what to do.
All Viking and Rev can say is that God is good and we cannot thank him enough for all that He has done for us.
To God Be the Glory.
Lookout Mountain, Georgia
Written by Rev
Well here we are. Yesterday was spent scootering up and down the Blue Ridge and Smoky Mountains. This was very beautiful, but time-consuming. We would slowly stroll up the hills at a pace of 20-25 mph. Then, at the crest of the mountain, we would pick up speed and race down the other side at a rapid pace of 43 mph. Viking even leaned far into a turn and 'laid his bike down'. For all of you 'non-bikers' out there, this is a term that biker's use when they are going around a curve and their bike scrapes the ground. This is awesome and my friend Viking did this. Very impressive. We even attacked the curves so hard that a vehicle pulled over to let us pass. That was a first.
Anyway, after the mountains we were eagerly anticipating our thrill ride on the Tail of the Dragon. For those of you who don't know what that is, it is a road that is 11 miles long with 318 curves. This is a biker hit down in these parts. Bikers come from all over America just to ride this stretch of road coming from North Carolina to Tennessee. We filled up with gas about 20 minutes before the beginning of the Tail of the Dragon. As we were going down a mountain to the beginning, Wilberforce decided to backfire twice. We still don't know why, but it was pretty cool having a Honda Ruckus flying down a mountain and a little flame coming out of the muffler :)
As we pulled into the motel-gas station-store at the beginning of the Tail of the Dragon around 8:00 PM, we noticed Wilberforce making a clanking noise. This didn't seem right. This is where the story gets so great.
A man comes over and asked us if we needed help; of course we did! He told us to take it over to the group of guys outside this motel and they could take a look at it. I was extremely intimidated as we rode our little bikes over there for two reasons: a)I know nothing about mechanics and b)they were bikers. BUT my intimidation soon faded away as they welcomed us and within 15 minutes of us being there by the group--a man came up and asked where we have been staying. We told him where we had been, but had no clue where tonight we would stay. He told us to stay at the motel with him because he had 2 people in his room and there were 4 beds and 2 futons. We just smiled at each other. God is good.
We stayed there last night and were welcomed greatly by each of them. We got to listen to biker crash stories around the fire and were blessed with some burgers and good company. It was awesome. God is good.
We started early again this morning and rode the Trail of the Dragon. We decided it wasn't as exciting as we hoped due to the curves and mountains we had to take to get to that point in the road. But it was still cool to say that two Honda Ruckus' did that 11 miles stretch. We made our way to a Honda dealer in Athens, Tennessee to see if we could fix Wilberforce. The guys last night diagnosed the problem as the clutch, but the man at the shop took both clutches off and decided that it was the main bearing in the crank shaft. So that was devastating news because it takes a lot of time to fix this, therefore the labor is very expensive. But the good news was that we can still ride Wilberforce because it might go 20,000 more miles or just 20 miles. We decided to keep going for it with some minor repairs to Wilberforce.
Just before entering into Georgia, we stopped at a church and laid out in their lawn and took a nap. Very good idea since we were both exhausted. I told Viking that we shouldn't go into Georgia because of the mountains and we should stay away from them. But he insisted that there wasn't mountains in Georgia because where we were going was elevation of 600 feet. This was hilarious to me as we were going up and down the mountains.
That's not the best part. We were supposed to head south into Georgia a little ways and then head west, but Viking was turned around by an ambiguous map and we ended up by Covenant College, about 2 miles from the Tennessee border. So funny. We were both in high spirits for some reason as we pulled into the famous Rock City. We enjoyed a great view of 7 states, as well as the town from where we had just come.
We then asked the Starbucks man where a good place to eat was. He advised us to head to Hill City Pizza. So lo and behold we did. Great pizza, I might add. Anyway, as we were sitting there watching the news, we couldn't believe the terrible weather that we were about to have.
It seemed that we only had a couple of choices: We could ride through the night and then get a hotel, drive a little way and camp, or just camp where we were. Our pizza came, and we said a prayer about where we would stay and discernment on what to do. Within 1 minute, in an empty restaurant, a lady walks up to us after getting her order to go. She asked us about our trip, etc. and then asked where we were staying tonight. We replied that we had no idea. She said she would try and find us a place to sleep, she took our number and called us back 20 minutes later telling us to come to her place. God is good.
So I am writing this from the comfort of a home, praising God for answered prayer. Also, we drove through two towns that had been devastated by tornadoes. So praise God for this home and family tonight.
We have been extremely blessed on this trip so far. We could be headed into bad weather these next couple of days as we head to Arkansas, but we are trusting God to guide us, keep us safe and help us discern what to do.
All Viking and Rev can say is that God is good and we cannot thank him enough for all that He has done for us.
To God Be the Glory.
A Potential Problem
We are in Athens, Tennessee right now, a little northeast of Chattanooga. Yesterday was a very mountainous day for us as we rode over the Blue Ridge and Great Smoky Mountains. Nearing the Tennessee border, Wilberforce (Jonathan's Ruckus) began to have a rattle. I'll save the details for later, but the rattle is pretty involved. It's a crankshaft bearing. I don't know what that entails, but it would basically be cheaper to buy a new Ruckus rather than fix it.
So, we are sitting in a shop right now as Wilberforce gets a new rear tire (still not holding air), new brakes, a new front clutch, and a new set of weights. We have no idea how long Wilberforce will run, but we will press on. It runs normal, but the problem is purty (when in Rome) disconcerting. I know it's a strange request, but please continue to uphold these machines with prayer. They get a couple weeks of flatlands here, so that will be good for them. Our roughest terrain is still to come, though. Wilberforce and Harriet have been very effective in their task of inciting conversations, and we pray that it will continue.
God is good. All the time.
So, we are sitting in a shop right now as Wilberforce gets a new rear tire (still not holding air), new brakes, a new front clutch, and a new set of weights. We have no idea how long Wilberforce will run, but we will press on. It runs normal, but the problem is purty (when in Rome) disconcerting. I know it's a strange request, but please continue to uphold these machines with prayer. They get a couple weeks of flatlands here, so that will be good for them. Our roughest terrain is still to come, though. Wilberforce and Harriet have been very effective in their task of inciting conversations, and we pray that it will continue.
God is good. All the time.
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