prerunning Yarnell Hill

I was the only one who had ever ridden Yarnell Hill in our group of riding friends.  A split lane highway with tight and dangerous curves, it was the only way down to the desert when leaving Prescott.  Having ridden it with Rex a few times, I had his lines to follow, but this ride would be different.  Five of us on my suggestion, would ride form Farmington to San Diego and back over Memorial Day weekend, over 1700 miles in four days, no big deal, unless you hadn’t done it before.  Same as Yarnell Hill....right?

So after too much flat land and lack of curves, we were ready for the hill.  All the talk came down to the view from the top, stopping to gaze down, with an overhead view of the road and its curves, disappearing and then reappearing.  With more excitement than talent, we took off, me leading.  After warning them to ride your own ride.  But the temptation, and curves were too much for Brett, and he passed me going down hill, actually flying by me, oblivious to what lay ahead.  In fact so far ahead, we lost sight of him, which is never a good thing.  I cannot say a bit of panic didn’t step in, but when one of your group disappears, especially on a curvy road they have never ridden, suddenly you imagine the worst.  While praying for the best.  What we found turned out a little bit of both.  Brett had made it to the bottom, and on the last big sweeper before the desert floor, had gone wide, and into the tumbleweeds.  He was alright, his bike a bit dirty and dusty, and he was picking the local flora from his motorcycle. A bit shaken, he admitted he was having too much fun, and had overshot the last corner, the easiest one on the run.  We talked of how lucky he was, and he decided to let me lead again, as I knew the roads.  If only he had followed my lines, as shaky as they can be, he would have avoided the accident.....just another case of how a bad decision makes for a better story.....

Now anyone who follows off road racing knows the racers pre run the course before the race.  Too many times we don’t have the sense of the racers, nor the skills, and think we can do it alone.  If it works in racing, it should have worked on Yarnell Hill, a lesson I have learned riding in rural areas, where old pick up trucks doing 15 mph can suddenly appear, as can hay bailers, and other farm equipment.  If I cannot see around the corner, I slow, and at times have been accused of using common sense.  Prerunning may not be as much fun as racing, but it also may keep you out of a ditch.  Finishing the race, or ride is always the priority, everyone knows that to finish first, first you must finish. 

Jesus shared with his disciples to stay alert, and to watch because you do not know when the master will return.  But when do you start watching for the return?  If you know your boss will be gone for two weeks, do you wait until the last minute, and then prepare for his return?  As time passes we lose sight of his return, and get way laid, we just cannot wait for it, and when it doesn’t happen as we are told, some lose interest.  Or like Brett, when they see the promise, cannot wait, and try to make time, to enjoy the promised thrill.  Jesus warns we are to alert so we cannot be led astray, for we do not know of the time or date of the return of Jesus, just as we don’t know what lies ahead in the curves.  But yet many are falling asleep, turning to wine, and now pot, because both are legal, and after all, didn’t Jesus drink wine?  And the excuses flow.....until the bottom of the hill, and a wide curve, normally ridden at speed becomes an accident scene.  One that could have been prevented.  I have heard from pulpits that we can live as we please, but with no warning of the consequences.  You’re forgiven, you’re going to heaven, if I die I’m saved.  But what if  you don’t die?  What if you are tragically burned?  Paralyzed?  What about the burden to your family and others?  All because I’m going to heaven.....and it will feel like hell to get there.

Ride like hell and you’ll get there.  Same with living.  Jesus told his disciples to watch, to be ready.  For we don’t know what lies ahead, but fortunately God knows.  From his viewpoint on the top of the mountain, he sees all the traffic on the road.  He sees the gravel, the oncoming traffic, and he sees the speed trap.  How differently we ride when we know what lies ahead, forgiveness is a great thing, not having to be forgiven even better.  Jesus likens this example to a man going on a journey, for us a ride.  He has given us responsibilities to do, coulda, shoulda, and woulda are poor excuses for sin.  In every life we will face a Yarnell Hill, with different results.  Think of life as prerunning for a life in heaven, we win the race here over sin, we have a podium finish, lose here, you don’t want to know.  But have been warned.  Something to consider when praying for Jesus to come back now.  Five minutes before you were saved would have meant hell and damnation.  Brett might have made in down the hill first, but it cost him.  Don’t make the same mistake.

