Issue link: https://cp.revolio.com/i/1512588
22 | WheelsOfGrace.com | #70 Onramp Onramp Why? Because we never know where danger is going to come from. Maybe that driver is on his way to the hospital because a loved one just coded, or has a child in ICU, or is just distracted by a ringing cellphone, a crying baby, and a spilled cup of coffee. Been there, done that, saw it coming and took appropriate action. Because I'm always checking mirrors, looking for possible dangers and looking far down the road, literally "keeping my head on a swivel", I've turned several situations into an opportunity to congratulate myself for being pretty good on my '06 Road King. Like the time I saw a couple gallons of oil spilled on the road just before my turn. Avoided it, had to go through the last bit of it, a little fishtailing, and made the turn. Or like the time when riding in formation and heard the bike behind me and to the right lock up his rear wheel when everyone was making an unanticipated slow down. The bike to my right and slightly ahead was struck from behind, went down to his left exactly where I would be in about one-half of a second. Because the sound of the locked-up tire alerted me, I moved left at the moment of collision and watched the two tangled bikes and riders slide under my twist grip. Of course, there have been times when I didn't have a problem just because of 'dumb luck'. I prefer to believe that the Lord was watching out for me. I recall, as a novice rider in high school, blowing through a stop sign as the sunset was right in my eyes. The car which had the right-of-way didn't pull out because a someone stepped into the cross walk at just the right moment. Keeping our heads on a swivel, while it sounds like a lot of exhausting work, actually produces peace while you're riding. You know what could go wrong and can anticipate the other drivers' or riders' lack of judgment, attention, or skill. To me, as a believer in Christ, there's an obvious parallel between this approach to riding and all the stuff that happens in life. Things like recovering from child-abuse, unwanted divorces, personal financial melt-down brought on by those divorces, 25 years of combating type 2 diabetes (it's just a touch of diabetes – a bunch of pills and 4 shots a day), loss of a career due to betrayal, etc. Other than that, life's been a piece of cake. Oh wait, because of the diabetes, I can't have cake… However, I do have peace of mind (God is in control), peace of heart (the Risen Christ is near), and peace that passes understanding (the Holy Spirit is within, and I can't always explain it). When I ride, I am riding toward something that grows brighter every day, and not riding to numb the pain or escape the past. I'm living the dream, expressed by Paul in II Thessalonians 3:16; "Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with all of you." Here's hoping and praying that He's with you as well and you've got peace to show for it. Off the main highway: The astute rider on the 316 Highway will note that I skipped over First Thessalonians 3:16. That's because I Thessalonians 3 ends at verse 13. However, scholars believe that these two letters were written very close together. Paul wrote, the readers responded with correspondence of their own, and Paul wrote again to answer the questions and correct their misunderstandings of his first letter. But note; the theme of both letters is experiencing peace in the face of an uncertain future. How are you doing with that? Milepost 13 on the Highway to the 316 Highway to the 316 Highway KEEP YOUR HEAD ON A SWIVEL KEEP YOUR HEAD ON A SWIVEL By Steve Merrill