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One of the “perks” of my job is the ability to work from just about anywhere. If I’m in the mood to sit at Starbucks, I head over for a coffee. If I need to zero in on something without any distractions, I hide away in my home office. And, if it’s a gorgeous Spring day and I know I should be outside, I can come to a place like where I am right now, tether my MacBook Pro to my iPhone, and work away, fully connected to the internet.

Today's Office

It’s great. Of course, the some would suggest that it would be even better if I didn’t go online while sitting here. At this moment, while Scott Williams continues to send me boring emails (Scott: I told you I’d mention it), I tend to agree. The advantage of not being online is no more emails from him. But, then again, I wouldn’t be able to write this blog, share this experience with the rest of you, and access some of the files I need in order to work on the stuff I’m doing today.

It’s been an interesting few weeks for me. As many of you know, last week I focused most of my time on standing with my close friends, Doug & Kim Stringer after the loss of their 17 year old son, David. Words cannot really describe what that was like.

Now, as I sit here considering last week, I find myself wanting to hit the reset button. I want to take time to focus again on what’s important. Family, friends, loved ones, living out purpose, making a difference in the lives of those nearest to you. All of these things are vital. A lot of people want to know what God’s will is for their life. I think if you focus on these things, you’ll likely figure it out.

Earlier this week, I sent out a very simple tweet: “Dear God: Thank You.” I meant it. I still mean it. As I sit here, contemplating so many different things, it seems like those are the most fitting words to say. Thank you, God, that no matter what the day may bring, you are there. We don’t face it alone.

It’s an incredible thought. One that I was reminded of many times the past few weeks.

Now, time to enjoy more of this scenery.

As many of you know, I officiated the funeral for David Stringer, a 17 year old man who was tragically killed in an accident along with his good friend Jonathan Jackson.

Here is the video from the service for David. There are a few places where the audio isn’t that great, but for the most part, it should work fine.

I can’t remember who sent me the link to this video (or I’d give ya credit), but this is my kind of riding video!

This has been an emotional week. Those of you who follow me on Twitter or Facebook have likely heard about the accident that took the lives of David Stringer & Jonathan Jackson on Saturday evening. The two boys, 17 & 18, were killed when their car collided with an oncoming vehicle. I learned of the news early on Sunday (Mother’s Day) and called David’s parents immediately.

You see, I’ve known Doug and Kim Stringer for 27 years. They are two of the biggest influences in my life. Doug was the best man in my wedding, they were there when my own daughter passed away, they were there when we launched Bikers’ Church. They are more than friends, they are family.

And so, my heart was broken for them.

Since Sunday evening, Heather and I have spent almost all of our time with Doug and Kim. I have been amazed at how their faith has carried them this week. Their strength is a testimony of those who have hope that this world is not all there is.

Yesterday, we accompanied the Stringer family to David’s high school. There were hundreds of teenagers gathered outside of his locker, and as we walked around the corner, the sight was … well … beyond words. But what struck me the most was what happened next. A student spoke up and told the family how much David meant to all of them. Then, Doug spoke and thanked the teens for being there, for supporting them, for loving David. The family took time to look through the many items in David’s locker, and then, as we prepared to leave, Kim said a few words to the kids.

Even in their grief, Kim and Doug were investing into the lives of others.

As we were leaving, a student came up to Kim and handed her a stack of letters. They were written by students addressed to David, thanking him for his influence in their lives. Many spoke of a strong, steady, uncompromising faith that demonstrated itself through a deep love and compassion for others. Students wrote about how they felt left out, lonely, empty, and then David would sit with them, goof around with them, make them feel accepted. Many spoke about how his faith impacted their lives.

It has reminded me how easy it can be to allow your life to impact others. Something we think it has to be something huge, something world-impacting. But rarely is that the case. Most of us will not find the cure of a disease, or invent an alternative energy fuel. But all of us can say a simple, “Hello” to an elderly lady or smile at a student who sits alone. Touching a life isn’t hard to do, it just takes a moment.

How are you living? Do you let those moments pass by without a second thought? Or do you take the time to do something small … something that might be huge for the person on the receiving end. This week, David has reminded me that it’s those small things that make the biggest difference.

Today, do a small thing for one other person. You never know how you’ll change a life.

