The Jeff Cavins Show (Your Catholic Bible Study Podcast) - My First Bike and God's Provision!

Episode Date: October 18, 2019

How often do you stop to recognize how God provides for you, and how often do you ask for his provision in your life? Often we are quick to attribute our successes and gains to our own abilities, forgetting that nothing good that we do or have comes without God’s generous provision. Whether it’s God’s grace to advance spiritually or his provision for our physical needs, God is always with us, like a faithful father standing by his children--even though they may not realize his presence. In this episode of the show, Jeff reflects on how each bike he owned throughout his youth came directly by way of his father’s generosity and provision. He uses his father’s constant presence and generosity as an image to remind us how God provides for us throughout our lives. Snippet from the Show They who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint. Isaiah 40:31 SHOWNOTES First Bike at Iowa State Joshua 1:9 - “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; be not frightened, neither be dismayed; for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” Second Bike in Bloomington Isaiah 41:10 - “fear not, for I am with you, be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my victorious right hand.” *First Motorcycle * Matthew 28:19-20 - “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age.” Second Motorcycle Deuteronomy 31:6 - “Be strong and of good courage, do not fear or be in dread of them: for it is the Lord your God who goes with you; he will not fail you or forsake you.” Hebrews 13:5 - “Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have; for he has said, “I will never fail you nor forsake you.” Isaiah 40:31 - “but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.” Resources Email Jeff: [e-mail] Holy Land January 2020 Pilgrimage "2020 Vision" Holy Land June Pilgrimage

You're listening to the Jeff Kaven's show episode 137, My First Bike and God's Provision. Hey, I'm Jeff Kavans. How do you simplify your life? How do you study the Bible? All the way from motorcycle trips to raising kids, we're going to talk about the faith and life in general. It's the Jeff Kaven Show. And I'm glad that you could join me this week, again, together. on this show where we can discuss things that are related to being a disciple of the Lord, insights, you know, that we gain along the way, opportunities to share Christ with other people. And we have a growing audience and getting a lot of mail from around the world.

And thank God for technology where we can still come together and at least talk about these things and share good things with one another. If you would like to write me, you can write at The Jeff Kaven Show at Ascension Press. dot com. The topic for this week really has a lot to do with the efforts that we put out in daily life and an understanding that God is with us and he will not forsake us and that he is always there even when we don't really realize it. And I want to start off by just asking you a question in your life today. Are you involved in things that you're asking yourself at times, where's God? I don't sense God. Will he come through? We prayed about this. We asked for that.

We depended on this particular thing or person. And sometimes you feel like, you know, what am I going to do? I feel abandoned. I feel like the Lord is not really with me. I feel alone. I'm doing this all on my efforts and nobody's here to help. And sometimes we feel like that. Do you feel like that at times? as I do. And all the way back when I was a kid, you know, I started learning and I started learning about the presence of my heavenly father in my life. But I didn't know that it was really my my heavenly father until later. I grew to realize that it was my father who was behind the scenes of so many things that I was doing. And he was assisting me and he was providing for me. and I didn't really know it, you know, I didn't give my father credit for making things happen

or work in my life when I was growing up. And as I got older, I think I still fell into that same mistake with my Heavenly Father, where at times I'm not really aware, you know, that, wow, he is there. He is doing things. He is providing. And I'm sitting here with incomplete parts and incomplete projects. and I don't know this and that, and God is ready to show himself strong and provide in what I'm doing in my life and in my family. So I want to take you on a little journey today that a lot of people

identify with, and it's a journey about our first bike, the first bicycle that we ever had. Think back for a moment. What was your first bike? Was your first bike a little two-wheeler? Was it a tricycle? Did it have training wheels on it? Did you ride those training wheels for a period of time? Or did you just get up and start riding two wheels? How did you do that? Well, I want to talk about that, and I actually have some pictures of my first bike and me writing that first bike. But my first bike came to me when I was about four or five, four or five years old. I was in kindergarten. I live in Minneapolis, St. Paul, now, but I was in kindergarten in Ames, Iowa. My dad was getting his Ph.D. in electrical engineering. We were living in student housing, as you will see in the picture part of that. I think I have that. And I wanted to bike, you know, like a lot of the other kids. They had bikes and they were riding them around and building little ramps that they would go over. And I still remember looking at two wheels and thinking, ah, that's so cool. I want to get one of those. But my parents really didn't have a lot of

money, you know, in graduate school. It was the early 60s, let's see, probably like 61, 62, somewhere in there. And they didn't have a lot. My dad was working three jobs, but I managed to make my way over to a kind of a dump. It was a little bit of a campus dump, I guess you would say, where people were throwing their garbage. And lo and behold, I found in the heap of garbage a little red bike that fit me. It looks like it would fit me, but it had one big problem

and that was it didn't have wheels. You can't do much with a bike. As pretty as that red bike was, you can't do much with it if you don't have wheels. And so I drug it home. I drugged that little bike home and I showed my dad, my mom, I said, look, I got

a bike because they knew I was wanting a bike. And I said, I found a bike in the garbage. But it doesn't have wheels. Well, lo and behold, my dad with a limited income and a student, you know, at a graduate level, he got the money together and he bought me two wheels. And that made the bike. He then stood next to me and he held on to me and started guiding me and showing me how to pedal down the road in front of our dorm there. And before you know it, I think it was that later that day, I started riding the bike and I was writing it with new wheels and my dad was not guiding me anymore. He already showed me how to do that. And I was thrilled.

