A New Metaphor For Church: The Bicycle Wheel, by Pastor Paul Spaulding

Pastor Paul has given us permission to adopt the Crux logo for Travelers Missions. Here is what he wrote about it's meaning:


The whole wheel is the church. While we are all tied to the center, we live our lives on the edge (yes, where the rubber meets the road). Without our ties to the center life falls apart. All the power and energy for the trip comes thru the hub, the crux. So each week we renew our ties to each other and to the cross of Christ as we gather at the center, knowing it is in our lives at the rim where being the church, rolling the church along, and intersecting with the world really happens. The church is not the hub. The church is the whole wheel - its teaching, its people, each life lived in the world is intentionally the church. Out on the rim we are involved in all manner of natural communities. Some are with other believers whose lives are close to ours in geography or interests. These communities intentionally are the church as well. Believers also intersect daily with people who are not followers of Jesus Christ. There we become a crux for them. We point them to Christ and his cross.


The whole church is in constant motion touching the world through which it moves. The church is driven by One who is beyond the church, providing energy and direction. Jesus is the head of the church, the rider shaping the trip. The hub is the proclamation of the Gospel and the administration of the sacraments, and its own unique community, a community of faith. At the hub, at the crux, we who are the spokes all tie together, crisscrossing and hooking tightly to each other and to the power source. There the living and active Word of God is proclaimed. But life is not lived at the hub, nor is the church the hub only. Life is lived on the edge. There, the priesthood of all believers live out their calling as followers of Jesus, and as Little Christs to the world. But if all tie into the hub and receive their energy there, life lived on the edge will be fulfilling, transferring the power of Jesus Christ to the world He loves and died for.

"I am well, thank God, and in high spirits!"

“I am well, thank God, and in high spirits.” (Sgt. John Ordway, on Lewis and Clark’s Corps of Discovery) That is the message that my SPOT Satellite Tracker sent to Dan Grafton at the start and end of each day’s ride.

The ride is done. It took a bit longer than expected, but on two beautiful days in early September, I rode 59 miles for the Lord's work on the South Dakota reservations, plus the 9 miles we actually got done in July on the Lower Brule Reservation in the 105 degree heat index, for a total of 68 miles! From a personal standpoint, it is interesting that I was at least temporarily stopped on the reservation of the Lower Brule, or Teton Sioux; the same tribe whose predecessors almost stopped Lewis and Clark and the Corps on their journey up the Missouri River.

This has not been an easy year, or an easy journey for me, and I am grateful and humbled by your prayers and support for this ministry and myself. On the Sunday before Labor Day, I rode the farthest and fastest (25.01 miles at an average of 14.1 MPH) that I had ridden this year. Granted, with a stiff tailwind, but considering my recovery from my brain injury, it was quite an accomplishment. As I rode, I couldn’t help but think of Olympic gold medalist and missionary Eric Liddel’s famous quote, “I believe God made me for a purpose, but he also made me fast. And when I run I feel His pleasure.” As I have healed, I have hoped and prayed to feel that same thing, God’s pleasure with what I was doing. The next day, without the benefit of the wind at my back, I was able to ride from Hinckley to Moose Lake, a distance of 33.85 miles, the farthest I have ridden this year, and the farthest I have ridden since the “Ride Across the Rez” last summer with Pastor Jeff. Not only did I feel His pleasure, but I felt your prayers, as well.

Now it is on to helping with possible Thanksgiving and Christmas outreaches with Pastor Tim and Elaine Harris, and planning for the bike trips next summer. We are currently planning another trip, or maybe even two trips to Sioux Country, and have also been invited to return to northwestern Russia, and ride from village to village doing evangelism and helps ministry. We’re looking at next year with anticipation and excitement!

In closing, let me leave you with this quote from Tim Scott, a young friend of mine who is a missionary to the very farthest reaches of the planet; “The time we are given is a quest; A quest to deliver the message of hope. It is a journey that leads you to the end of the earth, into the face of the unknown... It is a moment when you step out of the normal life and live for something more. It is an expedition measured not in distance...but in the everlasting. This is the story of our journey that has brought us around the world, to witness the moments of eternity.”

Thank you for your generosity that helps us support the ministry of reservation pastors and missionaries along the Missouri River, and reach out with the Gospel message to “the nations within.”

Lila Pilamaya, (Lakota for "Thank you so much!")

We are proceeding on...

The Two-Wheeled Explorer
Isanti, MN

Ride the River II: Reaching Out to the Nations Within.

