Recovery Ride 2012 – Day Four: an interlude of friends

Lord, You own the cattle on a thousand hills. We claim a few to provide for our needs at the Care Cottage and Care Village… It was hard for us to leave behind this very special place after only such a short time, but our journey on Tuesday morning beckoned. Thank you, Pastor Steve, for taking care of it and us, and we will see you again soon! The next stage, via Dawson Creek, was for our band of warriors for Christ to ride into Alberta. Look at the amazing carpet of yellow that God laid out for us. As we left the Care Village, once again my thoughts turned to the Glory radiating from Moses’ face after being in God’s presence on the mountain. We have the “…ministry of the Spirit” – God’s Spirit – living within us. We are not like Moses who had to veil his face until the radiance faded away. The veil has been taken away because of Jesus Christ –  the Glory of the New Covenant. “And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s Glory…now the Lord is the Spirit and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.” We rode out boldly with unveiled faces (except for those riders, like Chuck, who wear face masks to ward off pesky bugs!) and headed out for Grand Prairie. The Harley-Davidson dealership there hosted a BBQ welcome for us, and together with Shine FM we all enjoyed a Rock’n for Jesus afternoon!

The following photo courtesy of Jane at Shine FM:

It was here that I fell in love with a sweet little 1200 Harley Sportster. I asked our Papa if I could order one from Him – He does give us the desires of our hearts, doesn’t He? So while I waited for the order to arrive, I bought the cutest Harley cowboy hat. Andria, being more practical than me, bought a beautiful Harley helmet! And wouldn’t you know it, a seat became available for her to hitch a ride to Whitecourt. As we left Grand Prairie, the skies darkened, or should I say, turned to a deep shade of black? We were pelleted with torrential rain, the first we had seen since we left Langley, and Andria got thoroughly soaked. The Whitecourt Family Worship Centre was our rainbow following the storm. We were treated with tons of homemade beans and a fun “biker” carrot cake. In celebration of my birthday (a week early) I was given a mini-Harley from the cake amid hearty song! God, faithful to His Word, provided me with my bike. I guess I forgot to specify the size, so I’ve placed a new order with Him and will patiently await His delivery! As I curled into bed after a long day, grateful for the blessings of this ride, I felt these words press into my heart, “…when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet.” (Proverbs 3: 24) And it was so… MaryAnne Connor (Mac) The 2012 Recovery Ride is – in the words of the Freedom Biker Church of Surrey – truly a “road trip of a lifetime”. In support of the Care Village, we are happy to accept donations to provide that safe haven in Fort St John. The Care Village will be a refuge for anyone seeking recovery from the cycle of addiction or substance abuse, or just in need of temporary respite, away from the struggles of everyday life. If you’d like to follow the journey live, join us on Twitter or Facebook for status updates and images of this wonderful journey.