Back to the basics

Good morning! I hope you had a great weekend.

Over the past several months as gasoline prices have continued to climb, I have been looking at some ways to be a better steward of our family finances. I love my pickup truck, but on a good day with a tail wind I can only get about 13mpg. I have an older sports car that does a little better at around 27mpg, but the parts for it are quite expensive. So after much discussion with my wife…we both agreed that a small motorcycle would be a good source of transportation, at nearly 70mpg, to and from the church and my local meetings.

It has been nearly 20 years since I last rode a motorcycle and so I am now in the beginning phases of learning to ride once again. I’m not yet ready to hit the road, I need to go back to the basics. It is with this thought that I bring you this morning’s encouragement.

Hosea 12:6 (NLT)
So now, come back to your God! Act on the principles of love and justice, and always live in confident dependence on your God.

So where do you begin. For me it began at the dealership as I had the technician walk me through the shift pattern, lighting equipment and safety devices. The next step was to read the owner’s manual, to get familiar with the peculiarities of the bike. Finally it was time to do some practical application, the place where the fundamentals get center stage. So for the past two days, I have spent a couple of hours in a vacant parking lot working on releasing the clutch without stalling the bike, balance, left turns, right turns and braking. For hours upon end I have ridden in circles first to the right and then to the left. In a week or two I will go a little further and take a basic rider’s course to further develop the fundamentals. Once those are mastered then it will be time to consider actual road usage.

What I really want to do is put on my helmet and hit the road, but I know that without mastery of the fundamentals, I am a danger to myself and others. The basics are so important. Professional athletes still take batting practice, shoot repetitiously from the free throw line and work on their three and four point stances. If the fundamentals get sloppy, the overall performance suffers.

I find that my life as a Christian is not much different. For me the fundamentals include daily time in prayer, Bible study and simple listening to God. There are many things that grab my attention each day, seeking to draw me further away from these fundamentals. I find that when I don’t take the time to work on the fundamentals my life game suffers. I have to daily make a commitment to spend time in these basics of life. The time I invest into these basics pay dividends in every other area of my life.

This week you may find that your game is not at the level it once was. If that is the case, I encourage you to return to the basics. Start with the simple foundations and work your way forward from there. The basics are the doorway to greater things.

Until next Monday, may God’s richest blessings be yours this week.

Carl