brand loyalty

Just a few years before I started riding British bikes ruled the world.  The bikes of junior high, the ones we read about in our mags hidden behind text books, would soon be gone by the time I could ride legally on the street.  The Bonneville I lusted after, the Trident, and others had gone from showroom window visibility to back row status.  The new paint jobs on the Hondas, the two stroke ring a ding ding  of the Mach III, and the Yamahas proudly displayed by the new BMW’s were what the magazines were now promoting.  Triumph dealers now added Kawasaki, Honda stores were everywhere, and Suzuki’s were add ons.  Only the most staunch Matchless or BSA dealer hung on, Harley was still Harley only, and drip pans under bikes in showrooms were silently disappearing.  Engineered bikes from the thirties were being passed over, it was the seventies, and we all wanted to go faster, look cooler, and be introduced to a world of quality that never before existed.  We were about to be spoiled rotten, overwhelmed with choices, and forgetting to mourn the passing of the Brits.  Rotting from within, Honda had us, Kawasaki was gaining, Yamaha growing, and Suzuki just a four stroke away from becoming a household word.  These bikes weren’t new and improved, they were totally new, except for a few copying some Brit models, we learned of disc brakes, five speed trannys, electric starting, and reliability.  Push a button after pushing down the choke lever, and off you rode.  Saving many a riding boot from the tickling of the carbs until the gas flowed out, kicking it through to free the clutch, then jumping on the kick starter and hoping it would roar into life, while the rest of us rode away.  New was in, old was out, twins were out, fours were in, a virtual motorcycle revolution was taking place, and I was there.  First on my 1972 CB350 Honda, with 8” bars and high sissy bar with pad.  And cars and bikes would never be the same.....

And either would I.  Motorcycling became the most important part of my life, forsaking girl friends, bikes were still cheaper if not more reliable, living for weekends to head out and ride, and seeking more power, no one wanted to be the last guy leaving from the light.  Brands mattered, but riding mattered more, as Hondas rode with Kawasaki’s, BMW’s with Suzuki’s, and we all worshipped at the brand of our choice.  But secretly wondered what the other bike felt like, and on rare occasions when we found swapped bikes, were impressed with our friend’s choices, but more impressed and glad we rode what we rode.  Variations on a two wheeled theme, with performance the way to leading the pack, while others just wanted to be part of the pack.  Fast, faster, and fastest.....and it was only beginning.  But for the old bikes from ten years ago, the end was near, and no one seemed to notice, or even care.  Triumph stores now sold Kawasaki’s, BMW stores sold Yamaha, Honda were stand alone, and the Norton store sold lawn mowers, along with K81’s, fortunately some things Brit never died.  The era of push button, disc braked, oil tight and reliable riding was upon us....

When I bought my 1978 GS1000 Suzuki a few years back, it felt old.  You had to choke it, let it warm up, the brake pull was difficult, and I had to plan ahead to stop.  In 1978 it was modern, now it was old, or felt old.  On my 2018 Street Triple R, I just pull in the clutch, push the starter and ride off...computers do it all.  A better bike all around, but will it provide the same memories my old Suzuki did?  What do I do with the Friday night sessions tuning my rides like we used to do?  Tires last longer, cost more, no more tune ups, no leaking of oil, no more headers to swap out, race tires to change, or low bars to replace.  All done from the factory....I wonder, and go back so often to the good old days of my early riding.  I wonder, have all the improvements really improved riding....the same thing the old ones before me must have asked.  Just one ride should answer that.....

But some things go beyond wisdom and understanding.  Choice of what you ride, if you ride, where you ride, and how you ride all come into play.  Our rides reflect us more than we let on.  But we should never participate in religion the same way.  While some are brought in as a tradition, the family always worshipped that way, some are brought in socially, via great youth groups or special events.  Some like a teaching pastor, some with a friend, and some are just along for the ride.  If Baskin Robbins has only 31 flavors, religion could never get along with so few.  Countless Lutheran synods, Baptist alternatives, Pentecostal, fundamental, Catholic, cults with Jesus’ name in them, and some who deny him altogether, yet claim to be chosen.  But only in Jesus Christ do we have the ability to choose, to say yes or no, and to choose how we worship.  I was saved during the Jesus movement of the seventies, we sought the truth over religion,and many new churches sprung up.  Bible studies filled homes at night, and it was out with mainline denominations, in with Jesus.  Praying became popular, we talked about Jesus in public, and we formed a tight brotherhood of believers.  A golden age to those of us who were in it, but with an eye out to the future, so we would not become the religious institutions of the past.  But for some it wasn’t enough just being a Christian, these anti-religious believers grew into an elite if not hateful crowd, claiming their way was better, but leaving Jesus behind.  Like minded men were the choice,and either agree or move on.  And many of us did....with many of us moving up, and closer to Jesus.  When the church began to advertise, to go after new members from other bodies, when church attendance was the criteria for success, we left.  But so did Jesus, and sometimes he was never missed. 

