Tuesday, May 31, 2011

A Doozy of a Day

So the morning began great with an awesome Bible Study lead by Jenna and some breakfast sandwiches that Emily made. And then it became...well........a debacle and doozy of a day.

The directions became the problem of the day. The riders (and Big Bertha) couldn't find a road. The riders rode back and forth trying to find it, paging Big Bertha for help, who couldn't do much in this circumstance. Break came at Piggly Wiggly in Eulonia. Prior to stopping, the group met a guy named Al. Al is walking from Florida to Maine to raise money and awareness about Veterans issues; he is 72. Gordon and Lewie chatted it up pretty well. The riders also found a group of kids trying to raise money for camp by selling lemonade. Oh the good ol' days of innocence. Lewie and Gordon again talked it up, giving them some marketing tips.

Lunch came along and we skyped with Amanda, whom we all LOVE AND ADORE!!!!!! It was hard hearing her sometimes as truckers came along with their rather loud engines.

So we get to Savannah and Big Bertha is out in front, blazing the trail the riders are following. She gets to a road that has a sign "Bicycles Prohibited." Uh oh...So we are forced to reroute. We pull over on the side of the highway and Bryan calls Lewie with directions. Big Bertha gets luck and the next exit is near where the reroute begins. Meanwhile the gang is hanging out at a gas station waiting to proceed as a unit. Bertha looks to find the first road, unable to find it. We run into a nice old man in a pick up, who directs us in that direction. Needless to say, the road was wrong. We hit our first dead end. Emily is sitting with Bryan's computer, hotspot in action (yeah 4G). We can't move. Luckily, we have a guy drive up behind us who has a painting business. They had enough space in their lot for Bertha to maneuver. We move out and find the road we're supposed to be on. Needless to say, we get lost again. Bertha finds the riders and we're all off, on the right path...

...or so we thought...

We follow the directions Google Maps had given Big Bertha. We turn down a "Dead End." Google told us it would turn into a new road. It didn't. We get to the end of the road and I (Bryan) decide to take matters into my own hands. I turn into a driveway and pull in and begin to pull out. I had some difficulty getting Bertha out, but luckily the people whose driveway we invaded didn't care. In fact, he offered us a bedroom if we needed it. His wife wanted to buy an RV, but he had refused on MANY occasions. Eventually, we turn around, with Mark's AMAZING skills at knowing how to turn a trailer.

In the end, we get Mark friend Jack's house. But it was a long day.

The riders rode 95 miles today when it was all said and done.

Needless to say, I (Bryan) am pooped.

Love to you all.

Sunday, May 29, 2011

Tang and Bang

This morning we woke up bright and early to an incredible breakfast prepared by Marianna and George. While having breakfast, we went through day three of the least of these journey. We then headed over to Mandarin United Methodist. Most of us rode in the RV, but Jon, Lewie, and Adrian had to outdo everyone by riding their bikes over to the Church. Dan Stanley had us do the presentation to his sunday school group. The group was extremely interested in the She's My Sister program in the Congo. It was encouraging for us as a team to be with such a passionate group of elders, and they were encouraged in the same way to be with us. After the church service we had a time of fellowship with the congregation with cake and tang. Not only do our lime green and purple shirts make us easier to see while biking on the roads, but they also shout visitor to anyone in the Church. Following the service a man named Steve was kind enough to have a few of us to lunch with some folks from the congregation. Once everybody made it back to the house within thirty minutes our whole team was scattered around the living room sleeping on the floors and couches. Slowly the team woke up and moved around the house having much needed alone time. We then ate like kings once again with a feast of chicken, pork chops, salad, fries, and haagen-daz bars to finish it off. The family had us do a presentation to them. We are eternally grateful to Marianne, George, Adrian, and Andrew for treating us as brothers and sisters in Christ. We are currently finishing our night up with a team watching of Apollo 13 while drinking some Tang (the first drink drank on the moon). Thanks for the movie and inspiration, Mr. Larry! Great day to be alive I know the sun's still shining when I close my eyes. There are some hard times in the neighborhood but why can't everyday be just this good.

Saturday, May 28, 2011

Hospitality to Strangers

"Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it." Hebrews 13:2

The word entertain here can mean "to be received hospitably" (Strong's Concordance).

This morning we went over the second day of the 40 Day Least of These Journey . It's title is POWER, and it talks about how those with authority, power, and wealth should defend the poor and bring justice to the oppressed. Following the study we had a great breakfast cooked by Daddy Dougan, and then left St. Augustine for Jacksonville. The ride was around 45 miles today, so we were able to take it easy and have some fun. Lewie, Mark, and I practiced drafting and tried to keep up with some local cyclists (no luck). Near the end of the ride we ran into a Georgia fruit stand, where we got some complimentary samples of peach and mango from the vendors, Jonny and Cassy. Further down the road we ran into Jim who is an avid cyclist from the Jacksonville area, and he gave us some cycling tips while he rode with us to our destination (if you read this: thank you for your help).

