Listen Up

I don't know why, but I don't sleep well anymore. I'm lucky if I sleep 3 or 4 hours without waking up, and then I'm even luckier if I can go back to sleep and snooze for another 3 hours. Most nights, however, I wake up every couple of hours and lay awake for a long while before I drift back off to sleep. So this morning, I finally gave up on trying to sleep and got up and was out the door for a bike ride at 5:15. It was cool this morning, around 60 degrees, and as I began to pedal down my street, I was thankful I had thought to put on a long-sleeve biking shirt. I had no more than turned onto the main road to head toward the sidewalk when my mind began to churn with thoughts, and it didn't take me long to understand that those thoughts weren't my own but rather God speaking to me. This post is going to be different than others I've penned ... I'm going to give you a peek inside my early morning brain and share the thoughts that flowed through my mind while I was riding. Listen up, and see if maybe God wants to say something to you, too.

My front light is crooked ... I need to adjust it so that it shines on the path in front of me. Every time I hit a bump, my light gets jostled around. There are more critters out when it's dark than when it's light ... I sure hope I never see a snake. If I hit a rabbit, I'm sure I will crash. Gosh, there are a lot of people out ... probably because of the cooler temperatures. When it's too hot outside, people hide inside their homes ... when it's too hot outside, it's hard to breathe. Pedal, pedal, pedal, pedal. That car was too close to me ... I could feel the wind from it as it went by. What if I get hit by a car in the dark? It's so much easier to ride on the smooth road than on the bumpy sidewalk. There are way more rabbits on the bumpy sidewalk than the smooth road. It's really hard to ride into the wind ... it's really windy this morning. It's so windy I can't hear the cars coming ... it's so windy I can't hear anything. Pedal, pedal, pedal, pedal. Lean forward more so there's not as much resistance to the wind. I'm going to take a different route today ... maybe I won't be riding into the wind if I change directions. Man, this hill didn't look this steep from the bottom. P e d a l, p e d a l, p e d a l, p e d a l. Finally ... the top of the hill. It's so much easier to coast downhill than it is to pedal uphill. Ahhh ... the wind is behind me now, and I'm going faster. It feels so much better to have the wind behind my back than it does to have it in my face. My fingers are tingling ... I'm gripping the handlebars too tightly ... I need to loosen my grip. I wonder how long it would take for someone to find me if I had a heart attack out here in the dark. Pedal, pedal, pedal, pedal. What is that over there? Is it a cat? A dog? A fox? A bobcat? Oh, it's just a bag of trash ... I wonder whose trash that is? There's no other trash out here on this road. The sun is coming up ... it's getting lighter out. The final turn toward home ... I think this hill is steeper than it was yesterday ... breathe in, breathe out, pedal, pedal, pedal. I need to stop and take a drink ... have I had anything to drink since I started riding? OK ... start pedaling again. I hate this last hill on the trail. Lean forward ... pedal hard ... dig, dig, dig ... don't stop pedaling ... almost to the top. Ahhh ... made it. Nod good morning to the two women I pass every time I ride. They must live on the trail. Just a couple of minutes, and I'll be home. Pedal, breathe, pedal, breathe, pedal.

"Listen up, Terrie ... listen up. Your light is askew, yes, but it's still on ... trust Me to point it in the right direction. Stop worrying about the unexpected beasts of fur or metal along the way ... trust Me to keep them at bay. It's easy to venture out when life is cool and comfortable ... trust Me to breathe for you when the heat of life takes your breath away. The hills are steep ... the sidewalks are bumpy ... the wind will blow you about ... trust Me, Terrie ... trust Me to help you up the hills, to guide you over the bumps, to be your shelter from the wind. Loosen your grip, let go and put your hand in Mine ... trust Me to hold on for you. I will always find you ... trust Me to never let you out of my sight. You needn't be concerned about the trash left behind by others ... trust Me to clean up their garbage ... and yours, too. Look for the light in the darkness ... trust Me to be that Light. Drink ... drink ... drink ... drink deeply of My grace, My mercy and My love ... trust me to quench your thirst. Look not at the height of the hill but gaze upon the One who owns it ... trust Me to help you climb it. Pedal ... breathe ... drink ... pedal ... breathe ... drink. I am your strength ... I am your air ... I am your living water. Pedal ... breathe ... drink ... trust ... trust ... trust. Listen up, my child ... listen up to Me."