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PROGRAM D-8026
I want to take you on a bicycle ride. Are you ready to go? This is a bicycle built for two—a tandem bike. We’re going to take a journey on this tandem bike through your life to the high places where God has destined you to go.
Imagine that this tandem bike is for you and the Lord. It’s the bike you received when you accepted Jesus as your Savior. You exchanged your broken-down bike for this beautiful shining new bicycle built for two. From that point on you have not been traveling this journey alone, but the Lord is with you every minute of every day.
Envision yourself on this journey through life on a tandem bike with the Lord. It’s time to get started, so you take the driver’s seat. “Lord,” you say, “please join me in my journey through life. I love you and I want you to be with me; I want you to be a part of my life. Please jump on here behind me, and let’s get going.”
You may not notice the look of disappointment on his face, as he says to you: “Perhaps you might let me sit in the driver’s seat. I know the road, and I can guide you much better if I’m up front.” He continues, “Trust in [me] with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge me, and I will make your paths straight” (Proverbs 3:5-6).
But you’re convinced that you know how to steer this bicycle, you know where you want to go, and you really believe you can handle everything just fine—as long as the Lord comes along with you. “Oh, Lord,” you say nicely, “really, I can do a good job of steering this bike. Please, just join me.”
Things go pretty well on this bike journey with you in the driver’s seat, until you run into a fork in the road. “Wow, I’ve got to decide what to do here,” you say, as you face two roads ahead of you. “I wonder which is the best way. Oh, well, this road looks the smoothest; I’ll take it.”
Off you head, pedaling your bike down what you think is the right road, with the Lord pedaling behind you. The Lord whispers in your ear, “Why don’t you stop and consult the road map? I’ve given you a very explicit and helpful book to guide you on this journey.”
You respond, “I will do that, yes. But right now, Lord, let’s just keep pedaling because this road looks terrific and we’re going to have a great time.”
Unfortunately, when you put the Lord on the back seat of your life’s tandem bike, you are asking for a lot of unnecessary trouble!