I was on my first bike independent and I was the thing. I made it, you know? And I'm going to put a picture of that in the show notes. In fact, I'll put two pictures in the show notes. One of them is me riding that first ride at five years old, and there's another one riding with a big smile on my face with our house, the dorms in the background. Well, I make that point with the story that I had a bike that couldn't do anything. I had something that wouldn't go anywhere, and it needed my father's help in order for it to really go. And sometimes in life, you know, now, you might have something that looks like, wow, this could, this really has potential. But you're missing the firepower. You're missing that ingredient. You're missing the help of your heavenly father

to make that a reality. I share this story with you as a means of encouragement. And as I look back, I reflect, you know, on my father being present. And I didn't give him credit at the time. I didn't go around to my friends and say, look at the wheel. my father gave me and now I can ride. No, I went around and said, look at the bike I found. The bike I'm riding. But without my father, I would have never ridden that bike. I would have never had that smile on my face. It was my father. That was the one who was supplying and meeting the need. I'm reminded of Joshua. The book of Joshua chapter one in verse nine says, have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not.

be frightened and do not be dismayed for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go and I'm sure that my father had a big smile on his face as I rode that bike in front of the house independent on my own and he simply smiled the second bike that I got was in Bloomington Minnesota we had moved up in the 60s to Minnesota and I wanted a big bike now I wanted a Schwinn three speed. Maybe you had a schwin. And three speed was kind of the deal. Ten speeders were just coming out, you know, but I mean, they were there, but man, that wasn't for me yet. I was still, you know, like in sixth grade or something like that. So I wanted, I wanted a Schwinn three speed. And I told my parents that and my dad said, well, if you can raise, you know, a percentage of the money,

I'll help you out. And I said, well, I got an idea. And I got a paper route. I got a paper route with two papers, a day paper and then an evening paper, the Minneapolis Tribune at night, and then I did also the star in the day, and then it later became the star and tribune. Anyway, I got this paper route, and I was on fire. You know, I was going to make some money, and I was going to get that Schwinn three speed. Well, the route that I took was fine Monday through Saturday, but Sunday, it was a killer. It was a killer because the paper was so big and more people wanted the Sunday paper than the daily. So I had, I think, oh, I'm just guessing now, to be honest with you,

I'm guessing that I had like 48 daily papers or something like that to deliver every day. But on Sunday, it was up to about 95 or 100, something like that. And that was just, I didn't know how I was going to drag that around. But my father said to me, you know, you do this route on Sunday, we'll put all the paper in the back of the station wagon with that that hitch that goes down we'll put all the papers in there and I will drive you you can sit on the back I'll drive you through your paper route and you can just run back and forth and deliver the papers and so I did that and I was able on Sunday to get my paper route done before church but I rode the Schwinn three speed a gold one with

three speeds low medium and high do you understand the power in that for a sixth grader And I rode around, I'd made jumps, and I was racing friends. And I said, look at my bike that I got and everything, a pen cycle. I bought it. But I never said anything about my father driving me around. You see, the power and the key was that my father supplied something I couldn't do. And he's the one that made it. It reminds me of Isaiah 41 in verse 10.

10, fear not, for I am with you. Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you. I will help you. I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. We're talking today about my first bike, God's provision. I got two more bikes. We'll be right back after this. ago, Jesus Christ chose corrupt, broken, imperfect, sinful men to be the foundation of his church. And because these broken and perfect men chose to remain in relationship with Jesus, they became saints. And they were used by Jesus to transform hearts and minds 2,000 years later.

I invite you to check out my book, Broken and Blessed, where you'll find practical tools to overcome habitual sin, to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, and to walk with an imperfect church toward a perfect God, who is calling all of us to perfection over time. To order the paperback book or audiobook, broken and blessed, visit ascensionpress.com or Amazon. Thanks for coming back. We're talking about my first bike and God's provision, and my first little red bike, which I got some pictures for you on the show notes. My second bike, which was the Schwinn three speed, both the key to having those and riding them was not my ingenuity. It was my father, and it was his help, and it was his provision that made my reality. It really was.

