Boone, North Carolina is more than just a beautiful mountain town. There
is no bad road leading to or from Boone if you ride a motorcycle, and even if
you don’t. To some it is a college town, the home of Appalachian State
University, to others it is a great small town to act as a get away for hiking
trails, to those of us who ride the twisties one of the roads leading to “the
Snake,” more turns and less traffic than the Dragon. And I have ridden it
twice, with only one of four roads left untried. A pleasant surprise on a cool,
spring day escaping the curse of I-40. But my next trip to Boone was to visit
the Billy Graham Library, which I figured naturally to be in Boone, since that
is where Billy lives and grew up. So with careful planning and great
excitement, it was off to Boone we went.
Arriving on a day where it poured, even by their standards. We had a motel
room, so we had a dry and safe place to stay, but arriving in town had us
finding shelter under a gas station awning. The convenience store adjacent to
it, was a place to hang for a few minutes, and we asked where the BGL was, and
no one there had heard of it. Surely Boone’s favorite son’s library was known,
it had even been sponsored on TV. But both clerks, and other customers all
shook their head at the wet So Cal bikers, they must have thought we were nuts,
and maybe we are, but I was sure someone had to know. I mean Billy Graham, his
home town.....
So after checking in, and drying off, we turned on the TV and watched the
local news. The big story was of the dangerous weather in Charlotte some 120
miles to the east. It seems over 600 lightning bolts had hit the ground in just
over an hour, we were sure glad we weren’t riding there that afternoon. But
still seeking the library, we asked the clerks, and even other guests at the
hospitality gathering at the motel, surely someone would know, and someone did.
The BGL wasn’t in Boone, the reason no one would know where it was, it was and
is in Charlotte, and if I had been smart and researched it better, we would have
been too. In town just in time for the 600 lightning bolts to use us as a
target while riding in. No better target in a lightning storm than a motorcycle
on a highway in the rain, and in my ignorance, the Lord had used it to protect
us. I had prayed asking “Lord where is it?” and never got an answer with
directions, I would have headed there. That was the desired destination. But
his silence and the silence of others to my single request may have saved our
lives. At best it would have been a lousy ride. But God knew, as he always
does, what is best for us. and a simple detour to us, was his plan for our
safety all the time. And a reward of riding the Snake the next morning. Maybe
giving me a new insight as to why when God says no, or is quiet, it is just to
get us to slow down and spend the night, seeking shelter from the storm. In
him.
That one night not in Charlotte gave me new insight to the Lord and his
direction. And how even without us being aware, he is looking out for us. Even
when we appear to know where we are going, but really are lost or misdirected,
he is still guiding our paths. But to know where to go and how to get there, we
need direction. And the best place to start is “where are you?” The first
question you ask someone when they ask for directions. If you don’t know where
you are, you have no starting point, and any direction can be wrong. And with
people, we need first to admit we are sinners. If we don’t think we are, why
would we need a savior? The world around is enough to show of how low we have
sunk, but we also have the holy spirit directing us, telling us “you need
Jesus,” not an argument for Bible scholars, a denominational call for
membership, or an argument to win, we all have fallen short of the glory of God,
and Jesus is the way. The way, not a way. And until we obey the spirit, and
realize we are sinners with no hope, we will not turn to Christ. We may turn to
religion, but it is not the same. God sent his son, and then left his spirit to
guide us, but we will not change until we come to know sin is wrong, and the
things we are doing, the way we are living, and our belief system is wrong.
Only Jesus offers forgiveness, and is available no matter where you are, at any
moment. He was in Boone, while we were there, keeping us safe from Charlotte.
Maybe a lesson in patience too, as the old truism about not being lost as long
as you have gas is true too. We had a full tank, we still needed the spirit’s
direction.
Another trip would have us returning to Boone, but after a trip to see the
Billy Graham Library, in Charlotte. A place I would give 5 stars too, a
peaceful place, telling about Billy, but representing the God he served, giving
Jesus all the glory. Much like we did after seeing the lightning strikes on
TV. Up until that point he was keeping us safe, without us knowing it. So
where are you in Christ? Who is he in your life? A Sunday event you must go
to, are you a CEO, Christmas and Easter only? Do you believe in God, but don’t
know him? Even the start of questions, is the sign of the holy spirit calling
you. No one wakes up one morning and decides to go looking for God, the spirit
is calling, and our flesh is weak. That day we were looking for a somewhere,
when someone was answering not what we wanted, but what we needed. We smile
about it now, and give thanks for my ignorance, even experienced travelers get
lost, or misdirected. Some of our best rides have been when we missed a turn,
only to find a road we never knew about and were blessed. Again, the spirit was
guiding us, and Jesus knows a thing or two about being on the road. Scripture
emphasizes Jesus time on the road, born on the road, rode into Jerusalem on the
road, Philip met the eunuch on the road, the two disciples met him on the road,
and he fed the five thousand on the road. He was finally crucified on the road
for all passing by to see, don’t you pass by and miss him. Lost, where are
you? Before you can ask direction, you must know where you are. We are all on
the road to somewhere, but only one road leads to heaven. Jesus truly is the
way, to heaven and to avoid the storm. One night not in Charlotte may have
revealed more about his love than any ride I have ever taken.
When God asked Adam in the garden “where are you,” it was one of position
in their relationship, for God sees everything. He knew right where Adam was,
but did Adam? Yet Adam was found hiding, he knew he was apart from God, do
you? Where are you in Christ? It’s not too late to change the road you are
on.
love with compassion,
Mike
matthew25biker.blogspot.com