the bike that saved BMW and almost killed me

It all changed for BMW in 1974, prior to that they were great touring bikes, referred to as”the Cadillac,” because of their smoothness and shaft drive.  Staid and reliable, no one ever stole a BMW, they even had a generic key to start them, but in 1974 they went to a car type key, dual instruments, dual front disc brakes, and 900cc, 300 more than ever before. With the R90S they started the sport touring genre, and became the most expensive new bike ever sold at $3430 in 1974 dollars, when a Z-1 cost half of that.  But they also borrowed a page from GM marketing by releasing a new product not fully tested, let the public find the problems, and it had two major ones.  The bolts holding the flywheel to the crank would sheer, mine did at 16,607 miles when the Wildman pushed the starter button.  And also at 111 mph, the bike went into a violent death shake, which went away at 112.  Accelerating through it was scary enough, but knowing you had to go through it when decelerating was even scarier.  The physical forces of slowing down made it almost unrideable, more than one rider got white knuckled following me as I slowed down, “Man I thought you were a goner...” as I hung on for dear life.  When I sold it after two years and 45,000 miles, the new owner swore she had never been over 100, and would be careful.  I never saw her or the bike again, I can only wonder....

A lot of praying went on at 111, and before and after.  But I also learned there is a time to pray, and a time to listen.  Too many are confused when asked “what’s the most important part of prayer?”  We are trained to ask, but yet fall short of listening and receiving.  God has shown me there is a time for prayer, and a time for listening, and preaching and reading the word are part of it.  When in danger I don’t need more prayer I need answers, sometimes right now.  In a message to Jeremiah, he told them it was a time to listen, and obey, they had fallen away, and needed guidance. But in listening comes judgment, which should lead to repentance, which should bring us back to our relationship with Jesus.  Prayer can delay judgment or the answer, preaching or listening to the spirit hastens it.  We need answers, not more rote prayers, not long prayers thanking God for everything when called for a specific reason.  We need all of Jesus he has to offer, we need to cease speaking and start listening.  God knows before we pray what we need and has the plan in action.  Yet many drone on informing him as if he was new on the scene.  “OK God, here’s the situation,” at least as we see it.  Yet we go on and on holding back God’s answer, because we don’t listen. 

Judgment is not God’s final answer for us, but a way of love to bring us back.  For us to realize our sin and see Jesus for who he is, turn to him, and repent.  Too many fear judgment as if it were a hateful act, but for those of us who have gone astray and been shown judgment via the spirit, it was and is the way back.  In our pain sometimes God must shout to be heard, to be taken to a place where we will listen and hear the spirit.  His answer more important than our asking many times, for he knows the situation better than we do, or will admit.  When God showed Jeremiah the state of the nation, God allowed the nation to fall, so they could see their sin and rebellion.  To admit they had turned their backs on God, to repent and return to prosperity.  Just like I needed to do at 111...

In our prayers we so often start them, but the spirit has never left us, and is constantly telling us “we need Jesus.”  In all our senses and spirit we can see our weakness, and God provides the answer.  Ever wonder where God is, but really ever wonder how many times he called you and you didn’t reply?  God is patient and wants you back, not to ridicule, but to restore.  To shine through, to let you be an example to others of his love and mercy.  Like the prodigal father, he longs for our return.  From any sin, from any situation, and from any speed.  What does it take with you until he can say “now do I have all of your attention?”

