Mobile Mid Afternoon Prayer Reflection: FINALLY, wow! After six days off the bike I finally took a ride. It felt great, and I really needed it! Very quiet out, just a few people and, well my wild geese..two flocks today...who decided as I approached it was time to stand in the middle of the bike path (group one) and the other decided to cross the bike path...it felt like a game of goose dodging! (No geese or cyclists were harmed!) I enjoyed the quiet that followed all that congestion. So why so long without riding?...Well unintended...there were just things popping up that I needed to do, errands I decided were important, weather and a couple of I just cant face-its. I often have those moments when I start out and think...I am not into this today...there have been days I have sat in the driveway before I start and think, am I really up for this today? Yet every time at the end of the ride, I feel better, so why dont I remember that more often? Today I pondered a lot about a stand I took, that I am sure you all saw me post on, and thought a lot about why we let things stand in our way, things we need to do or should do. I also thought, as Ii have all week, about the fear of doing what needs to be done and all the ways we can talk ourselves out of doing the right thing. As I discovered this week, much of that can be due to a fear of unintended consequences. I learned, a long time ago, that all actions good or bad have consequences some of which will adversely affect others whether intended or not. This past week the stand I took was honestly from where I was and from what I believe is right and it sent all sorts of people scrambling to fix those things that my stand caused to happen. There are some hurt feelings because of that and for that, while I am sorry, I also know that people had a choice in how to respond and they chose to respond as they did. This is an example of a more grand scale affect by taking a stand and I can honestly say, I do not regret having done so. I have not ridden a bike for 6 days, the affects were personal, how quickly sluggish I felt by the third day and honestly because I felt sluggish, I chose not to ride until today. I had a choice how to respond and I made it and it was a poor one. In the latter I was afraid of the consequences of just getting on the bike after a few days off, it would be hard, it would be like starting all over, it might rain and I would get wet. Consequences and the fear of them can certainly make us choose the wrong thing, make us not speak out when we believe in something, it can make us just go with the flow and never get anywhere. Today I faced up to the affect of people scrambling from my stand, and have jumped in to get things done that need doing that I can do something about. Today I chose to ride my bike because I needed to. This week I have learned to not fear speaking out and learned to face those who were unhappy with me and help solve new issues. So today I pray for all those who fear to act, those who may be hurt by right action. I pray for all those who just cant face the things they know they need to do and I pray for all those who do take a stand, those who move us forward and I pray for those who feel left behind because of it, that they may see clearly, love more dearly and bravely do the right thing. Oh yes, and for those wild geese, sometimes the spirit does stop us in our tracks and says wait a minute, I am crossing! Amen!
Posted on: Wed, 20 Nov 2013 22:08:38 +0000