I love athletics. And I love watching an athlete work hard to achieve a new goal.

I am currently living in East Tennessee and this place has some of the hilliest roads I have ever seen.

The biking group here are pretty intense. No more then two men I saw today.

Taking on one of the steepest hills in my area they were pushing and sweating as each pedal fell and the other rose. Wearing helmets and protective pants they trudged forward. The wind picked up and their little red ties flew behind them like capes.


I hope you realize that who I saw today were two men of the Morman faith spreading their word with the same vigor as any of the best bicyclers.

They did encourage me. Not that I believe Mormanism in the least. It is encouraging to know that if these men with a false message can work this hard to spread it, how much more can I with the TRUTH?

Remember the false prophets of Baal and Elijah? This is much the same thought. The false prophets worked so hard for their altar to bring forth fire.

2 Kimgs 18:24-40

24 And you call upon the name of your god, and I will call upon the name of the LORD, and the God who answers by fire, he is God." And all the people answered, "It is well spoken."
25 Then Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, "Choose for yourselves one bull and prepare it first, for you are many, and call upon the name of your god, but put no fire to it."
26 And they took the bull that was given them, and they prepared it and called upon the name of Baal from morning until noon, saying, "O Baal, answer us!" But there was no voice, and no one answered. And they limped around the altar that they had made.
27 And at noon Elijah mocked them, saying, "Cry aloud, for he is a god. Either he is musing, or he is relieving himself, or he is on a journey, or perhaps he is asleep and must be awakened."
28 And they cried aloud and cut themselves after their custom with swords and lances, until the blood gushed out upon them.
29 And as midday passed, they raved on until the time of the offering of the oblation, but there was no voice. No one answered; no one paid attention.
30 Then Elijah said to all the people, "Come near to me." And all the people came near to him. And he repaired the altar of the LORD that had been thrown down.
31 Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of the LORD came, saying, "Israel shall be your name,"
32 and with the stones he built an altar in the name of the LORD. And he made a trench about the altar, as great as would contain two seahs of seed.
33 And he put the wood in order and cut the bull in pieces and laid it on the wood. And he said, "Fill four jars with water and pour it on the burnt offering and on the wood."
34 And he said, "Do it a second time." And they did it a second time. And he said, "Do it a third time." And they did it a third time.
35 And the water ran around the altar and filled the trench also with water.
36 And at the time of the offering of the oblation, Elijah the prophet came near and said, "O LORD, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that you are God in Israel, and that I am your servant, and that I have done all these things at your word.
37 Answer me, O LORD, answer me, that this people may know that you, O LORD, are God, and that you have turned their hearts back."
38 Then the fire of the LORD fell and consumed the burnt offering and the wood and the stones and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench.
39 And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces and said, "The LORD, he is God; the LORD, he is God."
40 And Elijah said to them, "Seize the prophets of Baal; let not one of them escape." And they seized them. And Elijah brought them down to the brook Kishon and slaughtered them there.



These men bicycling up this hill are providing themselves nothing more for their lives than larger muscles and stamena. Both of these are very vital to staying healthy on earth. Neither of those help you enter the Kingdom of our LORD.

Ephesians 2:8-10
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God,
9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast.
10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.


May the LORD create prepare for me a road both up hill and down hill, making me His workmanship, not of my own strength.

Amen