I was back at my usual spot at Rendezvous Coffee Shop in Isanti on Wednesday morning, after missing my regular “Rendezvous at Rendezvous” the week before. My wife Ellen, the pastor of St. Brendan’s, and I were in South Dakota that week, assisting Pastor Kc and Diane Kopaska of Native American Ministries (NAM), and Pastors Johnny and Heidi Wade, the local Assemblies of God missionaries, in the annual “Day in the Park” outreach, this year to the Rosebud Sioux Indian Reservation in Mission, SD. This is the third year that St. Brendan’s Traveler’s Missions Team has partnered with NAM to reach out to the children of the Yankton, Rosebud and Lower Brule Sioux Reservations. This year’s trip was called, “Ride the River II,” named after the book, “Ride the River” by Pastor Larry Christensen, which uses the Lewis and Clark expedition on the Missouri River, as a parable about man’s relationship with the God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

Each Wednesday at 8:00 AM, I have breakfast and a brief time of devotions at Rendezvous Coffee, unless something prevents his being there, such as work rescheduling or the annual mid-July missions trip. Normally I ride my bicycle to the coffee shop, weather permitting, in preparation for our yearly “Ride Across the Rez” fund-raising bike ride that is part of the “Ride the River” trip. But this year, all my planning did not include temperatures above 100 degrees and winds of up to 25 miles per hour, from the direction I was going to ride. The Rez Ride this year was to have been 100 miles over two days, across the Crow Creek and Lower Brule reservations. The day we started, it was over 90 degrees by 9:30 AM. We decided it was safest to call it off at a bit less than 9 miles, rather than risk heat illness. I hope to re-do the fund-raiser late in August on Minnesota’s Paul Bunyan State trail, which ends on the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe Indian Reservation. Hopefully, it will be cooler by then.

On Saturday, July 15th, we assisted Native American Ministries with their 4th annual “Day in the Park” outreach. The Day in the Park program provides games, entertainment, music and fun in an open, safe environment in a reservation community. Free horseback rides are provided for Native children by Pastor John Kees and our friends from Faith Cowboy Church of Desloge, MO, and NAM volunteers distribute hundreds of pairs of shoes and sandals and other clothing. But the primary emphasis of the Day is handing out student backpacks filled with school supplies for reservation children. Pastor Ellen, who assisted with the distribution, said over 500 packs were passed out this year. St. Brendan’s also provides and staffs the first aid tent, and does free blood pressure screenings.

The Community of St. Brendan’s in the Pines is a Lutheran Congregations in Missions for Christ (LCMC) house church and missions support organization based in rural Isanti. The house church meets each Sunday afternoon, and also at the “Two-Wheeled Explorer’s Rendezvous at Rendezvous” devotions every Wednesday morning at 8:00 AM, and anyone is welcome to stop by and take part. (Schedule changes are posted on the Two-Wheeled Explorer page on Facebook.) For further information, please visit the Two-Wheeled Explorer and Traveler’s Missions website, www.twowheeledexplorer.org, where you will also find links to the Facebook page and St. Brendan’s in the Pines website

Reaching Out to the Nations Within.

“And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.” Matt. 28:18-20 NJKV”

All evangelical Christians know, or at least should know those final verses in the Gospel of Matthew, what we call “The Great Commission.” Yet how many of us take the call seriously? How many of us just see a bunch of words at the end of a book in the Bible? I have heard it said, by my friend, Pastor Bill Moberly and others, that “The Great Commission is not an option.” Yet in too many cases, that is what it has become. How is your church fulfilling the Great Commission? More importantly, how are you fulfilling the Great Commission in your life?

Too often, the answer is, “my church supports a missionary”, or “we send money to (our denomination) for world missions.” Or, more sadly, “We gave canned goods to the food shelf.” It is not that these things are not important, and I am not minimalizing them, but are they truly fulfilling our Lord’s call to “Go”? I honestly believe that every Christian should, at some point in their life, experience at least a short-term missions trip. And before you protest, I know; everybody has obligations and responsibilities. I know, the economy is tight right now. I know the kids have activities that parents need to be at. I know that you have been planning that vacation for a year now. I know, you have to get a passport, and airfare is so expensive right now. I know…I know…I know…

I also know there are needs to be met. I know that you, whoever you are, you can help meet those needs. And I know that there are nations that you can reach out to, without a passport, without a visa. Nations within our own United States, where the need is as acute as in any “third world” country on the planet. Nations where poverty, neglect, alcoholism and teen suicide and years, centuries, of hurt and pain have created an environment of fear, distrust and despair. Communities where Christianity is considered the oppressive religion of the invading culture that forced the people from their land and their own culture from their children; so much so that only 3%, you read that right, three per cent of those people call Jesus the Lord and Savior.

These are the nations that the Traveler’s reach out to. The First Nations, the “host people” of our land; the Native Americans of the Great Sioux Nations of South Dakota. The Mandan-Hidatsa of North Dakota, the Shoshone and the Nez Pierce of Montana and Idaho. Only a month and a half are left before we are to return for the third year to the Sioux of South Dakota, and we, the Traveler’s Missions of St. Brendan’s in the Pines need your help. We need people who can swing a hammer, or pass out cold drinks and student backpacks. People who can install plumbing or air conditioners or make hot dogs and sno-cones. And people who can take a bicycle across 100 miles of reservation roads, praying for the people that live there, and with the people they meet as they travel. We need backpacks and school supplies. Hand tools and building materials. Riders, workers, pray-ers. We need you. The Sioux people need you. The Great Commission needs you. Do you hear the call? Will you answer?