And just to let you know, coming back and going up Yarnell Hill, he followed the rest of the pack.  He wasn’t going to be fooled again.  We all made it, and over a Coke, decided to ride down and back again.  Jesus tells us to watch, one bad crash can leave that as the only alternative to life.  Prerun life in Jesus, see you at the bottom, or top.  He’ll be waiting.....and like we know when in a curve, keep leaning, and in life, keep leaning on Jesus.  Don’t wait until you overshoot a brake marker to see God.....

love with compassion,

Mike

matthew25biker.blogspot.com

my two cents worth....

I was so impressed years ago with the story of how on Wednesday night services, Peninsula Bible Church allowed the congregation to take money from the offering if needed.  What a novel and God inspired idea, and it was my dream to do it.  But being the rebel I am, wanted to give God the glory for it, not be a copy cat, but spirit inspired, and not draw attention to myself.   Which I just did, but that’s the story here.  Years went by, and I was invited to give the Sunday morning message at a Triker Rally in Laughlin.  After accepting, I began to put the plan in action, telling God I needed his help!  At first not so I would be embarrassed if it didn’t work, but so my faith could be boosted and I could see him in action.  A lot to ask all at once....but God was up to the task.

Trikers are a different lot, mostly older who cannot ride two wheels anymore, with a streak of poverty among them.  A close bunch, their own club in fact, and about 30 stayed for the sermon, in the hall rented right next the kitchen in the casino.  I felt like Jesus sitting among Matthew’s tax collector friends, with all the Pharisees looking.  So after my teaching about Nicodemus, titled Nick at Night, I passed the helmet around, explaining what God had put on my heart.  Putting in a twenty just to hedge my bet, we passed the helmet, and true some did take, gas was over $4/gallon, and the purpose was to help those who needed, but I must admit I felt a bit anxious.  I didn’t doubt God, but I was doubting me.  What was I thinking?  I then presented the helmet of cash to the President of the Trikers Club, who was almost in tears.  Seems the collection plate always went to the speaker to help with expenses, not the other way around, and I went out and blessed the individual trikers.  I was feeling pretty good, God had not disappointed me, or let me embarrass myself, and I had an extra bounce in my step, as one man explained he learned more about the gospel today than years in church.  “Keep the head swell down Mike, you need to fit a helmet over it to get home” I told myself.  God had answered my prayer more than I asked, and I felt funny, as I always do when told about doing a good job.  This was Jesus’ gig, I was just the messenger.  Not the banker either.  With one final good bye to be made.....

I wanted to say good bye to the club officers, all women, for inviting me, who I found talking excitedly, and when I approached, the tears began to flow.  Oh no, still no remedy known to man when a woman cries, but these tears were different, you could see the joy on their faces.  After being embraced, the President explained they had wanted to start a benevolent fund for their needy members, but never had the extra cash.  The $140 dollars in the helmet would pay off a final expense, and leave them enough to start the fund.  As my tears began to well up....the dream of many years had been fulfilled, and so had theirs.  We all had never met each other, yet the holy spirit used us to achieve a noble and proper end, helping the poor.  A lesson I have never forgotten, and one I hope testifies to the greatness of God.

Now some may say this is all about me, and they might have some credence, but I have the peace of God knowing why I did it.  You see when God gives the desires of your heart, and this was one of mine, he then fulfills the desire of your heart.  It is either all about Jesus  or destined to fail.  There was no way I had ever dealt with trikers before, and this would be the only time I was involved with them.  But given the time and the place, and guided by the spirit, I saw a loving God bless all who were a part of it.  Nothing I could ever do on my own, I am not foolish enough to try that, but I can do all things in Christ who gives me the strength.  $140 may not seem like much to most bikers, but that day it was like the poor woman who gave her two cents, it was all she had, and she gave it to God.  Trusting him, and honoring him.  I felt like the richest man on earth, only surpassed by the Triker Club.  And their benevolent fund.

