Running on Reserve
my toy
It is amazing how accustomed we get to relying on gauges and indicators when we drive.
My van has all the typical gauges that most vehicles have: engine, speedometer, oil, odometer, turn signal indicators etc. The Caravan will even give you a little warning bell when you are low on fuel or the lights are left on.
Life gets so busy with Heather and I working full time, 3 kidz in school, sports, clubs etc during the week and a Schnauzer that needs her walks and her hair buzzed (thanks youtube for the tips).
I have been really enjoying my newest “de-stressing toy”… a 2004 Kawasaki Vulcan motorcycle!
Ever since I was a little ripper playing with hot wheels in the driveway, I have wanted to have a classic mustang or bike. This past summer I took what little $$$ I had saved up and treated Heather real nice for a couple weeks before bringing home my Classic 800.
If you are a biker, you will understand the awesome freedom that comes from pulling back a throttle and finding some curves on a sunny day. I have been riding for just over 3 months now and try to get out every chance I get for a few rips. Yesterday after our morning service at City Church I caught a couple zzzz and then jumped on “misty” for a tour before having to keep a date with a hockey arena and my all star son in Nepean.
Most bikes (mine included) do not have a fuel gauge. Maybe you can see where this is going? About a km from my house the bike starts to miss, cough and spit a bit. Usually, this would be a reminder to reach down and flip the fuel switch over to “reserve”. You see, motorcycles gas tanks have a kinda top and bottom half to them and when you fill the tank you are supposed to remember to reset the switch to the full position. As you will soon see, it turns out that this is pretty important for those who are not pre-disposed to pushing heavy, gasoline starved bikes through their neighborhoods while wearing all your gear.
Without knowing it, I was running my bike on “reserve”. Fumes!!
Of course this caused the bike to eventually stall out, and I had to endure the heavy work of pushing this chrome beauty down the windy strip rather than flick my wrist and hear the “BBlllahhhmmmmm” of the engine.
Oh by the way … I wasn’t feelin’ very Christian at this point.
You see, running on reserve is not meant to be the norm. The moment you reach for that switch, your brain tells you that it’s time to fuel up and you are now running on a very limited amount of fuel. Maybe that is why they call it “reserve.” I still don’t remember flippin’ that crazy switch.
Ticked off, embarrassed, tired and maybe a bit stressed, but I did learn a valuable lesson in humility after the first half km of pushing my ride. The lesson???
Fuel up! As a matter of fact I recommend to all you riders out there to fuel up every chance you get. Unfortunately, God didn’t design us with fancy gauges that blink, whine and chime at us when we are running on reserve. Most of us are constantly exhausting the limits of our tank and I am sure there are even some of you out there who are tired of doing the heavy work of pushing.
Let me encourage you with the refreshing words of Jesus. “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” (Matt 11:28)
Did you get that?
The apostle Paul also encourages all us road warriors to “be filled with the Spirit” (Eph 5)
Next time you are gassing up, take a look around the pumps and maybe I will see you there.
