A Biker’s Devotional

By Dennis Reynolds

Change In Direction/ A Different Road

A few years ago, some friends and I decided to ride the eighteen hundred or so miles out to the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in South Dakota. The round-trip route we chose would take us through seventeen states and some of the most beautiful countryside America has to offer. Now, we absolutely could have done the Iron Man thing and busted our butts to get there in just two days, but instead we decided to make it a four-day ride so we could enjoy the trip.

Days one and two were uneventful, allowing my companions and I to enjoy amazing scenery as we put the first thousand miles behind us with no real issues. Day three would be somewhat different. When you are on a fourteen-day road trip, it goes without saying, you will almost always run into some sort of bad weather.

We had stopped on I-29 somewhere near Sioux City, Iowa to take a break when Bill Edwards popped out his phone to make a quick check of the weather. As an over the road trucker he is somewhat anal about doing that, and I am glad he is because we were heading directly into a huge thunderstorm. From looking at the ra- dar, we could tell the storm cell would be crossing our path just before we reached Sioux Falls. This was bad. While we had no issue with donning our rain suits and toughing it out, due to the size and intensity of the storm, we decided to make a left onto High- way 20 which runs to Valentine, Ne- braska and then head north to I-90 in South Dakota. It was out of the way and would most assuredly add time to our trip, but at least we would stay dry. Hopping on our bikes and taking the first detour of our trip, we headed out with the sun shining over a cloudless sky, as we left the interstate and hit Highway 20. We had already traveled through hun- dreds of miles of beautiful country, but we were not prepared for what we saw on Highway 20. As we crested a hill on the two-lane road, the beauty of God’s creation hit us like a ton of bricks. The sun was beaming down on the greenest corn and soybean farms we had ever seen. A north to south wind was blowing across the fields, so they resembled waves on the ocean and the road twisted through for as far as we could see. No photograph could do it justice. As we followed the blacktop weaving through these fields for the next 20 or 30 miles, the maj- esty of God’s creation took our breath away. I pumped my fist in the air to praise God for the blessing of allow- ing us to experience that moment in time. The storm had forced us to stop dead in our tracks and take a different road, but we were blessed because of it. I will never forget that day or what I saw…

You know, things are always going to come against us as long as we live here in this fallen world. We are confronted daily with deadly disease, terrible crime rates, and natural disas- ters.

As an example, I am friends with a wonderful couple who I love dearly. Life was trucking right along just fine for them until recently when a serious

Sunday September 20 th

roadblock appeared out of nowhere. As I write this article, he is awaiting test results to see if he will be diagnosed with lung cancer. He has faced cancer before and not only survived, but he thrived! Today though, they are cautiously awaiting answers to see what direction they need to take. Please keep them in your prayers.

Thinking of them, I am reminded of a Tim McGraw song where the person telling the story had received news “that stopped him on a dime” and how he appreciated the diagnosis because it allowed him to focus on things that were truly important.

When our lives are rocked with a disease, or we can’t pay our bills, or some other roadblock causes us to readjust and redirect, it just may be because God has a blessing waiting for us that we need to see. Maybe there will be people touched by your story, maybe someone will be encouraged, or maybe you will begin to see things in a different and more positive light.

James 1:2-4 NIV tells us, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”

So, when the troubles of life force us to change our plans, we need to take a step back, focus on God, and look for that blessing! It will surely come!

Ride on, stay safe! Dennis Reynolds Mideast Regional Elder Bikers For Christ M/M

SATURDAY SEP 5 TH BRACEY’S CARNIVAL BENEFIT 2PM-8PM @ HANDLE BAR 2610 S ANDERSON RD, CATAWBA SC. ASHLEY BRACEY WAS IN A TERRIBLE MOTORCYCLE ACCIDENT AND NEEDS OUR HELP

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