God has given us the freedom to choose, but like riding, we all choose differently.  For personal reasons, but  how many of us chose Jesus because he made it personal?  So we could escape religion, so we could find the freedom in Christ we found in our riding?  Some of us found the brotherhood of bikers lacking in the church, and decided to spend our time riding in prayer rather than in church wishing we were riding.  Only in Christ do we find the freedom he speaks of, to allow us to choose, and let him be God.  But can we remember we all have the same Jesus, or are supposed to?  That it is his death and resurrection that make him unique and that we should celebrate?  Is Jesus a daily routine or a miserable hour on Sunday?  Our lives say more about him than we wish others knew about us.  Have we become so righteous we have become religious?  God knows...do we?

Paul warned the Corinthian church to stop it wrong ways, turn and repent, not turn or die.  He knew of the divisions among the body, and found no place for it.  Either do I, we need to get back to the basics of Jesus, remember the apostles creed, and maybe a dose of Acts 2:42 injected into churches wouldn’t hurt.  Churches seem hell bent on going the Brit bike route, don’t let your epitaph be “we never did it this way before.”  Jesus never changes, we do.  He never left, we did.  If only choosing what we want about God was as easy as choosing a bike to ride.  Are you loyal to Jesus or his brand?  Never has being a Christian been so exciting, or so important.....your new “in the beginning” is calling.  Only in Christ will you have the wisdom to tell the difference.  Understand?

love with compassion,

Mike

matthew25biker.blogspot.com

maybe it's time to step out of the ark

 It was only after getting my license and expanding my horizons, that east, west, north, and south became directions rather than locations.  West was where the deer and the antelope play, where discouraging words were few, east was where foreign cars like Volkswagens and MG’s came from.  The south meant the confederacy, and north meant hockey, like they play in Canada.  Up until that point, all directions were based on either going left or right from my house.  Simple.  School was left, high school was right.  Bud’s Cycle Center was left, Jay’s was right.  The Esso station for air was right, the Gulf for gas to cut the yard was left.  The park was left, Joey’s was right, Crestwood Cupboard was left, the Sweet Shoppe was right.  Plainfield left, Westfield right, go left to get to Grandma’s, right took me to New York City.  With some variations....go left, the right to the shore, Phil’s BMW go left then left again, the Honda store was left, buying K81’s you went right.  Life was simple, and if you knew your right from your left, you could get anywhere.  Even moving to Florida was left, then a long right...to Albuquerque add another long right.  I could get anywhere based on going right or left, in a series of turns if needed.  Just like a GPS will tell you today.....and get you lost along the way.  All based on where you are, a starting point.

When someone asks you for directions, the first thing you should ask is “where are you?”  You do don’t you?  If not how can you give directions?  Something to consider, and not a new concept.  Consider Noah for a minute or two.  After the flood and landing on a strange mountain Mount Ararat, the world had changed.  Not only did he have no one local to ask directions from, the whole surface of the planet had changed.  All the familiar landmarks he knew had been underwater, some still would be, and how do I get where I need to be?  Or want to be?  And how will  know when I get there?  You think you got problems...from a valley and a neighborhood he was all alone except for his family on a mountain.  Now what......he had a whole new world before him, much like Adam and Eve did, in which he had go forth and populate it, build cities, establish a government, and only had God to guide him.  He was an old man in a new world, just as Adam had been a new man in a new world, and the possibilities were endless.  Just like when we become a Christian, and become a new creation in Christ.  He might have some familiar landmarks, remembered those that had chastised him, but they were all gone.  What about his family, all the animals, all the provisions that God had provided through the storm, was he on his own now.  Or would he realize that now he needed God more than ever.....the world had changed, how much had he changed with it?

