On Saturday, April 5th, the Eastern Pennsylvania chapter of the Christian Sport Bike Association will be having it's season opener monthly ride. We will be meeting at the Starlight Diner in Fogelsville for breakfast around 8am and the ride leaves around 9:15am.

The "Leap around Lancaster" will start between 9:15-9:30am and will chart a great path out to Lebanon County to the MT. Gretna Hideway for lunch. The afternoon route explores the highest and lowest parts of Lancaster County, so be ready for full day of fun and fellowship. The ride will be ending in Gap, Pa at the Wawa near rt. 30 and rt. 41. Come out and enjoy the roads with us. Remember all our riders are required to wear their protective gear.

All bikes and beliefs are welcome, please let us know if you or any friends are coming. Please ensure that you and any friends both read and comply with our ride policy, www.pacsba.com/csba-ride-policy.

We hope you can make it... Lets Ride!

April 5, 2014 Leap Around Lancaster Ride Report
By Mark Hamm

Hello all,
I wanted to thank everyone who came out for this ride, it was a big success. The day started cold and dreary with dark clouds looming in the distant north. I checked the forecast and it said cloudy then sunny with temps in the low 60's. Cool! Let's ride! Well, one thing I didn't see in the forecast was the wind. And windy it was, blowing and blustery. I wore my non perforated leathers but it was still chilly. I rode up, got gas, and stopped at the Starlite Diner for breakfast. We had a group of 11 by then and they put us in a private room. I really like this place for breakfast, they do take good care of us. Anyway, I was notified that another group came in and was eating in another part of the diner. We weren't sure if they were riding with though, because they didn't come to sit with us, yet their bikes were parked with ours. So, when I came out, I did the rider meeting, went over the rules and got ready to go. Jlasure went in and asked if these guys were riding with us, it turns out that they were! Bonus! So, I went over the rules for the ride again, we broke up into groups according to pace and off we went. The ride to lunch went well, we didn't hit much traffic and we even went past a group of bicyclists. The few miles we were on the highway drivers moved over for us to pass. The safety word for the day was train tracks and 45 minutes into the ride we heard the blast of the locomotive horn while we were sitting at a traffic light. We get through the intersection and we had to wait for a train, not long though because the train wasn't long and it was moving. Well, as we stopped at the tracks ANLR 21 hops off and starts to chat with another rider. Meanwhile I can see the end of the train coming, so I start blowing my horn and XIII starts revving his engine to get his attention to get back on his bike. Well, the train goes by, the gates go up and he has to do a flying mount to get on his bike and get it in gear in time. We all were chuckling inside our helmets. We arrived at the lunch stop 5 minutes before it opened, so we all hung out and enjoyed the sun, which had just recently come out, thank God.

The chase group got there maybe 10 minutes after we did and we all gathered up for a group shot. After that we went in for lunch which was good, but there was an error in the checks and we had to wait a while to get ours. Our lunch stop was two hours long, 45 minutes more than I would like. Oh well, you'll have these things. Once everyone came out I shared the Word and split folk into groups. We had a few riders go home and the riders from Immortal Riders Motorcycle Club were going to head home once we got fuel. Most of these folks came from New Jersey, with one coming from the Atlantic City area. Two of their lady members even followed the group in their car, which was a first for a CSBA ride. These folks were all good people and I give them props for coming all that way to ride with us. Once we got fueled up, we bid our Garden State riders farewell and started out on the 2nd leg of the ride. Some roads were good and some bad, but we saw some really neat scenery and contrasting themes. We went through little villages and towns with traffic lights. We went over little streams and past the surging Susquehanna River. We had wide open plains and narrow valleys. High up on the hills and down in the hollows. Past local industry and farmer's fields. We even saw some of the Plain Folk (Amish) with their wagons. Once fertilizer tank wagon was pulled by 6 draft horses pulling abreast, it was a sight to see. Eventually, the chase group led by Andyr (riding like the wind, I am told) caught up with us. But then a member went down in some gravel when they pulled over to wait for another rider. Nothing big some scratches on the bike and probably a bit sore. Thank God for His protection. We met up at a Wawa convenience store and fueled up, shared stories of the day's events, and planned our way home. We heard how the Panda rode his hog like a BOSS and scared people with his music, how kirchsnr moved up to the lead group and enjoyed the pace, and how jlasure kept things moving on the mother ship.