I’m currently reading Dave Nichols’ book, One Percenter: The Legend of the Outlaw Biker. I’m finding it an interesting read, although I don’t disagree with some of the reviews I’ve read on the book that Nichols would have benefitted by using a ghost writer to clean up the writing.

Still, I just finished reading a section about the movie Easy Rider, the film that started it all for many a biker. Nichols spoke often with Peter Fonda, and his insight into the real message of the movie needs to be heard even today. So, I thought I’d reprint it for you:

Most of the world didn’t get the message of the film Easy Rider. The truth is plain to see if you wade through the allegory. Captain America encapsulates the spirit of what this country was originally based upon. He is hope and the spirit of true freedom from oppression, just as Billy represents the ugly American frontier spirit and the conscienceless masses yearning to consume Mother Earth without compassion. Captain America is Thomas Jefferson’s concept of liberty, while Billy is the willingness to burn it all to the ground through mindless consumption.

The term “easy rider” is Souther slang for the old man of a whore. He doesn’t have to work, doesn’t have to pay for his sex, and gets the easy ride. The film shows us that we have collectively raped and brutalized Liberty and made her our whore. America is still about freedom, but it’s the freedom to eat more Whoppers and Big Macs while the rain forests burn. Billy thought that freedom could be bought and sold in the marketplace. You score big and you retired in Florida, mister. Captain America knew that we as a country “blew it” because we stopped being about something and just concentrated on getting that one big score.

Guess what, people. Billy won that argument. Look around you. Just as Captain America and Billy took their cash and bought two-wheeled symbols of decadence and excess, we all ride the highways – a country on luxury wheels and cell phones, a country without roots, without a tribe … lost. As such, we’re moving too fast to care about our neighbor, to raise a barn, to stop for a downed bro. We’re all on the move to get our thing together, score big, and retire in Florida, mister. Yuppiedom is the holy church of personal greed and its members are the “me” generation.

Now, here’s the surprise ending: we are racing toward our date with those rednecks in their ancient pickup truck. The sword of Damocles is poised and Liberty is dropping her scale. The lessons are staring us in the face in Easy Rider. The bikers stop to fix a flat at a farmer’s house. And then later, they stop at a commune. In both cases they meet people who are living off the land and doing their own thing in their own time. They are people who chose to be caregivers to the earth rather than takers and exploiters. The boys ride on toward their doom, refusing to stop, to take a stake and be about something, to join those who are about building something real. Over 37 years ago Peter Fonda made sure Captain America told us plainly, “We blew it.” And you know what? All these years later, when our leaders look us straight in the eyes and lie boldly, when a man is measured not by the compassion in his heart for his fellow man and Mother Earth, but by the size of his wallet and toys … we’re still blowing it, man.

Thoughts?

This video gave me chills. If you question where God is when suffering happens, will you also say, here am I?

Take the time to watch this … trust me.

I apologize in advance if I end up just rambling with this post … but something’s been bugging me for a few days now, and it boiled over yesterday.

How is it that in 2010, people can still be so gullible that they believe everything they read, or see on television, without ever checking the facts? Is it because they are just too lazy to actually look into it? Or is it because we really do want to simply trust those who deliver the news or speak with authority?

As a preacher, I tell people all the time, “Don’t just believe something because I say it’s true. Look into it for yourself. Come to your own conclusion. If you accept something as a spiritual truth just because I’m telling you it is, then you’re foolish.” I say that because I’ve seen far too many people get hooked into cultish-type groups simply because they don’t take the time to discover spiritual truth for themselves.

Since I encourage those who sit under my teaching to do this, I don’t think I’m out of line to suggest that we do it when it comes to others who speak with authority.

Over the past week, I have found myself becoming a news-junkie again. For a season, I was hardly reading any news reports or watching much more than the half hour evening news, but this past week, I’ve been flipping back and forth between CNN and CBC. And it’s amazed me just lazy reporting has become. Much of the stuff that is reported is completely inaccurate. Other stuff contains just enough truth to make the listener buy it fully.

I understand why it’s this way. The news media needs quick, catchy headlines. They needs stories that will cause the listener to tune in. It’s all about grabbing our emotions and our attention. CBC currently has a commercial promoting their news channel. In the commercial, the question is asked, “What makes a great story?” All of the recognizable news personalities answer it with one or two words. What I found interesting is that not one of them used the words truth or accuracy in answering what makes a good story.

