Rich Dixon asks some thoughtful questions:

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Our stop in Memphis, entering the last third of Rich’s Ride, featured hospitality and questions.

Our hosts, Dick Foth’s cousin Dudley Boyd and his wife Melissa, decided we needed some pampering after six weeks on the road. They arranged a weekend at the historic, luxurious Peabody Hotel. (Check out the Peabody Ducks on YouTube.)

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Ever notice how some questions reappear? You think you’ve answered them, but they keep popping up. When a question comes at you from different angles, maybe it’s trying to tell you something important.

As a teacher I learned to be guided by students’ questions. Answers lead to endings and closed doors. Questions indicate which doors might need to be opened. Answers tell me what someone knows. Questions tell me what they want, or need, to know.

Questions provide opportunities to serve.

Great communicators know when to provide an answer or ask another, deeper question. Secure communicators know it’s okay to say, “I don’t know.” And when a difficult, life-changing, soul-stirring question springs from the heart, compassionate communicators know when to say, “Let’s figure it out together.”

I think that’s often Jesus’ response. I want a quick answer, but He knows I need a companion and guide.

From the beginning of Rich’s Ride, some form of two particular questions arose so frequently that they became part of the project’s DNA. In Memphis, I realized investigating them was integral to understanding the project.

What’s next? From first week to final day, people wanted to know where this dream led once we reached New Orleans. They implicitly assumed this project was part of something bigger…a challenge I frankly didn’t want to consider.

Why? It’s a powerful question. Initially I thought it meant “What made you do something this crazy?” Eventually I understood its true meaning:

“How can I find the courage to follow my own dream?”

Good question, huh?

To be continued…