The word discipleship is thrown around loosely in many churches today.  They have no problem with the salvation message, but after being saved, many are thrown to the wolves of the world.  Saved on a Sunday, but back at work on Monday, and the insults begin.  And many falter and regress back to what they once were.  Where is the discipleship, the preparing for the new life, the new relationship with Jesus that is changing the way they think?  Noah had to wrestle with these, and real Christians do on a daily basis.  But the battle is not our own, it belongs to Jesus, and in him we have the victory, we have the tools, and we have the love and compassion.  We are truly a new creature, born again, with access to all the things of heaven, able to do all things in Christ who gives the strength we need.  And if you feel all alone, think of Noah and his view from the ark.  Where do I start, what do I start and when?  And with no one to taunt of harass me about my relationship with God......he must have thought, at least I have my family.  But how quickly things can change, and he should know.

If you feel rejected after being saved, if your friends desert you or make fun of you, you are seeing a side of Christ you need to see, how he suffered at the hands of the Pharisees, how religion was against him, and how aligning with him was dangerous.  How money changes value, as he was sold out for thirty pieces of silver, the price of a slave.  Sold out for nothing, but what a great place to be, alone with Jesus and nothing to interfere.  But yet we feel less in value sometimes, remembering the price paid for Jesus, but not the price he paid for us.  Maybe the most important question you will ever be asked by God is the same one he asked Adam, “where are you?”  God knows where we are, but do we?  And if we don’t know where we are, in sin or newly saved, how will we know which direction to go? Is not a relationship with Jesus more than points on a compass, a set of laws to follow?  Or is it the true freedom, to want to follow him, to want to pray and read your Bible?  Is it found in laws or love?  But we now have access to all we need.....maybe it’s time to step out of the ark. 

Job wondered at one point if he was too far away for God for him to hear.  He’s a guy who really needed direction, and love.  Some compassion to ease his pain, not a set of rules to point out his fallacies.  No matter which direction he turned his problem was there, but so was God.  We need to know that, to act on it and in it, no just say we believe it.  We may think we get it, or have it all together until the first crisis, and we need direction.  A simple reminder from Jesus, who in all he did he pointed to his father, giving him all the credit.  Noah was no sailor, and couldn’t claim any of his actions for victory, it was only God in control who saved him, who never abandoned Job,and who is with us right now.  So where are you in Christ Jesus? It may explain your dilemma.  It may be as simple as knowing God instead of knowing all about him.  We have the logos of God, all of his word, but only when the  rhema, the spirit driven part of it, the rod for the exact time and place is given, will we see God at work and the way out.  His direction, not necessarily a direction.  And in all these things God is trying to break through to you via his holy spirit. 

So maybe life is as simple as left and right.  Left behind or right with God.  Knowing him personally or just joining a church.  A whole new world is ours someday in heaven, but until then, when we get to our final destination, we need direction.  We will be tested many times in life, it is when we step out of the safety of the ark, where we really start to trust God’s direction for our lives that we see him more clearly.  When we lose fear and gain respect.  Is your life just a point on the compass, or a place to desire?  Is God’s direction a set of rules or a relationship?  Are the directions  you give to someone for salvation as easy as the gospel?  God asks now “where are you?”  Your answer will reflect where you are in Jesus.  As a kid we all knew directions to get around in our neighborhood, but when it expanded, we asked for help.  No one wants to be lost or admit to being lost, it can be scary or exciting.  Only God and Noah knew exactly what he thought when he first left the ark, his new life was just beginning.  But he saw the rainbow, a sign from heaven that he would that the world would never be flooded again.  What you see when you come to Christ will impact your life.  Abraham was promised all as far as he could see, he saw God instead.  Job hung onto God irregardless of the advice given.  And in case you forgot, where’s Jesus?  Sitting at the right hand of God. 