Time went on, and I got into a high school, and I had a desire for a motorcycle. First time I saw a motorcycle, I was about eight years old, and I was in Iowa at my grandmother's house, and my uncle drove up on a triumph Bonneville. And when I saw that, I was, I mean, I was hooked as a young boy. I thought, oh, man, mom, that's what I'm going to get. She goes, well, I don't know. Well, I do. And I ended up at the age of, I think it was 10th grade, 9th or 10th grade, I ended up wanting and wanted to buy a Yamaha 250. Problem is I didn't have the money. So I asked my parents, you know, I said, I want to get a job so they want to go out there and look for a job. So at 15 years old, I went to a place called the Chanhassen Dinner Theater.

It's a big dinner theater, one of the best in the country. And I went in to apply for a job, and the manager at the time said, well, how old are you? And I said, I'm 15. And he said, well, that you're too young. You can't work here. And I said, but I'm saving for a motorcycle. I want to get a motorcycle so when I turn 16, I can buy a motorcycle. And he said, well, you come back when you're 16.

I must have gone back to that dinner theater seven or eight times. times and I talked to the owner of the dinner theater and I said I really want a job I'll do anything he says he says son you're too young and then finally about the ninth time or so 10th time he said you know what if you can get permission from your parents I think the city has a provision you can work certain hours so again I went back to my dad and I said to my dad I said dad I need permission to work at the Chan hesson dinner theater can you give me permission to work at certain times if you can sign here and he signed. He signed right there. And I went to, back to the theater, and they looked at me,

and they said, you're hired. Can you clean pots and pans? I said, I sure can. And so the first day I went to work, I was in the kitchen, and it was piled high with pots and pans and crusted chicken Kiev on them. And I thought, oh, no, the last guy quit, this is terrible. And I started to clean those pots and pans. And I thought, oh, I'm going to do this, you know, over and over. And, and I thought, Oh, no, what did I get into? The next day I went into work, and the head chef said, do you know how to cook walleye? And I said, I sure do, which I didn't. And he brought me over to the big grill.

He said, our guy that cooks the walleye, the pike or the walleye fish, has quit. And so you'd try it. And he showed me a couple of fillets, and I did it. He said, all right. And from there on out, I was the fish friar at that dinner theater. Talk about funny. I got the money, though. I made the money, but I had a big problem. I had no way of going to the dealer to pick up my bike. And I asked my dad, would you drive me to the dealer to pick it up? And he did. He drove me there. And as I got on the bike,

the motorcycle for the first time to drive this thing home, I was nervous, and my father followed me the whole way. It wasn't the first time he did that type of thing. I was 18 years old, and one day I got this wild idea. I'm going to run 20 miles. I'm going to run from my house all the way to where the twins used to play in Bloomington, Minnesota, 20 miles. My dad said, are you sure you want to do that? I said, I do. I want to run that far and say that he said, okay.

And so I took off. I got my running shoes, my running pants, and my bottle of water and whatever, and I took off running. I just had this idea. I got about, I don't know, things. 15 miles into it and running. I was a runner. I got about 15 miles into it and I kind of stopped and I was catching my breath and stretching and I looked behind me and about a quarter of a mile behind me was my dad. He was following me. He was watching me. He was there all along.

And it reminds me so much, you know, of my Heavenly Father that those times where you feel like you're alone you don't have what it takes or whatever it might be he's there i like i like what it says in matthew 2820 go therefore and make disciples of all nations baptizing them in the name of the father and the son and the holy spirit teaching them to observe all that i have commanded you and behold i am with you always to the end of the age i want to encourage you today god is with you and it might not seem like it but he's got an eye on you he will not leave you he will not forsake you he is with you to the end of the age take that as encouragement you know there was one more motorcycle it's kind of funny i uh i was i think i was in my 50s you know which is just yesterday

i think it's in my in my mid early 50s something like that and i wanted to get a harley davidson I always wanted to ride Harleys. I had rode Yamahs for years and wanted to get a Harley Davidson. I went to the dealer. I got everything together and I told my parents, I said, I'm going to get a Harley. And my mom says, oh, Jeff, are you sure? You know, that type of thing. I'm sure.

I've been writing for you, you know, since I was 16. Do you remember that? Mom. And I, it's so funny, I went to, when my parents found out that I was going to buy the Harley Davidson, on the day that I went over there, guess who showed up? They showed up. in their car, and as I got on that great big hog, that Harley Davidson, both my mom and my dad, in their older years now, were smiling as I drove off that lot. He will never leave you or forsake you.