So there is a time to ask, and a time to receive, not always in that order.  I knew going up I would have to come back down, but did it anyway despite the danger involved.  My riding has changed radically over the years, the more seat time the better rider I become for all situations.  Same with God, the more seat time with Jesus, our relationship strengthens, and we converse more.  Read that, I listen more.  The spirit has never stopped talking to us, we stopped listening.  And in love, God will allow us to fall as far as we desire until we turn and return to him.  Both sin and speed are fun or we wouldn’t do them, but each has a consequence.  The words of discipline or correction may see harsh, but in the end they bring righteousness.  My riding world changed in 1974 when buying my R90S.  My forever changed when I met Jesus a year later.  He not only made me a better person, but a better rider, too.  In one 18 month period, BMW and Jesus both changed my life.  MY R90S would let me down, Jesus never has.  Ask less, receive more.  It is no coincidence that you can control your mouth and your throttle hand, but not your hearing.  Hear what the spirit is saying to you today, no need to repeat Jeremiah’s message, “While you were doing all these things, declares the Lord, I spoke to you again and again, but you did not listen; I called you, but you did not answer. Jeremiah 7:13 “

Even in my Arai I can still hear that still small voice....can you? 

love with compassion,

Mike

matthew25biker.blogspot.com

 

longer, lower, wider...

With The Ford Motor Company fazing out new car production, hopefully they hang onto Mustang, longer, lower, and wider, the magic three words of cars when growing up will be gone.  Already the Wide Track Pontiac is long gone, my Grandpa’s 1959 Electra 225, 225 inches long that is, barely fit in his garage, the front bumper kissing the wall.  Three across seating has been long gone in American cars, replaced by buckets seats with consoles, once reserved for sports cars.  Years ago manufacturers went from 16 to 15 to 14 inch wheels, to make the car ride lower and look longer, now only Low Riders have that look.  At a car show yesterday, it was shameful to see so many 1960’s cars stock except for 20 and 22” tires, disgusting.  It seems that the low must be from custom cars, and the higher the pickup sits, the more manly it is.  Making cars of yesterday that were large by comparison, now look small.

How many $50,000 pickups must sleep out each night because they cannot fit in the garage?  Too tall.  Even my old Ranger barely fits, it used to be a compact, now its replacement due out soon is the size of what a full size truck used to be.  Wonder how many garages it won’t sleep in?  But the manufacturers will give the public what we think we want, it used to be stepping up was going from a Chevy to a Buick, now it refers to gaining entrance to the cabin of a 4x4.  Remember the quote Henry Ford never made about black only Model T’s?  Now that is the only color available, stylishly called charcoal, or light black.  Give me the old brown leather or vinyl of the old trucks, bench seating, three on the tree, rubber floor mats.  A cup holder meant you held your drink in your hand, alternately shifting hands while shifting gears.  It seems the only thing that is getting longer, lower, and wider is me!  What a hit I must have been in 1954! 

I can remember the view from my 1972 MG Midget, looking into the doors of Chevy’s, reaching up to push the button at Sonic, and barely touching the ground with my fingertips while at rest.  Lower, no self respecting sports car was longer or wider.  Maybe I am just dating myself, as cars 100 years ago were taller and longer, but not wider.  I’m sure that someday at a car show with my grandson, he will ask “Grandpa did you really own a car like that back in the day?”  And like my Grandpa did with me, we just went on, him telling me about how it was.  With a far away look in his eyes...

But how many of us are in it just for the ride?  The first century church were the ultimate rebels, giving in to Jesus, resisting sin, and willing to give it all up for Christ.  I have been part of too many conversations of “why can’t we be like the first church?” only to look at pathetic men who hide their Jesus.  I visited a man’s office once, and on the secretary’s desk was a Christian calendar.  When I mentioned it, and the man I was to see, I told her he was a Christian.  Which made her aghast.  “HIM?”  And I let it drop.  A true Sunday Christian, who lives a double life at work and at home.  Going with the trend, I don’t think many of us have enough Jesus to have been part of the early church.  Programs, procedures, policies, and processes have become the religion of today.  Special effects, big screens, and special speakers, we lose the intimacy Jesus offers.  Even small groups may not be the answer, as they only propigate the Sunday message.  Where are the ones who in today’s generation, the longer, lower, wider brothers and sisters who we look up to?  Quick, who is your Christian hero today?  How many hide behind a pulpit, instead of reaching out outside the church?  The first church was on the road.....longer, for days and weeks, lower, as they were cast down in public, and wider, as the gospel grew through them.  Men and women we look up to now, instead of taller in the pulpit.  I recently received an email to attend a Sunday morning church service for the pastor’s new novel, and he will sign purchased copies afterwards.  Has evangelism changed or have I?

