Wed., May 23, 2018

Luke 3:5 – (Jesus said,) “Fill up every valley and level every mountain and hill. Straighten the crooked paths and smooth out the rough roads.”

It’s spring … time to get my bike out!

Several days ago, I took my bike for an evening bike ride. This bike has seen a lot of miles. When our grandsons come to visit, they love to take our bikes for rides around town. It was easy to see they had ridden it more recently than I had. The seat was too high, the brakes were squeaky, the rear tire didn’t track straight. I mean, it really did not track straight.

The next day, I asked Hubby Rick to look at the rear tire. It was now completely flat. I had put air in the tire the previous day. Clearly, something else was going on.

Later, Rick asked if I wanted to go for a bike ride/walk. Yep, I did. As I pulled my bike out of the garage, I realized his “fix” was not exactly what I had hoped for. Maybe I needed to be more specific. My bike is a hybrid. This means the tires are more narrow and smooth. The “repaired” tire was a nubby, mountain bike tire. Rick simply took a tire he had in the garage and put it on my bike.

Technically, he had “fixed” the tire. Just maybe not how I had anticipated. Rick quickly reminded me that we were out to exercise. This tire ensured I would have a good workout!

Don’t the tires look a little like life? There are phases of life that are more smooth-sailing: flat, predictable and gentle. Then, there are the hilly, unpredictable and rough times. The path between the two is often very narrow and can change so quickly. Sometimes, we may feel stuck in the unpredictable stage and are unsure how to get back to smoother ground. Finding the transition between the two can be challenging at best.

In the bible verse shared above, Jesus is quoting scripture from the Old Testament book of Isaiah. He is the voice crying out of the wilderness, encouraging people to prepare for the Lord. For this Lord will fill difficult valleys, make mountains and valleys become low, straighten crooked paths and smooth out rough ways. Most importantly: in this voice, people will see the salvation of God.

When rough patches come into your life and your life is feeling a bit like the repaired back tire of my bike, remember Jesus’ words. The Lord is with you: on wide and narrow paths, through hills and valleys; as well as rough patches that need smoothing. There is no need to go through these challenging times alone. See the salvation of God in Jesus Christ and know you have an advocate that is pulling your bike when you need pulling and pushing from the rear when you need pushing.

I know it’s easy to get frustrated when God’s “repair” may not look exactly like we would like. The promise isn’t for the tire to be repaired just how we would like. The promise is to always be with us. No matter what. Whether we want the assistance or not.

Wow. Isn’t this amazing?

For this, I am grateful.

Thank you, Lord God, for being on this journey of life with us. May we see salvation in you as a precious gift. Thanks for helping us find paths that are more comfortable. And when the road is rough and bumpy, thanks for always tagging along. Amen.

Blessings –

Dianne

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