What's your bicycle? What is it in your life that is really not complete until God helps you? What is it in your life? Is it education? Maybe you are the first in your family to go to college. You don't have enough money. Let God bring wheels to your education. Is it a learning, learning a skill? Let God bring wheels to that situation. Is it raising a family? You have children. You're a young couple. You feel inadequate. Maybe you feel like your family is like the bike. No wheels. Let God bring wheels to your family. Is it kicking a habit? Addiction? Maybe you read a book about beating that addiction. Let God bring wheels to your effort. He is with you. He is with you and he will not leave you or forsake you. Being a holy employee, understanding the Bible, watching your kids leave home, he is with you. Are you suffering?

let God drive you throughout your obligations. Let him take you to each place of obligation, like my paper route growing up. Hebrews chapter 13 and verse 5, and I'll put all these scriptures in the show notes, keep your life free from love of money and be content with what you have, for he has said, I will never leave you nor forsake you. Do you need to be free from the love of money? do you need to be content with what you have? Remember then.

He's not going to leave you, nor forsake you. I also like Isaiah 40. Isaiah 40, I read that 40 in verse 10, Fear not for I am with you. But I also like later on in that chapter, verse 31, and I'll put it in the notes. But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles,

they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint. Let me share one more story. with you if I can. That might be of encouragement to you and how God provides so well in our lives. I was in about sixth grade and I had an idea that I wanted to build a business. Sixth grade, you know, truth be known, I wanted money to buy books because I loved reading books and buying hockey sticks and, you know, that kind of thing. So I got an idea. I am going to build a business. Now, the only business that I could really come up with

was a business of serving people with mowing their lawns or shoveling driveways in the winter in Minnesota because it rains, it snows almost every week and people have to either snow blow the driveway or they take a big shovel to it. And then in the summer, of course, you've got to cut your lawn almost every week. So I came up with a business model.

Now, granted, I'm in sixth-seventh grade at this time, probably seventh. And I said to myself, I'm going to mow these lawns. I got a little contract together, made it, and made copies down at, I think, like a 7-Eleven store or something. And then I went around the neighborhood and I got about 10 people that agreed for $5 a week I would mow their lawn. And now, granted, all this time I'm thinking, man, this is going to be a lot of money. This is fantastic. But I realized very quickly that I could not do that all. And so I went around the

of my friends and I came up with a deal and I said look are you guys want to make some money and they said sure and I said I've got about five homes that I'll give you three bucks to mow their three bucks to mow their lawn and they said okay so I got rid of about five of them and I made two dollars on each one right but I still had like five to do and that was a lot of work when you're six and seventh grade all summer mowing lawns like that and I'd go into the garage I'd get the my dad's lawn more and then I would fill it up with gas and I'd go out and I do all these lawns. Well, here's the kicker. Never, ever did I think about the fact that it was my dad's lawnmower.

And never once did I think for a second that he was putting more gas in the can every week without saying anything to me. I was using his lawnmower. I was using the gas. and he never made a big deal out of it. He just kept providing and providing and providing. And here's what's funny about it, is that it wasn't until about 10 years ago

that it suddenly dawned on me that my business of mowing lawns and blowing driveways was all dependent upon my father's provision which he was willing to give. What a business. We talk about it still, and it's funny. My friend, you're not the big deal.

God is. I wasn't the big deal. My father was. And God is giving you more than you know, and he's there when you don't see him, and he's providing when you cannot see it at the moment. God will never leave you nor forsake you. I hope this is of some encouragement to you today, because I do know that at times people feel abandoned

and they feel like it's useless or it's all up to me. Maybe it's in your parish work, or maybe you are a single mom, or maybe you're married, but your husband's not on board with you in trying to pass on the faith to your children. And at times you do go into the room, another room, and you cry. and you say, God, where are you? Where are the wheels? Where's the wheels? Where's the ride? Where's the gas?

What if I get hurt? Are you going to be there with me? Yes, and yes, and yes, and yes. He will never leave you, nor forsake you. I want to pray for you now and pray that God blesses you in whatever situation you find yourself in now. I want you to know that if this is your first bike, there's God's provision for you. And this goes from kindergarten all the way into your 60s.

There are a few of you into your 90s. Okay. In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, amen. Lord Jesus, I thank you. I thank you for your provision. And I thank you that you are a covenant keeper. And you will never leave us nor forsake us. When we feel down and alone and feel like we don't have the strength,

and we don't have those wheels. We know you see. We know you provide. And we give you all the praise and all the glory for this. We ask you, Lord, now to continue to follow us. And may we be faithful like you are faithful in the circumstances that we find ourselves in. May we be even a source of provision for others from you to them. And we pray this in Jesus' name.

Amen. remember my friend all the information if you want to know more ascensionpress.com my pilgrimages are at jeffcavens.com and father mike schmits and i will be leading a young adults trip coming up in june of 2020 and we have a room on our pilgrimage in this coming to see january our pilgrimage to january so we'll see you on my website god bless you i want you know i love you and i hope this has been an encouragement to you i'd like to hear from you You can email me at The Jeff Kaven Show. That's three words really for The Jeff Kavan Show at ascensionpress.com.

God bless you. And you have a wonderful week.