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Like getting started with the Bible, beginning with the bike ride felt awkward.

Getting started

I was getting a little nervous about this bike ride. Sometimes I’d talk myself into it, this will be fun, an adventure. Other times I’d try to talk myself out of it. At one point on the day of the ride we weren’t sure if we’d be able to get tickets. Can I say I wasn’t disappointed?

The drive up to the lodge where we registered for the ride was pretty. A steady climb. Trees in view. This ride is downhill, right? I didn’t sign up for a fitness class. I wanted a relaxing excursion.

Like getting started with the Bible. There’s a big difference between reading a few short verses and studying it.

Gearing up

We drove up to the appropriately named Lookout Pass to sign up, rent bikes, and hit the trail. This place just oozed adventure. During the winter it’s a ski and recreation area for you know, people who like adventure. I liked lunch. I was not ready for adventure.

Hesitant, unsure, ill-equipped, and feeling foolish, I didn’t have any idea what I was doing. Who did I think I was, geared up like I knew how to mountain bike?

I have friends who do this sort of thing all the time. This was not my thing.

Getting acquainted with the Bible

I remember when I first started looking in my Bible and not just looking at it. The lists of unfamiliar words and names in the table of contents made it hard to find my place.

When you’ve been reading the Bible for a while, or when you’ve memorized the order of the books of the Bible from a children’s song or two you have no issues with finding the section you want.

But when you’re new to the Bible it feels like all kinds of awkward.

Guess what? Everybody has to look up or fumble around when they are first getting acquainted with the Bible. Comfort comes with familiarity. If you aren’t sure where a book of the Bible is simply open your Bible and look around. The more you look, the more you’ll start to remember.

How I learned the books of the Bible:

Two things that kept me from reading the Bible – and what changed my tune

Question

How do you find your way around the Bible? Have you ever felt ill-equipped to start a journey?

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Catching up?

A bike and the Bible – an adventure – intro – part 1

A bike and the Bible – reservations – part 2

A bike and the Bible – what I thought – part 3

What I thought this bike ride would be like and what I started to learn about it, differed somewhat. In some ways it reminded me of my initial approach to the Bible.

What I envisioned

Prior to the ride I thought the journey would be pleasant, that I would be fine. I’d seen the downhill path along the side of the road. How hard could it be? It was downhill. The path looked pleasant. I envisioned a boardwalk, promenade, leisurely stroll. You know, those bikes in the movies with a basket full of flowers on the front. Think leisure. Okay, so maybe I was also thinking lazy, effortless, gentle, meandering in a noncommittal way.

A verse or phrase

I like words. When it came to the Bible, I liked Scripture in short batches. A verse or phrase on a journal page or in a picture frame. The 23^rd Psalm on a bookmark. I had time to read that. Not whole chapters or books of the Bible.

In church I heard selections from Scripture. At some point during the worship service a Scripture passage or two would be read. I always experienced Scripture in small segments, not in lengthy installments.

And because I tended to experience information from the Bible in limited quantities, I didn’t try to grasp the bigger picture or even anything beyond a few phrases at a time.

What I thought

My introduction to the bike ride was through posters and brochures. Somehow the images didn’t register. I had kept my own concept in my head of what I thought it was going to be like.

It wasn’t that. Whatever I thought it would be like, it wasn’t. Whatever I had imagined would be my experience. It wasn’t.

Something significant

Not long before the ride I started to read some information about the bike ride, to be better informed. I saw all these comments about a tunnel. By the tone and the telling it seemed to be something significant. I’ve been through a lot of tunnels, in a car. I think I’d ridden through one on a bike. (I’m just now remembering I’ve been through many really long tunnels on a train. I never made that connection until now.)

But back to my experience and recollection prior to the ride. Tunnels were no big deal. You go in, you come out. They’re dark inside but after a short curve you can see the daylight at the other end. End of story. Tunnels were no problem. Why did this one sound like it was going to be a problem?

Question

What were some of your initial experiences with Scripture or what unexpected journey have you faced?

Want to keep following the journey of a bike and the Bible? Subscribe for free to know when the next stretch of the journey is up.

Catching up?

A bike and the Bible – an adventure – intro – part 1

A bike and the Bible – reservations – part 2

As I considered this trip with a bike and the Bible, I had some reservations.

The idea

“There’s the trail.”

It looked so calm and serene from the comfort of the car, viewed through the closed window. That glass shield which protected me from what was really on the distant path. Not for the faint of heart. Rocky ground. Shaky ground. Fears. Confrontation. I had no clue what was coming.

But that shield couldn’t protect me from the fears I would have to face. That barrier couldn’t hold back the barrage of feelings and emotions, labels, sense of inadequacy that would gush out once I was on that path on a bike.

But I didn’t know any of that. Yet.

The idea of the bike ride was just forming.

Bike ride

My husband knew about this bike ride which follows an old train route. On a trip through Idaho and Montana, he pointed out the path. This section of scenery was out in the open, in nature and inviting. All downhill he said. He wanted to rent bikes sometime and ride the trail. I envisioned a leisurely peaceful downhill coast where I could gaze at the trees and enjoy the outdoors all from the comfort of a bike, stopping along the way for a nice picnic lunch.

That sounded like a pleasant way to spend a day. I was open to the idea.

Gathered info

As we started to make plans for the trip I decided to do a little research. I gathered info about the excursion. The details described a ride that sounded less leisurely than what I had pictured, but the ride still sounded doable, if not peaceful.

I think by this point I was fine with the idea of the bike ride, but not too sure about the ride itself.

The Bible

This idea stage makes me think of the Bible, how it looks lovely on a table or open on an altar. The appearance of it the most engaging aspect of it. But where do our thoughts go when we consider the idea of reading it? Are we still interested at the prospect or do we have reservations about looking inside?

When I worked in a bookstore I saw many people come in looking for Bibles. I know more than one wasn’t so sure how to go about reading it. I could relate.

Reservations

As the date of the bike ride got closer we considered making reservations. Oh I was having reservations all right. Somewhere along the line I had heard reference to a tunnel. The information made it sound a bit ominous. How bad could a tunnel be? It sounded claustrophobic. Was it?  Did I have something to be worried about? Something to feel anxious about?

No idea what I was doing

I had no idea what I was doing. It wasn’t my idea. My husband knew all about the ride. He wanted to take the trip. He had read about it and knew the history behind it. He liked trains. He was curious, excited, looking forward to it.

I was doing it because he wanted to. I didn’t know anything about it and what I did know I didn’t like. I hadn’t ridden a bike in ages. Well that wasn’t totally true. I had bought a bike when he had which was the first time I had ridden in years and all that came back was the familiar wobbles and bobbles of an awkward start. Of someone who doesn’t know what they’re doing. Of an amateur, a beginner.

Beginning with the Bible

I remember when I first tried to read the Bible. I didn’t understand what was in it, wasn’t always sure how to read it, and couldn’t remember what I read when I did open it. Can you relate?

I knew people who had read the Bible. You know, those people who get all excited about the Bible and preach, hey, you should read it, but then you open it and you’re like, nope, still boring. Then you close it.

Because I struggled to read it, I thought the Bible was just for serious, studious people. You know, the ones who can sit still for long periods of time. Academics. Students who aced high school, who turned in all their homework on time.

I figured the Bible was for scholarly people. Students good at reading literature books. The ones who had all the answers in English class.

That wasn’t me.

Question

What reservations did you have about reading the Bible or stepping onto an unknown path?

Catching up? Here’s the intro to this series:

A bike and the Bible – an adventure – intro – part 1