We don’t know what God has in mind, if we did we would argue.  That morning I had a dream, a vision fulfilled.  So did the Trikers.  A secular club, who never expected the gift from God they got that morning.  Next time the helmet is passed, put in what God instructs, not for your sake, but for those in need.  For by doing these things unto the lesser, we are really doing them unto Jesus Christ.  His words, not mine.  And being able to see what Jesus meant when he explained “give the things unto Caesar the things of Caesar, but give unto God the things of God.”  He doesn’t want or need your money, he needs your acts of love through obedience.  And when he gets the glory, you get the blessings....that’s my two cents worth.

love with compassion,

Mike

matthew25biker.blogspot.com

just how much power is enough?

We are getting a glimpse of the good old days in the horsepower wars.  Ford vs. Chevy. vs. Dodge.  With Plymouth, Mercury, and Pontiac, and others missing.  But these three more than satisfy even the most hard core horsepower junkie, at least on paper.  But who drives on paper?  The answer may surprise you.  If you are rich enough to afford the payments on a $70,000+ plus car, you can have a Mustang Shelby GT500, a Camaro ZL1, or a Dodge Hellcat.  With only the Camaro offering in with only 650 horsepower, the others over 700!  Maybe the good old days are here again, but if the car is able, are we?  Are the roads?  Is your insurance company?  Who is man enough to handle all the power to the ground?

Sadly much of 1/4 mile testing is done on the dyno rather than the track, so you techies get a car developed by CAD, produced by CAN, and tested on the computer.   But no one I know drives there, so real life track testing tells the real story.  Some brag on horsepower, some on sales, some on price, but the real winner is who can navigate the course in the fastest time.  And arrive at the finish.  A fast guy can make a slow car quicker, but also a slow guy can emasculate a quicker car.  While some quote specs, and some race for championships, true competitors go for the win every time.  One race, one mile, one quarter mile at a time.  It comes down to the person behind the wheel at any given moment to either be the true performance champion, or just another poser.  And like in life, it also tells about the size of the person behind the wheel, the one making the decisions and impacting the outcome.  Key decisions that can spell victory, or cause defeat.  Not all competition goes on only on the track...

How many of us when we pray really expect the answer we get from Jesus?  Do we give him an either or request, spell it out for him, or just tell him the problem and wait for an answer?  When asked about taxes, Jesus who owned no property, asked for a coin and had to borrow one.  Reaching into a fish he withdrew the coin from its mouth and asked “whose face is on it?”  When they replied “Caesar’s,” he simply said “give unto Caesar the things of Caesar, and to God what is God’s.”  Maybe the truest example of separation of church and state, as when we come to Christ we belong to him.  We were bought and paid for with a price, we have given our lives to God and we are his.  Now given that you say you believe that, how do we handle the problems of life?  Do we realize how limited human authority is in scope and duration, or do we immediately look at God the same way, limited as a man?  Do you know that God has ordained government on earth?  That he is the only true independent, not choosing political sides?  That even though we may not care for the politics, that God has let the ones in charge be in charge?  If only for a short time...remember Israel had poor kings also, Nero was Emperor when Peter wrote “submit yourself to the government for the Lord’s sake.”  He who lit Christians on fire for street lights, and used them for entertainment in the arena unto death.  Fortunately he only had limited power over the hearts and souls of men.  He could not dictate to their spirit. Even today as Christians around the world are persecuted, the world cannot legislate who we worship, who governs our conscience, and it cannot make us love.  The one thing Jesus told us there was no law against, love, now is coming under fire.  True we must and do give the things of man unto man, but do we make the same effort with God?  The spirit that controls your decisions is found in those decisions.  That ought to scare a few of us....have we really given over of ourselves to Jesus?  Do we acknowledge his spirit in our lives?  Do we prove scripture by the things of God following us who believe, or are we just another poser, religious person?  Is the pew you sit in really the smell of death? 

Do we truly give over the things of the spirit to God, or do we limit him as we have as little faith in him as we do man?  Jesus is telling us the ultimate issues belong to God, not to people, for we are limited in our scope.  But he is everlasting, all knowing, always present, and operates outside of time, in love, so that all things work together for those who are called his own.  It takes more than a Jesus sticker to tell the world you are a Christian, do your actions portray Jesus only adding words when necessary?