Christianity will never be stylish, no matter how many diamonds your cross around your neck has.  No matter the bumper sticker you proudly display in your SUV while cutting someone off while talking on the phone.  If your car can barely fit in your garage, can your God fit into your life either?  Or do you leave Jesus out because he doesn’t fit?  Tough questions, we cannot do it alone, it takes the spirit.  Who tells us that God’s strength is made perfect in our weakness.  From the Bible, not the pulpit.  Not an ad, but advice from above.  Styles change, Jesus never does.  And he will never be stylish until he becomes real in your life.  Pastor Rick who got saved after being a mainline preacher for most of his life, used to tell us “man is taller when he is on his knees.”  He knew, and his testimony inspired many.  He had lived through the trends, but came back to Jesus.  Who welcomes us all back today.  I remember when Jesus was big and religion small, now I cannot tell. 

Some live for kicks, for speed, for style, for the moment.  He who dies with the most toys still dies.  From cars to motorcycles to golf, to fashion to movies and TV, we will always lust for what is out there.  This is what happens when we drift away from the Lord.  What looks good might only feel good.  I can still feel the buttons on an old Cordoba’s seat in my back side.  Stylish, yes, but not for the long haul.  Something to remember pulling your normal garages sized vehicle into your garage tonight.  Count the tall trucks out on the street.....mine sleeps in a garage.  Like my Jesus, safe and secure within, its black seats not withstanding! If size truly matters, what does your life tell us about the size of your God? 

Stickers like a relationship with God can fade....any takers for a first century church?  We can always meet in the homes like they did, maybe the garage.  What do you think?  And in Christ they were all in one Accord, which fits in the garage.  Hmmmmm...

love with compassion,

Mike

matthew25biker.blogspot.com

post road downs

Not sure how to rate this one, great planning, good luck, or miraculous intervention by a loving God, but I was able to ride almost 7800 miles between traffic jams.  7800 miles of not lane splitting, not being held up in traffic on freeways, really so not free flowing ways, across 16 states, and then there is Jamecula, I mean Temecula.  I had almost forgotten about this mistake of a road, and gotten used to what Esso used to refer to as “Happy Motoring...”  But watching as the faithful clogged two lanes getting off to go to the casinos, I was suddenly taken back to the traffic I had ridden so far and so long to avoid.  No secret California has many problems, one DMV experience will verify that, but with so much traffic clogged freeways, we cannot travel within the state as we used to.  But then the list of places we would go to is diminishing quickly.

We used to like riding in San Francisco, even had a map of the ten steepest hills, my favorites the ones going down where you had to stop at the top to see over the crest because the drop was so drastic.  But today filled with human debris such as human feces, used drug needles, and homeless camps, the last straw was the new Mayor blaming charity groups for not instructing the homeless on personal hygiene.  Do the pass the buck words from her mouth pass as personal hygiene? How many times we traveled to the Central Coast, great riding roads, nice, mellow people, and affordable rates.  Now an old family run since 1959 motel, that used to get $60/night charges over $120, without the amenities.  Gas is almost a dollar more expensive here, add in the ignorant two handed pumps bikers are forced to use, no wonder we travel out of state. And all it took was one trip back to Temecula to remind me....where the wind blows and the traffic slows.

