Writings By Phil

I ride my bicycle to work, most days. I have been a pedal pusher for twenty years, now! The promise of all day rain, or an after-hours commitment are my only excuses for driving my gas-guzzling pickup to work instead. My ride is not far, only 1.4 miles. Round trip, that is almost three miles a day.

My doctor wishes it was more. I humor him some mornings when there is still a hint of coolness in the air. Then I ride a left, right stairstep pattern, pedaling down quiet streets and through groggy neighborhoods until I reach the shore of Lake Monroe. From there I pedal the final mile along the Riverwalk to reach my place of work. That route increases my morning ride to three miles. The lake scenery is worth the extra exertion, however, morning temperatures above 70 degrees euthanize any desire to bike myself towards better health. Maybe, when Florida summer finally ends, come November, I will again get serious about chasing fitness on my bicycle.

Regardless, conservatively adding the distance covered in 20 years, I have biked over 12, 488 miles. I have gone through five different bicycles in that time, not that any one of them was completely worn out, but hey, when a better one comes along and it is free, it is hard to say “no.”

Over the years, on my back-and-forth ride from home to work to home, I have picked up many things, some good, and some not so great! I have found novels, DVDs, audio books, a hammer, a screwdriver, a laser pointer, and a twelve-inch-long pair of tweezers. The tweezers were in great shape, but I have no idea what they were used for, or how I can use them now that they are mine.

I have found sockets along my route, usually in the smaller sizes. A few were Snap-on brand, but most were Chinese junk, and I do not mean the boat! Pedaling becomes tedious, especially on warm afternoons, and every time I find a socket I let my mind build a phantasm of eventually finding a complete set of Snap-on sockets. However, the reality is that my collection is growing at a slower pace than my rate of aging. I have to concede that even if I live to be as old as Methuselah, I will never own a quality set of Snap-on sockets!

Another exciting find on the road was a SOG multitool. Of course, it would have been nice if the former owner had lost it while it was still in the sheath. Still, it looked brand new. It would have cost me $75 to buy it, but I got it for free!

People are always losing money, too, and I have found lost coins here and there along the asphalt: pennies, nickels, dimes and quarters. I stop and pick up all I find. “You stop and pick up pennies?” you ask. “They are not worth the effort!” Well, if you think about it, collecting pennies makes cents! I need all the sense I can get! Even better than loose change, I once found a $20 bill. All my findings will not support my retirement, but I have found enough over the years to take Jackie out for a meal or two. Okay, we went to Wendy’s.

One morning, though it threatened to rain, I rode my bicycle hoping to make it to work before the grey skies dumped their wet cargo on me. How wrong I was! I was too far from home to go back there when the first sprinkles hit me. The sky sulked with uncloaked irritability and when it could no longer hold it, dumped a deluge of cold water, soaking me until there was not a dry spot left on my clothing. I pedaled harder and faster to stay warm.

As I whizzed up to the last stop sign before reaching work, even in my cold, wet state of disarray, I spied a green bill, soaked, and folded in half. I knew its denomination was bigger than all the bills I had previously found on the road. I snatched the money from the gutter, shoving it into my shirt pocket without looking at it, afraid it was not real, afraid some other dumb duck, like me, was out walking or biking in the rain looking for his lost money.

At the carpenter shop, still dripping, I sloshed my way up the stairs to our breakroom. My coworker, Tim, was sitting at the table. I flung the sodden bill before him and asked, “Is this real?” Tim looked at it for a second before shaking his head as he said, “It says movie money!” It was fake money made to look real to fool the cinema crazed public. I was disappointed, of course, but it was fun to believe I had money to burn (if it ever dried out) for the five minutes I had it in my possession.

Another afternoon, as I pedaled home I found a pair of handcuffs. I wondered how they came to be in the middle of the road. Did a policeman drop them? The cuffs were in front of the mental health facility. Had they been worn by some crazy escapee who had wiggled out of them upon reaching the street and freedom? I did not know, but I rammed them into my pocket and biked my way home.

I thought about locking them on my wrists, behind my back, to make sure they still worked. Thankfully, reason prevailed. I did not have a key, and asking law enforcement for help would have been embarrassing! From the internet, I bought two keys for five bucks. Now, I am all set to catch a bad guy!

One thing I do not pick up is roadkill. I have ridden my bike past dead opossums, flattened rodents, and smashed snakes. One time as I pedaled down the street, I heard a loud pop and looked up to see a flying squirrel. It was not Rocky, the flying squirrel, but it was summersaulting through the air! It landed in the road, smoke pouring from its body. Apparently, it took a shortcut across the high voltage terminals of a transformer on the power pole and was electrocuted!

We all walk (or bike) the streets of life, avenues landscaped with beautiful things that uplift and encourage us, and sadly, also littered with things that pull us down, distract us, and defeat us. We pick up stuff, ideas, attitudes, and habits, some good and some that we should have left in the gutter and moved on to better things. A relationship, a new experience, an exciting opportunity may fill us with joyous anticipation in the beginning, but in the end, they might disappoint us more than phony money! Before pursuing anything in life we should do due diligence to assure that what we are hot-on-the-heels chasing is in line with the Word of God. Doing that would save us so much heartache in life!

Sadly, we often put roadkill into our pockets! Usually, it is the negative junk we pick up along the way that handcuff our hearts and minds:

Are we handcuffed with a poor self-image because we were bullied as a child and believed the word of the bully rather than what God says about us? Have we spent years, even decades, restrained by chains of self-doubt, even self-loathing, never reaching our full potential in life?

Are we handcuffed with bitterness because we feel betrayed by a friend or family member, and we feel justified in being angry and holding a grudge? We know our attitude is wrong, but we can’t seem to let it go!

Are we handcuffed by the “sin that so easily besets us?” We all have one or two! You fill in the ___________. You know your problem!

Are we handcuffed with guilt over sins we committed long ago.

A key is readily available that will unlock our shackles and allow us to find freedom. It is the key called truth. Jesus said, “You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free!” In another Bible passage, He said, “I am the truth!” The key to liberation is Jesus!

By faith we believe what Jesus did for us. He died in our place, taking our punishment, giving us His righteousness, allowing us to become the sons (and daughters) of God.

By faith we confess our sins, and He is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us.

By faith we believe what God says about us in His Word and do not let our fickle feelings rule our hearts and minds.

To remove some fetters from our lives we need help in the form of Godly counsel and accountability. Those postulates are also taught in the Bible.

We are all on a pilgrimage from the cradle to the coffin. Some will travel farther than others on the streets called “Life.” Let me encourage you, and I say this to myself as well, pick up the $20 bills. Pickup the pennies, nickels, dimes and quarters (small things are a blessings, too)! Pick up the good things, develop good habits, and pursue the things that will help you mature in the faith and become more like Christ.

One last thing! Do not pick up roadkill!

John 8 31-36

³¹ Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If you continue in my word, then you are my disciples indeed; ³²And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. . . .³⁴Whosoever commits sin is the servant of sin. . . .³⁶ If the Son shall make you free, you shall be free indeed.

More Writings By Phil

• https://fillburns.com/2018/09/08/dancing-with-death-at-the-crossroads-2/
• https://fillburns.com/2024/02/23/for-the-wrong-reason-2/
• https://fillburns.com/2020/05/23/stiff-necked-me/
• https://fillburns.com/2021/02/26/look-up-see-the-flowers/
• https://fillburns.com/2024/07/07/dead-monkeys-dont-get-dizzy/
• https://fillburns.com/1978/11/30/oh-my-aching-head-2/