Just like horsepower reminds us of the good old days, Jesus reminds us of the good old days when he walked on earth, and of the good todays when his spirit is here to walk with us.  Don’t be like so many owners of these muscle cars who buy them and store them for  investment, remember they were created to drive and thrill, to provide excitement and give a thrill.  Life not thrilling enough, maybe you need to invest in Jesus, and live life as he intended it.  Not by putting him on a shelf, not by a Sunday only appearance, and not by only studying the word.  For horsepower, like the gospel only works when it is alive and being used.  It was only after Jesus’ crucifixion and his spirit dwelt within them his power was revealed through him.  Don’t keep your love on the shelf, get out and live a fruitful exciting Christian life.  If only a quarter mile at a time.....the written word is powerful on paper, but it only reveals its true strength when applied to life. Just how much power is enough?  Jesus is adequate in all things.  Who you are given over to will show at podium time.....why wait until the end to enjoy the victory?

love with compassion,

Mike

matthew25biker.blogspot.com

 

the high cost of low prices

After succumbing to cabin fever and five straight days of rain, all the batteries were charged, and all the bikes in the garage polished.  I had caught up on all my mail, and was left only with Craigslist and the motorcycles for sale ads.  Seems prices go down for them on rainy days, and this one day was no different, as the prices seemed too low, but we know that drill all too well.  I had been eyeing Kawasaki’s new Z900RS for awhile, but the high price, at least to me kept me in the Triumph stable.  I had even at one time considered trading my Tiger 1050 against one, but came to my senses when I realized what a step down it would be.  But still the lure was there, it would only take the right bait.  As in price....

Now a bike with an MSRP of $11,199, plus freight and set up ends up well over $12,000 before taxes.  So the $8995 ad price got my attention, and responding via email, heard back quickly from the general sales manager.  To me the deal is your price, you advertised it, plus tax and license, about 10% of sale price.  And my fantasy world was shaken, $1590 added dealer margin or profit, plus $280 to register, thanks California, and 9.5% sales tax, it is only 7.75 where I live.  Quick math told me it was not a good deal, he was adding more in ADM than discounted from retail, and his tax number were high, in his favor.  Listed on some contracts as government fees, you decide.  When I cornered him on his specious pricing, he countered with his cost, before hold backs of $10,379, plus tax and license.  Before I could question why did you try to low ball and add on the fees, he explained “if we do not advertise low prices we never get any calls.”  So much for the buyer beware.  And so I passed.  Just how far have we fallen from telling the truth?  Just to sell a motorcycle......

When I bought my 2017 Bonneville T120, Art the owner sold it to me at cost, less his holdback money, he offered I cut him off, I want him to make something to stay in business.  So I got out the door with all tax and license for less than the MSRP, and I was happy.  Sadly talking with Nate, a guy who works in service for a multi line dealer, he had just bought a Z125, the Grom of Kawasaki.  MSRP of $3195, discounted to $1995, the ADM of $1500, he paid more than retail, and that was his employee discount!  Am I stoned or just stupid, or was he?  My daughter in law works for KTM and got my son a new 2019 250 for $33% off retail, her price.  Mickey tells me the same deal from Triumph, but with a hassle.  Both with no added dealer mark up! So it can be done.  But unlike Nate, I am not willing to pay too much, nor be suckered by a low ball price.  The Z900RS deal fell through because I still felt ripped off, just tell me the truth, you may get less phone calls, but more word of mouth and more sales. I see dealer invoices, Harley dealers make 25% before adding ADM, and all the chrome and leather is added on, while some Japanese bikes make only $300, on a $5000 bike.  It used to be getting a free $50 helmet sealed the deal, so many of us still ride what is in our garage.  And with no advertised low prices, I find more time to ride, that is why you bought you bike isn’t it?  Well, isn’t it?