But just as the generations preceding my arrival 30 years ago told of less traffic, lower prices, and a land of milk and honey, what seemed fine to us was harsh for them.  It seems with each new generation the qualifying characteristics change, and the most recent generation is used to driving in traffic, they never knew anything else.  So wasted hours on the freeway, overcharging for gas, and filthy cities are all they know.  It seems that when the high cost of living becomes too high, or too expensive, the people  look for alternatives.  San Francisco claims you must make over $303,000 a year to afford a middle class home, which costs $1.5 million.  A recent poll shows 46% plan on leaving San Fran, with over 61% naming Texas, which has no state income tax.  Want to save 10% a year, move there.  California residents, among them those involved in charity, pay 10%/year.  No wonder the state needs to be split into three....did you know there are over 200 languages spoken in the LA school districts?  And so the post road downs continue, it seems that even though there is no place like home, and if home is where your motorcycle sleeps at night, maybe “go east young man, “ and older ones too is the new rallying cry.

When Paul met Jesus on the road and was blinded, after regaining his sight he found he was more than blinded in his sight.  He was spiritually blinded, believing Satanic lies, not living an evil life per se, but under the influence of the world, one of the three great evils Jesus talks of.  The world tells us we can do it alone, we are our own destiny makers, and don’t need God.  But just as some live in physical blindness, many in the world live in spiritual blindness, thinking they are all right, being suffocated by the world, and not knowing it.  When Oprah is the answer, Jerry Springer ruining lives, and people being misled by Hollywood psychics, only $1/minute, we see where the prince of the air uses media to keep them captives.  Staggering from one paycheck, one traffic jam, one filthy city to another, the quality of life is diminished.  Under control of the world, the flesh, and the devil, and paying homage daily, without even knowing it.  But Jesus makes it plain, Satan has launched an incredible propaganda attack and he isn’t letting up.  For so long we have heard the lies that we believe them, we need a road trip from evil to see the good that only comes from above.  We need Jesus more than ever.

But one powerful tool given by God to each believer is his own personal testimony of Jesus Christ in his life.  Reading the letters of Paul, time and again he tells of how Jesus changed his life, and telling it to anyone within earshot, willing to listen or not.  From crowds to private audiences before government officials, his story of Jesus in his life has changed many via the spirit.  For it is the world of our testimonies, and the power of the spirit that saves.  By no other name can we be saved.  Jesus is truth,and when we meet him, we find the truth, walk in the light, and walk in his way, instead of being in the way.  Available to all who seek, all who ask, all who knock.  All those stuck in traffic, or even in San Francisco...

One ride across America and seeing the new found excitement, and coming back home has affected me.  There is life out there, clean air, empty roads, cheaper gas and housing, and clean neighborhoods.  Places where you fill up then pay, where a house on an acre or two with a barn, newly built cost under $200,000.  Where people are polite, kids play in their front yards, and men still hold doors open for women.  Where in the midst of a torrential storm, we were given shelter and welcomed.  These places are called America, where we see where God shed his grace on thee.  Some live in bondage by poor decisions, one decision of turning to Jesus will turn your life around.  The good news of the gospel, that is the testimony of Paul, who was blinded, and given his sight by a loving God.  Our gospel should be the same, tell of Jesus, let your light shine, show love, compassion, and forgiveness.  Life is for the living, not to be stuck in traffic.  What bondage is holding you back from freedom in Christ?  You know,  I feel another road trip coming.....

love with compassion,

Mike

matthew25biker.blogspot.com

today was tomorrow yesterday

We love vacations, in fact I have been accused of my life being a vacation, not sure what that one meant.  But we start to plan our summer trips in the fall, altering them as the year goes by, adding roads and subtracting roads, to  make the trip better.  But once a date to leave has been established, the real planning begins, along with a countdown.  Only 185 days till we leave, then the 100 mark, then finally the last days of the countdown.  Which seem to go by slower, as the day gets nearer.  We love looking forward to the day we leave with great anticipation, we can pack in less than an hour so much of the pre-trip preparation is done.  But when the day arrives, we are out of here, and another, not as exciting countdown begins, that of how many days until we return, or the trip ends.  Today was tomorrow yesterday as far as our anticipation .  And the last few days go much faster than the last few days of leaving went slower.  With the cycle beginning again in the fall.  Time is a constant, even if we aren’t, and to those who find time going faster as we get older, the truth is we are getting slower.  In everything except our vacations....