Right away upon arriving at the Bumbuts, our host family, we were served a wonderful Romanian styled lunch. They really made us feal at home. Following some relaxation time we went to the beach and played volleyball and soccer. For dinner we had another great meal (thank you Marianna, George, Andrew, and Adrian). Now it's time for bed.

Overall, we got hospitabilized like crazy today.

Jon

Friday, May 27, 2011

Yaaayy we rode today for the first time!

Welp, today we had our first day of biking! And man was it great. We started off from Daytona Beach across from El Caribe where a small group bid us farewell. Our dear friend Larry came to say bye and even brought us doughnuts! Also some staff from El Caribe a local newspaper (The Daytona News Journal) ,and a local news crew (Fox35) saw us depart. While we were sad to leave all of our new friends in Daytona, we couldn't have been more excited to start our tour. Overall, our ride went really well. We rode about 26 miles before breaking for lunch. Bryan and Emily (our steadfast RV drivers) had a delectable meal prepared when we stopped. After about an hour break, we continued 30 more miles before arriving in St. Augustine. Minor mishaps of today's ride include...1. Marianne having a minor fall while stopped along the road 2. Gordon getting a flat tire which he quickly fixed with ease and 3. Marianne almost falling again as we arrived at our destination.

Although we planned on camping for the evening, Aaron (our new friend from Venture Expeditions) hooked us up with a sweet house only a few blocks from the best part of St. Augustine. The building is used as a mission house for a local church and is run by a friend of a friend of Aaron's named Gardner Gordon. So many thanks to Gardner. We all took much needed showers and gathered on the porch together. With a cool breeze, a slight rain, and the sound of a worship band practicing in the house, we all had our quiet times and personal reflections for the day. A couple of team members were not dedicated enough to stay awake and took catnaps on the porch, but the remainder of us enjoyed each other's company. Finally, we went to a trendy burrito place called Burrito Works. It was delicious, but still not as good as Moe's Southwest Grill (probably the best restaurant in the United States). Now, we congregate in the den and plan for Day Two of the ride. We can hardly stay awake. God has truly blessed this group and this ride.

ALLSOOOOO sidenote: our own Lewie Briggs had a radio interview this morning with Stephanie Riggs from a Colorado radio station. awesome!

Ok bedtime.

The best looking, fastest, most awesome cyclists on this tour,
Andy and Jenna

"We're off..."

Just got a text from Lewie at 9:29 a.m. saying, "We're off..." So the time has come. Many, many thanks to you cyclists and support team for this amazing investment of time and talent to make this CongoSister Bike Tour happen. In January 2010, Lewie and I, along with a delegation from American Bible Society, were in the Eastern Congo and repeatedly promised: "We will not forget you." Thank you for helping the church in the U.S. remember our Sisters in the eastern Congo who are suffering so severely. Ride on, cyclists! - Robert Briggs, American Bible Society

Thursday, May 26, 2011

Last Night in Daytona

This is it. Last night in Daytona. Emotions awry. Today we rode our first training ride as a group, 24 miles. Tomorrow we head out at 9am to begin a 67 mile trek to St. Augustine.

Today was our last day with a lot of people that we've met in Daytona. After our ride we had a BBQ with some of those people, and it was quite a blessing. If you are reading this, thank you so much for all the help and support you have given us. Also to First Baptist Church, you all really encouraged us so thanks for that. And Willie, keep sporting that shirt we gave you!

For those of you who don't know...Willie was a homeless man who came and talked to us after we spoke to the First Baptist youth group. He wore nothing but a pair of pajama pants, but he encouraged us a lot with his words. We ended up giving him a She's My Sister shirt and he promised to wear it all around and tell people about the Congo. It's amazing who God has already brought into our path, and we are excited to see who else He might use.

Keep us in prayer. And if you're reading this, stop quickly and say a prayer for our sisters in the Congo.

As Gordon once said, "The east coast better hold onto its britches cause we comin through!"

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Joe Joe and Junior

Woke up this morning to look outside and see Lewie asleep on the beach. We then got all trained up on how to do bike training. Tonight we spoke with the youth and elders at First Baptist Church. We then got lost while looking for a coffee shop where we only knew the street name. We said a prayer and there we were. We spoke with about thirty people outside the coffee shop, and it was really encouraging to talk with Joe Joe and Junior, who grew up in the Democratic Republic of Congo. They moved over here in 1999, and there gratefulness is incredible.

Mark

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

God Moving In Amazing Ways.

The last two days God has been moving in great ways. Yesterday, we were blessed with the Engage Your Strengths program presented by Dr. J.E. Caterson. J.E. is a great presenter and got us to really think about how we as a group will come together as a unit, but also for the rest of our lives. After taking a test where we were asked if "You are zestful," we all got our top five strengths out of a list of 34. The group has diverse talents and I am excited to see how we come together.

