Herding Cattle On Bicycles
Herding Cattle With Bikes
Dr. Vince Hefner, Pastor, First Baptist Church, Cherryville. NC
My favorite outdoor activity is riding my bike. I enjoy several hobbies, but most of them entail me watching a sporting event while I am in the seated position. I don’t consider yelling and cheering to be an act of exercise, so I need to do something that will keep me in reasonable shape as I have passed the, “Halfway Mark,” of my life expectancy. One of the best feelings in the world is to ride a bike, 25 or 35 miles. When I get back in shape, I will be able to ride over 50 miles and enjoy nature and thrill of activity. Of course, riding a bike isn’t always a great experience. I have been yelled at and cussed by people riding in automobiles who are angry because I’m on the road. I have learned not to respond when someone is acting ugly; this also works when I am not on my bike! I have never won an argument with an angry person, and the best thing you can do is to remain calm while they rant and rave.
A few days ago, I was riding with a preacher buddy. We were only going to ride about 20 miles, so it was not going to be a long or difficult ride. We hadn’t been on the road but for a few miles, when I saw something that I have never seen while riding a bike. We ran into a small herd of cattle in the road! A bicycle is no match for a car, much less for a bull with a bad attitude.
However, what do you do when you find yourself face to face with a bunch of cattle that have no plans to go forward or backward? Then it happened, without a discussion or vote, my preacher friend and I started to do our best John Wayne impression of herding cattle. We hooped and hollered as though we were on a trail bringing the cattle into a cattle town out West. We both realized that the cows could turn toward on us at any moment and we could be on the wrong end of a stampede, but we continued on our mini-trail-blaze in the face of the potential danger. It would have been a great frontpage story in the newspaper, “Two Ministers Killed in A Stampede While Riding Their Bicycles! Community Has BBQ After Funeral Services!”
Believe it or not, those cows listened to us and started to move as we rode our bikes slowly and carefully, until the cows went back into their fenced in area. I never dreamed I would be a cowboy on a bicycle, but it happened. If you don’t believe me, you can ask the cows. As we rode off into the sunset, my preacher friend turned to me and said with a wry grin, “Those cows listen better to us than our sheep!”
Finding yourself in unusual situations is not new for any of us. We may not get a chance to herd cattle while riding a bike, but you must be prepared for just about anything. If we are prepared for the unexpected, then how much more should we be ready for the events we know are going to take place in our lives? Galatians 6:7-10 gives us this promise, “Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life. And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith.”
God promises to honor us, if we will simply honor Him. When God gives a promise, you can consider it a guarantee for now and forever. Today, whatever comes up in your life, honor God with your heart, mind, and spirit! We don’t always know what is going to happen in our lives, but we can always honor God in the expected and unexpected events. Remember, don’t give in to sin. Think about it!