Carry on a Great Work

Nehemiah 6:2-3: Sanballat and Geshem sent me this message: "Come, let us meet together in one of the villages on the plain of Ono." But they were scheming to harm me; so I sent messengers to them with this reply, "I am carrying on a great work and cannot go down..."

It is snowing and 12 degrees right now, so it is difficult to think that soon we will begin fundraising and hopping on our bikes to begin training for the Tour. My first bike ride of the season is always the most difficult. I will tell myself after 5-10 miles that going 96 miles in one day is unfathomable. In addition, fundraising is uncomfortable, and all of the preparation for the Tour takes time, effort, and money (as something on my bike will inevitably break right before the Tour). Throughout the initial preparations for the Tour, we will have to deal with many voices telling us to give up and to get off our bike.

I appreciate Nehemiah's words to Sanballat and Geshem in this passage. "I am carrying on a great work and cannot go down". The Tour raises money for a camp where many have come to know Christ and to be baptized into His church. Riding in the Tour brings Christians together from across the country for a common cause. As you begin to prepare for this year's Tour, you now have a response to those voices in your head telling you to come down off of your bike, to stop training, and to focus on less important things: "I am carrying on a GREAT work, and I will not go down!"

-Matt Robinson

Published 2/22/2021

#TourdeTogo