It Seemed Like Such a Good Idea at the Time

“Our people must learn to devote themselves to doing what is good, 

in order to provide for urgent needs and not live unproductive lives.”  – Titus 3:14

If you’ve followed along the 316 Highway, you’ll be surprised at this confession: there is no Titus 3:16, as that letter of Paul to Titus ends at vs. 15. But I wanted to write anyway! So, I selected Titus 3:14, where Paul tells his friend and student, “Our people must learn to devote themselves to doing what is good, in order to provide for urgent needs and not live unproductive lives.” You may wonder what’s the big deal? Simply this; these were the words of a repentant racist! Prior to his encounter with Jesus Christ, Saul who became Paul despised non-Jews. Yet here he is calling these Cretans ‘our people’. What’s that got to do with us as riders?

Here goes; we all have barriers to overcome in life, whether they be barriers in our heads, hearts, family or from situations over which we have no control. Years ago, a buddy and I were ripping around some dirt roads in the LA area. You know it had to be years ago, because there are no longer any off-road riding areas in Southern California unless they’re specifically set aside for off-roading. Back then, there were a bunch. Just point the bike down the dirt road and see where it takes you. That day, it took us back to another road that we wanted to get to. But between us and pavement was a locked gate. What to do? Obviously, go over the gate! No, I didn’t jump it. Rather, Tom and I decided to lift the bike over the 4-foot-tall gate. Had we been on a Honda Cub, it would have not been memorable.  But it was a CL77, the ubiquitous Honda Scrambler, weighing in at 352 lbs., dry weight. How hard could it be?  Well, it was. But somehow our brilliant idea was rewarded with success; nothing got broken, scratched, ripped up, or in any way damaged. But we concluded it would have been a tad-bit easier if we had just ridden back the way we came.

Saul the Pharisee became Paul the Apostle when he met Christ. He had to change a whole bunch of his thinking. Not just about Jesus’ claims to be the long-promised Messiah, but about obedience to the call of God, learning to love others, and jettisoning old prejudices. Growing up in San Diego in the 1950s, there was a latent, unspoken, and ‘benign’ racism in my family. “If they would just stay in Logan Heights, there’d be no racial tensions in our city.” Logan Heights was a neighborhood of San Diego where refugees from the 1910 to 1920 Mexican Revolution had settled, and by the mid-1950s, there was also a large African American population. So, let’s reflect. How far have we come in overcoming racial stereotypes and barriers? Hey, if Tom, who was actually very short, and I can lift a 352 lbs. Scrambler over a steel gate, we can go out of our way to befriend people of color, or even (gasp!) a Muslim.  Loving others shows up in devoting ourselves to doing what is good, providing for others’ needs and living a productive life.

Off the Main Highway: Seriously, I can even love a rider on something other than a Harley!