I have a vision. Hear, if you will, the burden that the Lord has placed on me.
For the past year or so, I really felt like I had written pretty much all I could say about my faith. I know that my God is sovereign and there are plenty of things He doesn’t tell me. I can be hard-headed and slow to learn, so I would always have something to talk about. But I felt the drive to attempt organizing something of a virtual church, as a basis for some kind of movement that spawned more churches around the world. That didn’t happen. For the time being, it won’t happen. I honestly believe that was a matter of God offering people a chance at something better, and they didn’t take it. That’s not pointed at you, dear readers. You did respond, but a lot of other folks didn’t.
Don’t be angry with them. We can never know the identity of the key people who turned away from this calling. There’s no time for wallowing in sadness about that. The window is closed. I’m moving on to what God says is the new mission. Things have changed and it’s time to move on.
It’s not all that different from what I was doing a few years ago, before I moved from eastern rural Oklahoma County into Midwest City. Back then, I took off on long bike rides, which put me in that odd place where I was wide open to the Spirit’s voice. I was out on the roads, often forgotten back roads typically seen only by locals. I took pictures and described what I experienced. Sometimes I talked to people and it was a blessing.
I’m going back to that. Just when I thought it was about time to wrap up (i.e., de-emphasize) the writing and move on to other, more practical things, that mission is back in full force. Only, this time there will be some changes. Instead of just going out on day rides, I sense this is the right time to include camping and multi-day rides.
It will require sponsorship. That is, with only my own budget, I won’t get very far. If you like the pictures and stories, pray that I gain more resources for this. In practical terms, I will need camping gear. Sometime in the future, I expect my four-year-old bike to break down to the point it requires replacement, and that’s not cheap. I’ll get something one way or another, but the better the bike, the more I can go. And the better my sponsorship, the lighter I can travel.
What I have now is suitable for the period of training up to long distance riding again. I’m not jumping into this project today. I’m not asking for donations yet. There is still too much unsettled, too much of not knowing what I’ll need or what I can use. I have no idea how this will branch out, nor how long this will continue. I don’t want to waste donations on extravagance that serves no purpose. I aim to be a faithful steward.
I’m going to publicize this on the other blog to a much wider audience, and it won’t be robed in terms of ministry. It’s just something I’m doing and they can feel free to participate as the Lord moves them. But it will be a service of sorts, sharing the experience and the results of my contemplations. Keep in mind that I no longer profess to be “in the ministry” as most people think of it. My calling is elder, not pastor. I’m just an aging philosopher trying to share my insights. And I still maintain that I am a prophet of sorts, though nothing like the common image of that, either.
I’m sharing this here to gain prayer support momentum before moving forward. I’m going to start small, obviously, and see how the Lord prospers this thing. I’m going to move the pictures to the other blog. They aren’t the product; the product will be the experiences and how they shape my writing. But the pictures and narratives will be the ostensible purpose that disarms folks who don’t really understand, gives them a place to hang this mission in their own minds.
Again: For now, I’m just letting you know to start praying about this. Keep your money, but I’ll be glad to accept actual camping equipment (lightweight, solo use) that I know how to use. If nothing else, I can practice carrying the load. I have only vague ideas of what I should eventually carry along. If you get some ideas or questions, share them. For example: Yes, this means the computer tech support ministry becomes a very tiny aspect of my future work. It will be marginalized by more important things, though it won’t disappear entirely. This will change the audience on the other blog to some degree. Eventually all of this will come to light there, but right now we are in the preparatory phase. I need to get a lot more riding miles right now.
To them I’ll say, “Come along for the ride.” To you I say the same, but with a whole depth of meaning they won’t grasp so quickly.
