We recently enjoyed a wonderful short vacation to Cape Henlopen State Park in Delaware! One special thing there is that they let people BORROW BIKES FOR FREE! (2 hr. limit) So we did– And I gleaned some life-lessons from it to share:

 Never pedal through life alone– you double the enjoyment and minimize the risks when you ride alongside a friend.

     “Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor:  If either of them falls down,  one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up. ” Eccles. 4:9-10

 There’s a time to slow down, and there’s a time to speed up. There’s a time to start, and there’s a time to stop. There’s a time to turn and change directions, and there’s a time to keep going the same way. Life has its seasons and moments for each. (see Eccles. 3:1-8)

 Once you’ve learned a skill, it will come back to you, even after a long time…even though you feel “rusty” and wobbly at first, once you get into it, it’s like…getting back on a bike! Like we did, for the first time in ten years!

 Coasting is heaps of fun, especially downhill. But you can only coast for so long before progress comes to a standstill and you find yourself in danger of falling!

 Some riders may pass you along the way. It’s ok. Let them go. Life isn’t a race. We’ll all arrive at the same place at the end anyway. Relax and enjoy the ride! And take time out sometimes to enjoy the view! 

When it comes to places, situations, circumstances, jobs, and careers—there will be times when we’re called to stay for however long we need to, and times when we’re called to “cycle on”.

     “Whenever the cloud was taken up from above the Tent, the Israelites      would set out, and wherever the cloud settled, there the Israelites would       camp.”—Num. 9:17

Follow directions (map, road-signs, wise people, etc.)—they’ll keep us from going out of the way, the wrong way, harmful ways (like riding off a cliff), etc.  They’ll also get us where we need to go, arriving faster, healthier, and happier.  Our road-map and signs is God’s Word.

     “There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to       death.”  Prov. 14:12

Travel as light as possible—don’t carry excess baggage—it makes those “uphill climbs” (challenges and trials) a lot easier to face and surmount!

     “…let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up”—Heb. 12:1

It’s extremely difficult to move forward when we’re facing backward— in order to turn our head and twist our body around, we either make the wheel turn toward where we’re facing and/or we lose our balance and fall!

   “…forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I     press on toward the goal…” – Phil. 3:13-14

Why just walk when someone is offering bikes to ride for free?  Why question, refuse, or try to pay for something good that someone offers us freely? Refusing grace denies ourselves joy and freedom. 

~Which of these lessons speaks most to you?