Ride Close

“Stay close and ride far.”

Loren Thornburg

I never got into road biking, however there is a concept in road bicycle races that I could get into...peloton.  Peloton is the main group of riders in a road bicycle race.  A peloton is the pack  of riders that save energy by riding close together, similar to birds flying in formation.  The reduction in the air resistance from riding together can be as much as %40.  We don’t have to ride in a bicycle race to know the truth of this concept.  Life should be journeyed the same way, with others riding with us to reduce the resistance we face.  It can be tempting to want to go alone so we have freedom to do what we want, when we want to and also so we don’t have to risk getting hurt.  The problem is we weren’t made to go alone.  So what seems the path of least resistance in going alone is actually the way of greatest resistance.   Life brings lots of resistance.  So don’t go it alone.  Stay close  so you can ride far through the resistance.  

“By yourself you're unprotected. With a friend you can face the worst. Can you round up a third? A three-stranded rope isn't easily snapped.”

Ecclesiastes 4:12 MSG

Life can bring us the worst with times when we feel ready to snap, but there is strength and protection that comes in community.  God designed us to live life together like the peloton of riders.  Otherwise, we find what the author of Ecclesiastes finds: Life is meaningless.  The fame, fortune, success, and all that we think will provide the meaning we search for will fall short if found alone.  It is when we go with others by our side that we find the meaning we are searching for and the strength to endure.  Stay close to God and those He has put around you. Don't resist it.  It's part of His love for you, it's part of His protection of you, it's part of your design.