We are proceeding on…

St. Brendan’s Two-Wheeled Explorer

The Friday Rider

Good Friday. A black bike, ridden by a silent, dark rider, approaches the hill and starts the climb. Part way up, his pace falters, although the hill is neither particularly steep, nor long. He slows, then stops and gets off the bike. He looks up the hill he cannot climb, sees the cross at the top, falls to his knees, and cries.

The Prayer of St. Brendan

Help me to journey beyond the familiar into the unknown.

Give me the faith to leave old ways
and break fresh ground with You.

Christ of the mysteries, I trust You
to be stronger than each storm within me.
I will trust in the darkness and know
that my times, even now, are in Your hand.

Tune my spirit to the music of heaven,
and somehow, make my obedience count
for You.

--Prayer of St. Brendan

Building a Bike for the Adventure of Missionary Exploration.

For the past two years, I have ridden my 2006 Bianchi Volpe, known as "Discovery", on our annual "Ride Across the Rez". This year I almost took my other bike, the somewhat more heavy-duty Novara Safari, due to the flooding in Marty, and road damage it caused. Fortunately, the road repairs were finished in time for our trip, but we did experience some soft areas that had been washed out by the floodwaters and recently repaired, and new, variably hard/soft paving on the steep hill down to old Greenwood and the Missouri River. I decided to increase the capability of the Volpe; which was actually a process that began before I even picked it up new, (like the bike at left) from Trailhead Cycle. I chose the largest rack they had in the store for the back of the bike, with touring in mind, added two bottle holders, and Larry, the shop owner, made some adjustments to the seat and stem to better fit me.

When I got it home, the first major change I made was to install a Wilderness Trail Bikes SST saddle to replace the ridiculous, faux-leopard trimmed Velo VT that came with the bike. (The very same SST that is now on the Safari.) The SST is not a bad saddle for long distance touring, which is why it is now on the Safari, but I read so many rave reviews of the Brooks B-17 leather touring saddle, I decided to try one on the Volpe and I am glad I did. A Greenfield rear-mount kickstand allows easier access to the panniers or rack pack without having to hold up or lay down the bike. Eventually, after several false starts, I found a suitable front rack, a Delta low-rider, and ended up with the bike at the stage you see at left, taken in Yankton, SD.

Truth be told, I am not real fond of low-rider racks. Some people like them. but I feel they do strange things to my steering and stability, which is one of the reasons I've preferred the Safari (right), with it's Old Man Mountain Cold Spring front rack for fully loaded touring. With the Novara's 26x2 inch wheels, the OMM rack makes a good combination. Jandd Mountaineering makes the expedition-grade panniers and rack packs I use on my bikes, and they also make front and rear racks to go with them for the Volpe. The Jandd front rack has two possible positions for the front panniers, high and lower, as well as a platform between the bags, where I like to carry my summer sleeping bag. That seemed to be the best choice for a new front rack. The rear rack is almost a third larger than the one that I bought with the bike, so I installed new Jandd racks, front and rear. (The old rack will go on Pastor Jeff's Giant before the 2011 trip.)

The newly "resurfaced" roads on the Reservation wreaked havoc with the 4-year old rear tire on the bike, and shortly after returning from Wagner, I endured a series of flat tires, so I decided to go with a puncture resistant, touring-specific tire, the Schwalbe Marathon Plus. Schwalbe is a sponsor of both the International Christian Cycling Club and the Adventure Cycling Association, so all the better to support the suppliers who support the organizations we are part of. The Marathon-Plus is a very highly rated, widely accepted tire, and is both slightly taller and 3mm wider than the WTB tires that come on the bike from the dealer. They also roll more smoothly and are somewhat quieter than the old tires.

Finally, I asked Larry to add a taller stem to the bike, bringing the top of the handlebars to the same level as the seat. For touring, this was, according to all of the literature I have read, a more comfortable position than the forward-leaning position found on most sport and racing bicycles, where the bars are lower than the saddle. I found it to provide a more upright seated position, with less neck stiffness.

The end result can be seen at left. (Temporary photo until spring, when I can actually get the bike out on the road.) The bike now has a taller stem, a proven leather touring saddle, larger, longer racks, front and rear, puncture resistant, touring-specific tires, frame-mounted tire pump and a rear kickstand. I am hoping this combination will make for a stong, effective 700cm expedition touring bike that will go the extra miles that may be needed as our "Ride Across the Rez" in 2011 expands to two reservations and the 50 miles in between the two.

We are proceeding on...
The Two-wheeled Explorer