Even youths grow tired and weary,
    and young men stumble and fall;
but those who hope in the Lord
    will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
    they will run and not grow weary,
    they will walk and not be faint.

Isaiah 40:30-31

Over 150 cyclists can’t be wrong!

Okay. So I will admit to an “overachiever” moment Saturday morning. Back on March 28, when I decided to take a short bike-ride to see if I might possibly enjoy it, I had absolutely zero intention of riding more than the occasional mile or two around the neighborhood.

Fast forward to June 27 and the We Are One EHE Prostate Cancer Ride. I completed 44 miles with our team at an average pace of 15-mph. I did well in the middle part of the ride but struggled a little at both the beginning and the end.

So there are a few things I’d like to share:

• First, my bike (nicknamed “Sammy” on my ride app) is amazing. It is, in case you missed it, a Trek Domane SL5. I love the feel, the weight, the balance and the remarkable responsiveness.
• Then, the other guys in the Tarboro Cycling Club are all kinds of encouraging and affirming. They allow me to feel like I am making progress and they go out of their way to make my experience as positive as possible.
• Also, the event hosts (the good folk at Thornes Chapel Missionary Baptist Church) were gracious and generous. The ride – heavily supported by the Sheriff’s Department – was well organized and went off without a hitch.
• And, a word about the cause. The annual event is designed “to support Emmanual Health Education’s efforts to raise public awareness about prostate cancer – especially among African American men in Edgecombe County.”

This initiative is hugely important, more so when we consider the fact that prostate cancer should be fairly simple to screen for, identify, treat, live with and recover from. Unless, that is, you are in a medically underserved community and/or unable to secure affordable health insurance.

Bottom line: you can’t treat something you don’t get screened for. This is a really good cause, because it promotes community-based health interventions – and if there is anything cycling teaches us it is that we need each other.

Defying Gravity:

Then the final thing that’s on my mind is gravity. Gravity is a huge player in bicycle riding. Gravity is defined as “The force of attraction that pulls objects toward each other.” The strength of the pull depends on how much mass an object has.

So, as the Earth has a little more mass than I do, my default setting is that of lying flat on the ground. Standing involves work against gravity, walking involves still more and then bicycle riding does a really good job of defying gravity. But – eventually – the pull of the Earth saps the balance of my energy and I have to stop.

This is where hills are interesting. The bicycle is the perfect tool for finding out where an incline is. I am riding along quite happily, pedaling with what my App calls “moderate” effort, when all of a sudden I find myself slowing to a crawl, downshifting my gears, and using every last ounce of energy available, my muscles screaming in protest. In the Piedmont region they would be loath to call anything we encountered Saturday morning a hill – but in Edgecombe County a 2% grade is affectionately known as a “Mount Everest.”

Eagle’s Wings:

I guess that’s all interesting… but so what…? Well, in my life as a Child of The Almighty there is also a constant gravitational pull, and it tends to work against the best efforts of my Disciple Bicycle. Not so much mountains or even recognizable hills but so many subtle inclines and headwinds and even simple fatigue.

We have at least two recourses. First, train hard and improve strength and be intentional about this ride with Jesus. Then, and this is crucial, recognize that this journey is not all about self-generated power but working in tandem with God through the power of the Holy Spirit.

What I am saying is that we are lifted up on Eagle’s Wings.

But I am also saying that God expects us to put the work in.

Seventy years young and still learning – always – DEREK