Jon’s note: Four years ago, in the early days of our collective pandemic journey, Rich Dixon reached out to offer to write once a week here. He understood my work. He wanted to give me a break. I was so grateful. And still am.

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Four years ago, you and I began a journey.

In 300-word chunks, we’ve wandered through a catastrophic injury, a chaotic recovery, and a connection with the handcycle God used to save my life.

We (finally!) ended a 1500-mile Mississippi River adventure. Last week we asked, “What’s next?”

When Becky and I arrived home in mid-November, 2011, we knew we weren’t done. We prayed, prepared to wait for guidance.

It came in the form of an unexpected phone call.

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When we met Aaron Smith in Minneapolis at the beginning of the Mississippi River ride, he promised we would talk more. I sort of forgot about it.

Aaron and Paul Hurkman operate Venture. They invited us to join a 500-mile team bike ride from Cincinnati to Washington DC in July 2012.

I’ve learned that when I seek God’s guidance, “What’s next?” isn’t always what I expect. It’s rarely comfortable or easy.

This time I wouldn’t be riding by myself. I’d be with a team. Strangers. All in their early 20’s, younger, stronger, and faster than me. They wouldn’t want to poke along at 10 or 11 miles an hour. The whole idea was crazy!

As I trained and prepared, confidence gained during the 1500-mile ride faded. All the old anxieties and insecurities returned. I wasn’t gonna be fast enough or good enough.

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Perhaps you see a familiar pattern…one step forward, three steps back. And you see Jesus patiently walking alongside, refusing to give up when all I (and maybe you?) wanted was to quit. You see his Relentless Grace guiding toward a future I couldn’t see.

So I met my new team in Cincinnati for a ride I was sure I couldn’t do. You don’t need a crank-by-crake description of another bike ride, but some stories from that tour altered the big picture.

When we returned a few weeks later, we had seen some things we could never unsee.

To be continued…