When it was time to go we shook hands and gave hugs, ANLR 21 and andyr had the short ride home this month, while the rest of us shared our route home. Now, maybe it's just me, but once the ride is over and it's just us few. It seems the hoodlum comes out and the pace goes up. Were not going crazy, but the pace seems to pick up a bit. We all know and trust each other, so I guess we feel comfortable to move it more. Anyway, it was cool to ride with you all. Thanks for coming out this week and we go to the track next week.

Scripture Readings for April 2014

This weeks teaching was on His (God's) strength. Our starting passage was Philippians 4:13 which says: For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength. This strength is not one of physical might, but one where you can endure hard times and still come out victorious. When I consider how God works it sometimes amazes me on how God goes against the grain of human understanding. You would think that great men of God were fantastic, strong, intelligent or prominent people, not always. I Corinthians 1:26-31 gives us some insight into how and why God chooses people: 26 Remember, dear brothers and sisters, that few of you were wise in the world’s eyes or powerful or wealthy when God called you. 27 Instead, God chose things the world considers foolish in order to shame those who think they are wise. And he chose things that are powerless to shame those who are powerful. 28 God chose things despised by the world, things counted as nothing at all, and used them to bring to nothing what the world considers important. 29 As a result, no one can ever boast in the presence of God. 30 God has united you with Christ Jesus. For our benefit God made him to be wisdom itself. Christ made us right with God; he made us pure and holy, and he freed us from sin. 31 Therefore, as the Scriptures say, “If you want to boast, boast only about the Lord.” Sometimes a person might shy away from serving the Lord because they don't feel equipped to serve nor "good enough". Yet, we see from this passage, that this view is not the way God sees it. If He chooses you, He will provide for you. God doesn't call the equipped, He equips the called. When we obey His call, He provides for us and instructs in the way we should go and the things we should do. The next Scripture was John 15:1-5 which says: “I am the true grapevine, and my Father is the gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch of mine that doesn’t produce fruit, and he prunes the branches that do bear fruit so they will produce even more. 3 You have already been pruned and purified by the message I have given you. 4 Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me. 5 “Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing." Here we see how vital it is that we remain connected to God. For God not only provides for us giving us sustenance but also God removes things in our lives that would cause us to be unfruitful. With some plants, you can cut off a shoot and plant it and it will start new growth, and some flowers you can break apart a group of bulbs and replant them; but for the most part when you sever a branch from a vine it will die. This is why being connected with a church or Bible study is so important. You hear good teaching, you have fellowship with other believers, and you are connected with body of Christ, which is the Church. In II Timothy 1:7 it says: 7 For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline. When we are connected to God and serving Him, His Spirit can work in us. And that Spirit is not one of fear and timidity. It is focused on God's call to share His love and that's what God gives us to step out when He calls us. For we do not minister with our own strength but rely on God who is our strength. The psalmist writes in Psalm 18:1-2 1 I love you, Lord; you are my strength. 2 The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my savior; my God is my rock, in whom I find protection. He is my shield, the power that saves me, and my place of safety. As we understand all that God is for us and how He is there for us, how can we not step forward when He calls? Finally, in Ephesians 3:14-19 it says: 14 When I think of all this, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father, 15 the Creator of everything in heaven and on earth. 16 I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit. 17 Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. 18 And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. 19 May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God. Wow. Those verses are huge, write them down on a index card and put them where you can see them each day. My friends, God's got your back and He goes before you, step out to where He has called you, He will provide. May God bless you all. I'll see you @ the track next week.