As I biker, I’m used to seeing inaccuracies in the media. News reports refer to motorcycle gangs even though there is no such thing. I am not aware of a single motorcycle group that refers to itself as a gang. Sensationalized headlines paint every guy riding a Harley as potential bad news. And people buy it, hook, line, and sinker.

Even the police buy into it. Now, I know a lot of great police officers. In fact, 90% of them are amazing people doing an amazing, thankless job. And yet, let’s be honest, they are indoctrinated into believing that bikers are guilty until found innocent. As a result, they truly believe they are in the right when they pull over a biker for no reason.

I know some of you think that this is a rant because I was stopped yesterday. It’s not. The officer who pulled me over was very nice. I had no issue with him. Actually, I felt sorry for him. He pulled me over for no reason other than how I looked. Yes, profiling. He truly believed that it was legitimate to use the excuse, “Just checking paperwork” as a reason for pulling over a law-abiding citizen. He could have run my license plate while following me and discovered that there are no outstanding warrants, no criminal charges, no reason to pull me over, but all he saw was a biker, and stopped me because bikers are bad.

I spoke with a member of a club this past weekend who told me about having dinner with his brother and his new girlfriend. The girlfriend asked the biker why he feels it’s okay to pimp out girls for prostitution. The biker laughed and asked her why she thought he was a pimp. She told him it was because he was a member of that club, and from what she understood, all the members of that club had prostitutes working for them. Now, this guy has a 9 to 5 job (and yes, I’ve seen him at his job). He also works two other jobs to bring in extra money. He pays taxes on all three jobs. He works like a dog. And yet, he’s painted with a brush simply because of a patch on his back.

My point in all this rambling is this: in this day and age, when there is so many ways to check out facts, why do we as a culture just accept what authorities and news outlets tell us is true? Why don’t we take the time to actually research a few things and discover truth for ourselves? I challenge people to do that with spiritual things, and I try to make the effort to do it with every other area of my life.

What about you?

Eight and a half years ago, I took a shower. I’ve taken a few more since then, but it was while enjoying that particular shower, that the idea of hosting an event to promote all of the various groups and organizations in Ottawa was birthed. I envisioned a dozen or more tables, with each group letting people know about why they exist, the events they host, and other information that people might find valuable.

We set the date for early April and sent out invites to the different groups. The response was excellent, and we waited patiently for the big day to arrive. The day before the event, the weather was looking questionable. There was a chance of flurries, and it was clearly going to be a cold day. Still, we were not expecting to wake up the morning of the Info Day to discover the worse blizzard recorded ever on that day. Snow began falling early in the morning, and by mid-morning, the ground was completely covered.

And yet, people came. By the end of the day, we estimated about 300 people came through the doors. For us, it was a huge success, and we immediately began planning next year’s event.

Four years later, the Info Day was getting stale. The numbers had not grown past the 300 or so people who attended faithfully each year. The suggestion was made that we incorporate a Swap Meet into the Info Day. But our Swap Meet would be open to the everyday Joe. We wouldn’t charge for setting up a table. And we would encourage anyone to come and sell their used stuff.

It worked. The first two years with the Swap Meet added to the event, our numbers jumped to 600. And then last year, we saw a huge increase as the event exploded, and over 1500 people attended.

We had no idea what kind of numbers we would see this year, our eighth year. There were threats of thunderstorms for the late afternoon, and yet once again, by the end of the day, we had matched last year’s numbers. It truly was incredible to us.

What makes this event so successful? I am absolutely convinced it’s all about the volunteers. Almost everyone at Bikers’ Church steps up and participates. In fact, we usually have about 90% of our membership serving during the day. Even some of those who are not members sign up and take the time to help out for the day.

Our volunteers represent us well. They work hard – incredibly hard – and they always have a smile for anyone they greet. Sure, everyone has their moment, but every volunteer comes to this event with the same goal: to serve the motorcycle community.

We do two events annually: The Info Day & Swap Meet and The Motorcycle Appreciation Day. These two events are now the second and third largest single day motorcycle events in Ottawa (the largest is Ride for DAD, an event we also serve). Imagine … a church has two of the three most attended events by the motorcycle community. I believe that says something. It says something about the people who make up The Bikers’ Church.

I am so very proud of them.