Peter’s Heart Was In The Right Place
His Head Was In Another

In my last post, I made the point that Peter’s failure, the reason he denied Jesus, was ideological. He was invested in ideas that ran contrary to God’s plan.

Failure was guaranteed. The only plan that works is God’s plan. Changing the details is like rewriting the Bible.

People, Christian or not, don’t see it that way. A little modification here or there can’t be that bad. That’s what Peter thought but he might have something very different to say if he were here today.

Fortunately, Peter did recover. It wasn’t easy. He had to work through a bit of guilt and despondency but he got through it. The question is did Peter learn his lesson?

Yes, but it took a while.

What Jesus Planned

Jesus had a plan in eternity past, before the creation of the world. He knew exactly what would happen and what He would do and He did it.

He took on human form, He grew and developed in the way humans develop – except without sin, and died for the sins of the world.

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That wasn’t what Peter wanted but it was the plan. Jesus made the plan clear to the disciples but there’s no evidence the penny dropped until after He rose from the grave.

Allusions To The Cross

Early in Jesus’ public ministry, Jesus began making allusions to His death, burial, and resurrection.

• After cleansing the Temple, Jesus said, destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up. (John 2:19)

He was talking about His body and the resurrection but no one caught on till after he rose from the dead.

• He referred to being life up in the same way Moses lift of the serpant in the wilderness. (John 3:14)
• He used Jonah’s experience to represent His burial and resurrection. (Matthew 12:39-40)

Instead of getting it, they were confused. It went right over their heads. [Read more…] about How Peter Learned Obedience

Adjustability, Adjustability, Adjustability

I’ve supplemented my road cycling with spinning classes for years. It’s possible mostly because bike adjustability is never a problem with gym bikes and it offers a quick, decent workout when you can’t get out on the road.

The pandemic, however, put a kink in my exercise plan. Once the lockdown was in place, gyms were out along with the spinning class. There were, of course, drawbacks to gym classes. The people were great but I always felt a little contaminated after a sweaty workout in a large, mostly unventilated room (petri dish). After COVID, petri dish notwithstanding, that option was no longer available.

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What was I to do? The situation created a problem but it also pushed me to do what I’d been considering for quite a while: buy a stationary bike. Once that decision was made, however, I was faced with another more difficult decision: choosing the right bike. [Read more…] about Myxfitness Adjustability Is The Best

Great Training! Great Fun!

The Toti 69er is an annual cycling race organized by the Amanzimtoti Cycling Club which offers variable distances: 19k, 69k and 94k. The race first started in 2002 and now attracts elite cyclists.

There’s no road closure but the route is marshalled so cyclists are catered for at intersections. The route is also monitored by emergency vehicles and CycleSphere provided service vehicles to help with breakdowns.

Everyone is friendly! Everyone is looked after!

Members of my club, East Coast Cycling, enter the race each year and since I had the day off I decided to put my name in the hat.

It was different in several ways to the main races in and around the Durban area. The field was light. A total of 330 entered and there were a few no-shows on the day. To give you perspectve, 330 is less than one batch in the Tour of Durban or Amashoave. That could be good or bad, depending. [Read more…] about East Coast Cycling In The Toti 69er

A Gran Fondo
With A Small “g”

This ride was more to the liking of a moderate ability cyclist. The length was good (93k), the climbing was decent (976m) and the route (shown left) was familiar.

There was one puncture but the groups are considerate so no one is left alone. It’s in the fabric of the club. We stay together.

The route was not one we do every week but it was familiar.

• Leaving Suncoast we travel to Umhlanga Rocks on backroads.
• From Umhlanga Rocks we follow the M4 to the Engen Station at Ballito.
• Hopping across to the R102 we travel south through Verulam and turn left on the R41.
• We followed the M41 up to Gateway and followed Umhlanga Rocks to Northway and Northway down to Suncoast.

It was cold when we started but I was shedding my long sleeves by the time we got to Gateway. This wasn’t your typically gruelling Gran Fondo but it was a good ride with a nice bunch of people.

If you’re thinking about getting fit, don’t wait. Join ECCC and get started. With the smartest kit in town, you’ll look smart long before you’re fit.

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