As Christians we talk of eternity like it was a date on a calendar.  Remember the hippie saying “today is the first day of the rest of your life,” it seems we confuse today with forever.  We want to live forever, if we can only get through today.  Jesus emphasizes the importance of his daily bread, and of our eternal life in heaven, but we lose interest between the two.  We look back, we seldom look ahead, but rarely truly look at today as we should.  Such was the case of the meeting between Paul and Felix.  Here we see Felix, along with his wife who he invited, to spend time with the author of most of the New Testament, yet he loses track, or maybe his true goal is revealed.  He wants money from Paul, and when he doesn’t get it, tells him “that’s enough for now, you can leave.  I will call you when it is convenient.”  But hoping Paul would come through with the sway, called for him frequently. With God, what is more convenient than right now? 

Yet the excuses flow when it comes time for Jesus.  Church, family, job, career, motorcycles, and hobbies all dictate our worship time.  To some it becomes a daily ritual with little or no meaning, God warns of rote prayers, how much of your time with God is a rerun from yesterday?  Do you pray as you go, reflect Jesus in your life as you go, or would we recognize you in public without your church face on?  Paul was telling Felix of a time when all things secret will be revealed, enough to curtail any conversation.  Yet we act as if Jesus doesn’t know, and our lives when exposed will be a surprise to him, and us.  Maybe that helps explain why an hour at church make us uncomfortable, or why they take the offering first before the sermon.  Our attitude towards giving may differ greatly after hearing what lousy sinners we are. Being asked to give money after Jesus tells us the love of money is the root of all evil.  Paul was telling Felix it will all be exposed....so Felix sent him away, to meet him at a more convenient time.  Of course we would never do that.....

Personally I would rather be riding my motorcycle deep in thought with the spirit than sitting in church thinking about riding.  Maybe it is a good thing we don’t wear labels on our lapels expressing our thoughts.  Yet at the end of the service, who doesn’t tell the pastor what a great message he gave, when confronted.  Or lies to their friend about it.  Felix was expressing our thoughts 2000 years ago, we know Jesus is the same, yesterday, and forever, but so are we.  Is that any way to prepare for eternity?  So I like the advice of Augustine, who after being told by the spirit he would win a battle when outnumbered, won miraculously, and made Christianity the rule.  He says “love God and enjoy life.”  What good is fun if we don’t enjoy it, and who should have more fun than a Christian?  We should enjoy today, knowing Jesus is with us.  Anticipate a great tomorrow, knowing it will again be today.  And reflect back on yesterday, on how he took us through.  Today, tomorrow, and yesterday have no place in heaven, eternity has no dates.  But life now does, what are you doing with your today?  Are you putting off time with Jesus until it is more convenient?  Would you put off a ride or trip until it is more convenient?  How many times do we tell Jesus to come back when it is more convenient?  Is the hold button the most used on your prayer time?  Is your time with Jesus put on hold to be played back at a later date?  Only you, and God know the answer.  Someday we all will as it will be revealed.....

Time with Jesus doesn’t stop when on vacation.  If you knew the day of your death how would it effect today’s actions?  We look forward to heaven, I doubt anyone will have a calendar there marking off the days since they arrived.  Some look forward to a vacation, some live a vacation, some look forward to heaven, some enjoy the benefits now.  “On earth as it is in heaven,” Jesus told his disciples.  Start packing now, start enjoying now.  Felix had the ultimate trip advisor, yet sought the payoff of money instead.  Who advises you will reflect in your planning.  Only 152 shopping days until Christmas.....still time to panic.  Your vacation in the spirit can start today, he’ll let you know the check out time.  Until then, enjoy life and love Jesus.  Tomorrow never looked as promising as it does today.  Like the old songs goes, “I love you more today than yesterday, but not as much as tomorrow...”  Jesus took the time to bleed, can you take the time to read?  Start packing now!

love with compassion,

MIke

matthew25biker.blogspot.com