Two men were in the chapel praying, one rich and famous, the other poor and destitute.  The rich man praying out loud “thank God I am not like that poor man,” his pride bubbling up inside, for in his mind he was better, maybe the best.  With no money issues, he felt comfortable and secure about his next meal, or his next BMW.  He had tax people, and others to take care of his worries, he thought he had it made, discounting the fact of his pride, and how it was a stumbling block to him and Jesus.  He bragged on himself, not on what God had done in his life, as if he had all the right answers, and the poor man didn’t.  Failing to know one key fact, both rich and poor come to God the same way.  The poor man was humbled, the rich man would need to be humiliated.  Jesus tells us to be satisfied with what we have, both men here approached it from different perspectives.  One was concerned where his next meal was coming from, the other which restaurant he would have it in.  How it would taste.  One was wondering how he would get there, the other which car would he drive.  Affluence had become a hindrance, and a stumbling block between him and God.  His riches had transferred his concern from the necessary things to secondary things.  His affluence had become a stumbling block, as he was now unteachable, knowing it all, he had made it, he should be the teacher!  His life of affluence had become one of comfort, and it now would take greater things to comfort him.  All external, things to be seen, and for others to desire.  And then there is the other guy, the poor man....

In his humility he forced himself to spend time with God, to seek his spirit to be comforted, and was satisfied with what he had.  It is not a sin to want nice things, but many times a price higher than we expect is paid, and not in dollars.  In humility he asked God, not by bragging, but by testifying to God’s greatness, and his provisions.  With one great difference, one admitted he was a sinner, the other didn’t.  Pride will keep us from God, he became owned by the attitude of things rather than the one who provided them.  But both still need Jesus to enter heaven, and repentance is the first step.  There is no other way.....

So for many years in business and personal, I lived by the definition of a good deal, where both parties benefit.  No low balling to get me in, you set the price, then I say yes or no.  Only in Christ do we see how fair salvation is, for it costs nothing out of pocket.  It cannot be bought, rented, leased, or borrowed against.  It is the same for all, confess Jesus as Lord and savior, repent, and confess him with you mouth, live a changed life in him.  No low ball salvation just to get them in, although I have heard some lies just to get people to church, or sadder yet, to the altar.  God is not the genie in the lamp so many profess him to be, and things tend to get worse after salvation because you see sin and how dirty it is.  But he is always with us, everlasting.  With no ADM for becoming a Christian.  If only buying a new bike was so easy...

Rich or poor, only Jesus saves.  And at today’s prices, it still remains a miracle.  While some boast in men, I choose to boast in Jesus.  No small print, only small faith.  No false promises, only the truth.  Just tell me the price, let me decide.  Sadly selling motorcycles is not like salvation, just be glad it is not the other way around.    Jesus paid it all, what part of free don’t you understand?

love with compassion,

Mike

matthew25biker.blogspot.com

when pickups used to be trucks

 My earliest recollection of vehicles wasn’t cars but trucks.  I can remember blue and white 1959 Ford F100’s used by the local mason, and grey and white ones used by the carpenters, thinking this was how to identify them.  And my first audible of the Ford Y-block, later brought to life in my 1949 F-3, with its trans planted T-Bird motor.  And its clever venting of oil directly under it.  Big Dodges carrying oil to customers, Mr. Howarth’s Dodge, then Chevy dump trucks plowing the streets.  Trucks meant men and we all wanted to grow up to be a man.  How many highways and subdivisions were built by us using Tonka trucks, we used to flood our gutter and build dams hauling dirt and rock in them.  Just like the big guys did.  When it came time to dig sewers, the back hoes were hauled by one ton flat beds, followed by more dump trucks.  Trucks that hauled dirt, gravel, asphalt,and then plowed the snow.  My world was all about trucks...and still is today.

Remember the first time you saw Duel, where the Peterbilt tank truck chased the Plymouth across the desert?  I actually saw the truck at a truck show years ago, better than Disneyland.  And no lines.  A guy I knew had a B Model Mack dump truck, what trucks should look like, with a five and a four shifter.  What a joy as I watched him going through the gears, all 20 of them.  Watching logging trucks going faster than sanity allowed, and passing us on curves-on our motorcycles.  The open canopy truck with the butchers bell telling us he was in the neighborhood.  Good Humor trucks, not cars.  Route 22 filled with semis on their way to New York City, creeping down Jugtown Mountain, we didn’t understand why they went so slow....I remember taking my commercial drivers license test after delivering to Mesa Verde.  In the snow, the instructor telling me if I could do that, that was test enough, and passed me.  And today, the trucks all bikers must have when their rides need to go to the hospital, aka shop.  We all have one now, and Ford bragging on how 75% of its sales are trucks, is fazing out all cars except the Mustang.  At one time it was cool to drive a truck, now any soccer mom under the influence of cell phones and kids can drive one.  Maybe a signal of just how far society has really fallen...