With only one way so you don’t get lost.  Jesus, and oh the roads he will take you on to get there. So, where are you....

love with compassion,

Mike

matthew25biker.blogspot.com

AKA Richard

I used to minister to a man called Richard, at least that was how I knew him.  Just released for prison, and new in the Lord, his story of crime was fascinating, if not unique.  He was doing drugs and living in sin, renting a room in house shared with others.  He was afraid of being caught and persecuted for his crimes, fear gripping him, and he stayed off the streets.  He believed he was being watched by the law, and had actually developed paranoia.  So when sneaking out one afternoon to get his mail at the post office, putting the letters in his back pocket, and having no ID, and walking back home, he wasn’t surprised when he was arrested, went to court and served a sentence.  A sentence, but not his, as when he was arrested, he had his room mates mail in his pocket, none for him that day, and the police had a warrant for his roommate’s arrest, not Richard’s.  They thought Richard was his roommate.  But full of guilt and figuring he would be caught anyway, he served the time, and upon release went to court to clear his name.  Explaining to the court who he really was, the judge not really sure what he wanted done.  But since he had served time under his room mate’s name, he had no criminal record.  The judge even explaining to him he served time he didn’t need to.  Get on with your life.  And to this day, according to Richard, no word from the roommate whose mail he retrieved that day......Richard did jail time but has nor record.   

But while in prison, Richard was saved, and God changed his life.  Even starting a cleaning business, and as he used to tell me, “now I’m cleaning places I used to rob.”  Quite a story, and true.  But what led Richard to serve time in his roommate’s name, and being known by that name, was done in fear.  Knowing his crimes, he expected to be caught someday, and did the time.  Just not his.  Fear had placed him in a place where he had no escape, he knew no way out.  Sometimes your fear is bigger than your enemy.  Just ask one shepherd boy named David.....

 I am amazed at how some preachers hide behind a pulpit telling us to be bold in the Lord, to not fear, all in the shelter from behind it.  David had no pulpit, in fact no war time weapons, only a sling and some rocks, which were used to scare off wild animals and protect his sheep.  So when confronted with a nine foot giant, with twelve fingers and toes, whose armor weighed 125 pounds, he knew Goliath might be bigger in size, but no match for God.  “The Lord saves, the battle is his,” he proclaimed, and the man who would be king faced his enemy, but in the Lord.  The threat was huge and very real, but so is God, and when there was no way out, God was the way, and still is today.

David was delivered from his fear and his enemy in the face of battle with no sword or spear.  No war time weapons were needed, only God.  And only one shot to the head was needed.  Leaving his six shooter sling with five stones left.  In Romans 8 we see a list of who can separate us from the love of the Lord.  No persecution, distress, death, demons or any created beings, can separate us from the love of the Lord that is in Jesus Christ.  David alone faced the taunting of Goliath, while others ran in fear, he face the enemy in faith.  Whatever Goliaths you face today, God has a plan for you to overcome the fear and be victorious.  But you need to let him fight the battle, for it is his, not yours. 

Scripture also tells us that fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.  Not the same type of fear that man can hold over us, but one of respect for who he is.  For at the name of Jesus, even demons flee and quake in fear, they are aware of the outcome, and we should live like we do to.  Jesus won the battle on the cross, was resurrected and defeated death, and in him so do we.  So many times I just throw up my hands and tell him “it’s your problem, deal with it,” and when I really do let him, his peace returns, and the battle is his to win.  No other name under the heavens or under the earth has more power and reverence.  And someday you will be in eternal reverence, those in heaven who trusted Jesus and believed, those in hell who denied him, and now face him in agony.  They fought their own battle and lost, not trusting in the Lord.  For every knew shall bow, and every tongue confess, that Jesus Christ is Lord.  In the heavens and under the earth.  Every knee....

And be sure that God will not know who you really are.  He knows all the AKA,s the nicknames, and who you are.  Richard may have done time under another name, but his real name is written in the book of life in heaven.  No one gets there by accident, and no one suffers in hell when innocent.  All have fallen short of the glory of God, and all are born into sin.  Only Jesus saves.  So when the threat of punishment, or fear of the unknown is everywhere, remember so is Jesus.  He won the big one, and although we have many battles to face yet, they are still all his to fight.  The good shepherd protecting his sheep, just like David the young shepherd knew.  “I shall fear no evil, for he is with me.”  Even the shadow of death has no power over us.  David volunteered to fight Goliath, Jesus volunteered to die for our sins.  One day when Richard was picking up the mail his life changed, but not forever, that came when Jesus Christ became his Lord.  Man is tallest when on his knees.  Size matters, so just how big is your God?  At least a bit bigger than your problem.  Trust him.  David did, God knows who are his.  No matter whose name is on the mail.

Just be glad occupant has no warrants out for him....we could all be in a lot of trouble!

love with compassion,

Mike

matthew25biker.blogspot.com