As we sat at Oceanside Harbor yesterday, I was amazed at the amount of
boats of all shapes and sizes that call it home. It must be in the hundreds, at
least in the dozens, and while a few slips were empty, the majority were full.
And on this beautiful, but windy day, only a few were seen actually out on the
water. An expensive hobby, from purchase, to rental, to upkeep, just to use on
high days and holidays. A lifestyle if you will not for the faint of wallet, as
just the upkeep, particularly of those that sit in salt water would be
prohibitive to me. Add the cost of fuel, $300 for a fill up, and my head is
spinning, must be sea sickness, or something like it. And while the only people
I saw on the boats still secured were working on them, I wonder how much is
labor vs. how much is labor of love. So I’ll pass on water going crafts,
although I still like jet skis, but would never own one.
My neighbor brought his motor home, his RV home last week for its annual
smog and tune up, before it goes on a week long trip. Telling me how economical
it is to travel in, he has to spend hundreds for a tune up and safety
inspections before he can use it, $200 in gas to leave, and then go sit for
another 51 weeks. Doing the math, say his payment is $500/month, I can hear the
sales pitch of how it “only costs less than $18/day to travel in.” But the
payments go on for 365 days/year whether it sits or is used....$6000/year plus
license, plus maintenance, plus gas and oil, plus incidentals, and it is very
expensive. Even RV parks have gotten expensive, and I rather spend $100/night
for AC and a pool rather than sleep in what I drove in on. Even at half the
rate, would you sleep in your car? Yet hundreds of thousands of the RV’ers clog
the roads each summer. Driven, or rather guided by those who possess no special
license, and many times towing a Prius or other suitable vehicle behind. Even a
Harley or two can be seen on carriers, and the real rich will carry their toy
hauler behind. As I look for a place to pass as they tie up the freedom of the
road. Cousin Eddie lived in one....I rest my case.
Now although I will never own an RV or a boat, I do get why someone would,
and why they do. But for me and many others, the open road means two wheels,
wind in our face, and miles of smiles. Our chosen mode of escape that can be
used any day, not just on vacations. And although the cost of entry has risen,
is nowhere near boats or RV’s. Less expensive, and even for those that
motorcycle camp, a huge cost savings. But today bikes pull trailers, can weigh
over 1000 pounds, and cost over $30,000. Not a cheap sport any more. But is
it? Visiting with friends years ago, he had just spent his 500th night in his
trailer pulled by his Gold Wing. His goal was to travel for $1/night and he had
accomplished it. I can see his point, but he didn’t see mine. I slept in air
conditioned comfort, had spent time in the pool and hot tub, watched an old
movie on TV, he was hot, sleeping in a tent, surrounded by others like him.
Having to get dressed to go to the bathroom, waiting in line for a
shower....public shower. For my $75 room, who do you think got the better
deal? I don’t get it...maybe I’m not supposed to. I rather think of other
things.
So the cost of entry into recreation can be expensive, no matter what you
get out of it. But just like you need to vacate to be on vacation, you need to
recreate in an RV. What do you dream of 52 weeks a year to spend your 2 weeks
off on? And so we have been counting down the days until we leave on our next
trip, 18 and counting. A new bike this year, a Triumph Tiger 800, the old Tiger
retired at over 102,000 miles, and 48 states and Canada. Its last trip in
March, a thousand mile weekend. And I cannot wait to see how the new one
performs. Only 11 states this time, mostly back roads, and thousands of
memories waiting to be made. What ever the cost of entry will be worth it, and
like the RV or boat payments that continue even when not in use, so will my home
mortgage. But we will vacate...our dream of being on the road. A dream we live
every weekend in shorter distances, but always look forward to the big one. And
the people we will meet along the way.
In between the miles, the places, the meals, and the rain, it is the people
you meet that make each event. The conversations, the bench racing, the sharing
of trip notes, the meeting those who ride and get it makes the trip. It will
always come down to the people, for no matter how much fun, or not, the ride
needs to be shared to be appreciated. Time spent in prayer when planning, then
finally going. It is all about the people you meet along the way. A man from
Tarsus, Saul, had been a violent persecutor of Christians. Yet when he met
Jesus along the Damascus Road, and his life changed, he needed people to help
him. So God sent two men, named Judas and Ananias, to guide him. Imagine if
God told you to greet a serial killer, a bike club member into your home,
because they had been changed by Jesus? Would you obey the spirit? When you
were first saved, who did God send your way to help? How many of us experienced
the love of Christ via other Christians, giving us hope and support? Here we
see two men with ironic names, Judas who betrayed Christ, no Judas who will
guide a new convert, and Ananias, a priest who tried Jesus, to disciple him.
Maybe God does have a sense of humor. But the key here is praying, as God told
these men to pray, to show the love of Christ through them, and he will make the
changes. The first mark of a Christian, prayer, talking to God, and hopefully
listening also. And here we see the persecuted and persecutor having roles
switched, the one who hunted now needing sanctuary, the hunted providing it.
Makes no sense, but to God it makes perfect sense. God told Ananias “you don’t
need to fear a man who prays.”
And so Saul begins to enjoy the Christian life, the joy of Jesus, by those
ministering to him. We never know who we will meet along the road. But God
does. Whether in a four wheeled wobbly box, or on a 180 hp motorcycle, nothing
surprises him. And he has put Christians on water, in the desert, and in the
mountains, who will minister to someone, when the chance shows up. My friend
who spent 500 nights in his trailer spent many around a campfire sharing Jesus.
How many desk clerks can be ministered to by just being nice? How many boaters
throw out the life preserver to many who don’t know they are drowning in sin?
Some hobbies and lifestyles are more expensive than others, but God has put
Christians in each one, to go and be the gospel. So it should come as no
surprise who he sent for Saul. Only we are surprised who God sends, and even
more surprised when he sends us. To some ministering will be laborious, to
others a labor of love. Some will count the costs, some will lay them on
Christ. Some will haul a Harley, some will ride one. But in each case, we find
those who need Jesus, and those who God will send to minister to them. We count
the costs, and although we prefer to travel by motorcycle, the cost benefits are
an aside, an added blessing. Just like the incurred higher costs are an aside
to the RV’er, or the boat owner. Not everything comes down to dollars and
sense. How can you put a price on what Jesus did for us? Or are you still
seeking a cheaper salvation? Why work for it if it is free to all? Why sit at
home and worry when the road is calling, and the spirit is telling you “you need
Jesus?”
So get out where the Bible comes alive, on the road. Where Jesus
ministered. Even in a boat, where again Jesus ministered. Where the action
is. Vacate, not stay cate. A whole new world of excitement is calling, what is
your answer? Some boats never leave the harbor, some bikes the garage. Some
Christians never leave the church building. We know who you are, do you?
love with compassion,
Mike
matthew25biker.blogspot.com