But as cool as trucks used to be, there was also a certain stigma attached to the owners.  Farmers, construction workers, and other blue collar types drove them, they were work trucks, a step down to the flashy car crowd.  No one ever wanted to go the prom in a pickup truck, but offer a limo...and the deal was sealed.  Trucks were rough riding, they worked, sometimes until almost dead, than thrown away and resurrected again by its next user.  Our first truck, a 1949 Ford F-3, a one ton, was used to carry firewood in Colorado.  Big 21 leaf springs on each side.  Then a work truck, now a collectible, as cars have gotten out of reach of the working class, motorcycles still too strange for some to collect, so trucks it is.  With 1948-1955 Chevy trucks going for over $50,000.  Resurrected so the original owner would never know them, too pretty to work, too rough to drive.  So they sit in heated garages, with girly men telling about how tough they and their trucks are.  Just don’t lean against one or you might scratch it...we have come a long way for when pickups used to be trucks, and all us kids played with them, in our dreams wanting to drive one someday.  While some dreamt of being president, some of us dreamt of building roads and highways.  Houses and cities.  Real men in real trucks...with the kidneys to prove it.

We are told in scripture that unless God builds the church we labor in vain.  Ever heard that one when they are begging for money for their building project?  Yet so much time, so many meetings, and so much energy is spent deciding how to grow the church.  I know, I have sat through the meetings, and while some plan, they expect others to do their dirty work.  To get out and do the real work, while they sit back, and watch.  And if the plan fails, it is never their fault.  It has been said “Man plans and God laughs,” you all have your own examples.  But I have found that when God plans, we get to laugh, with joy.  His idea of building a church is different, requires no funding, and has no walls, denominational or other.  Raised in a generation where evangelism is inviting someone to church, we don’t want to mix with the lesser ones, an invite to church will make some faint, and even asking makes them think they are evangelists.  But I have this strange philosophy, based on the word of God, if we just do what the spirit asks of us, that is all we need to do.  And the church will grow, and instead of meetings, planning boards, mortgages, and complaining, we get to see God in action, and be part of it.  But like too many today that think manhood is found in an F150, just looking the part, not being the part is what counts.  What your friends at church think of you more important than your standing with God.  Talking about God, never mentioning Jesus.  Don’t want to upset anyone with the gospel.....

Years ago I was active in a national motorcycle ministry, until I read their bylaws.  Which said I had to tithe to them.  Wrong, that’s not giving.  But what opened my eyes was they advised to not have communion, lest you offend someone.  So much for the do this in remembrance of me crowd, and I chose God over them.  You see when man plans God does laugh, but he cries also.  When Jesus wept it wasn’t because Lazarus had died, it was much deeper than that, they had missed the gospel message of resurrection.  Without resurrection you may as well be a cultist.  Only Jesus backed up his words by raising from the dead!  So be careful of how you evangelize, or the club you join.  There was a time when trucks and cars were different and we could tell the difference, today many Christian reactions are no different than those of an atheist.  Is your Jesus sticker the only way we know you are a Christian?  There was a time when we could tell without being told.

So I keep my religion as simple as my truck, six cylinder, rubber floor mats, and roll up windows.  OK, and auto with air.  But I keep my religion simple and all about Jesus.  No substitutes, no pastor or teachers to follow, living by the spirit and living life to the fullest.  Led by the spirit.  Living a life in remembrance of him, and doing it openly.  Using words when needed, for the actions of Christ are remembered long after your memorization of verses fails.  It is not how much you know, but who you know.  Can you say you know Jesus as Lord? 

Maybe it is ironic that the closer the Bible gets to the last book, Revelation, the more it warns of false or fake teachers.  Lazy and safe Christians, an attitude of the Pharisees, and how many will fall away.  Having tasted but never dined on the spirit.  With one suggestion about trucks.  I still love cars and motorcycles, but when broken down, who do I call?  Who answers and hauls me to the dealer?  Jesus and trucks, they should never change, but we should.  In remembrance of him.  What do you remember?  And we should have seen it coming....

love with compassion,

Mike

mattehw25biker.blogspot.com