Last night, we had the blessing of meeting with a couple named Mark and Christina. A few months ago, their son Bruce was killed in a bicycle accident. They had us over to meet us and to pray for our safety and for our trip. It was a powerful experience to listen to their story, their struggles, and their joy that they've found in his death. We shared with them the story of the Congo, and their hearts went out to those women there. (Picture of us with them: http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10150249909882526&set=oa.229697863713443&type=1&ref=nf)

God this morning blessed us with a great opportunity to meet with a group of pastors and church leaders at big church. Everyone's heart was touched by our message - God's message - the story of the women in the Congo. The prayer they spoke over us was incredibly moving and powerful. Jon said he could feel that the Spirit was there and moving in the words. (Picture of us praying with the group: http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10150249910102526&set=oa.229697863713443&type=1&ref=nf)

So this is kind of a boring post, I suppose. I'm having difficulty putting into words how God is doing amazing things in this group and to the people to whom we are presenting. I've become speechless. Only God can seem to do this since we know few people can actually accomplish this feat.

Gordon gets in tomorrow. Some have dubbed him "Gordy" before he's even arrived. Hope he takes it well!

Shout out to Pat, Gail, John, and Bagu - the ABS staff who presented today and left today or tomorrow. You all have been an inspiration to all of us riding. You've made this bike tour become a reality. You all love the youth, and it shows through your actions.

Go in peace,
BMD

Monday, May 23, 2011

Training week Day 3

Yesterday we did our first presentation at a church! It went pretty well, but we still have a lot of work to do on it. Afterwards, a businessman from that area came up and volunteered to help us make our presentation better! So he came in later that day and gave us a "Sales 101" class, to teach us the basic principles of presentations. So thanks Larry for all of your help!

Afterwards, we went to a church BBQ and talked to a lot of people. There was a Christian Motorcycle Association there that was really interested, and a lot of people were touched by the stories from the Congo. We can really see God moving here.

Today we woke up around 7am and had a three hour long first aid and CPR training. Now I feel equipped to handle any nosebleed or sprained ankle that might come our way. Also, I decided that I am not going to try and do the whole bike trip only drinking soda. Apparently that's not good for you. Also, we asked Bill and Nanette (the best CPR teachers that most of us have ever had!) what you do if two people need CPR and you are the only one to help. Do you choose one or do you go back and forth? Bill said that you just have to pick one.

As you can imagine, this causes a very serious moral dilemma that could be very detrimental to the team dynamic. So we (Mark and I) decided that we need to make a priority list of who should be saved over who so that in the event of a "choose," there would be no moral consequences. This is the list: (If you who are following the blog have suggestions/reasons as to how we might improve this priority list, please comment below.

Emily
Marianne
Jenna
Shannon
Bryan
Andy
Jon
Lewie
Mark
Gordon

Saturday, May 21, 2011

Training Day 1

Day 1 of training is over. What we thought was going to be an easy day actually was quite tiring! But we went through a lot of stuff. First we got introduced to Tom Trageser, who is helping us with church coordination for the whole tour. Incredible guy and his wife Laura is amazing too! Spent the day at his house, and we cleaned the RV which they donated to us for the whole tour. The RV is pretty ricidulous...sleeps five people comfortably. Word on the street is that the girls get to sleep there while the guys have to sleep in a tent outside...but hey, that's life. Did a little swimming and ate lunch before diving into presentation training.

Presentation training key points:
Mark Jacobs and Andy Clack are very nice to look at.
Lewie needs to articulate (I should have listened to you all along Dad!)
Jenna and Bryan, well they're perfect.
Jon keeps time very well.
Emily and Marianne work the slides like professionals.
Shannon likes to take pictures.

We all have become much better presenters now, so watch out east coast.

Then we took the RV out, Bryan and Emily drove like champs. We only crashed twice (just kidding...but almost). And then we went to the Break Youth group and played the craziest game of Basketbrawl (a strange mix of basketball and UFC) and got to share with them about She's My Sister. The kids really responded and a lot of them committed to be advocates!

Keep praying for us. We're definitely going to need it!

Friday, May 20, 2011

The Formation of a Group

As a (future) sociologist, I find group dynamics to be incredibly fascinating. How do people, when brought into a group, form their identity in the group? What makes groups "click" or not "click (a technical sociological term)? I just really find interesting how random people come together to form a group and create a group identity and come to function as a group.

So naturally, as people showed up to Miami and Daytona, this has made the future intellectual in me go crazy. This morning, Jenna, Lewie, Marianne, Jon, and I headed into Miami to hang out and kill time while waiting for Shannon to arrive. We found a cute little cafe on the side of Ocean Drive. We had a delicious a cheap brunch, then decided to take a stroll on the beach. It was gorgeous.

The conversation has been great and group has opened up to each other quickly, both in Miami and after meeting up with Mark and Andy in Daytona following a four hour drive that involved discussing Matthew 6, farting, vomiting, and Kids Across America (a camp where Mark, Jon, and Lewie had worked for two summers). We've come to share our testimonies (some twice since we shared as the five of us in Miami recounted them while sitting on rocks getting sunburned on the Miami beach).

So going back to my sociological mind...we have all found our common denominator: Christ. It's amazing that so diverse a group of people from different parts of the US get real extraordinarily quickly. I could go down a Durkheimian explanation of solidarity or religion's role in society (aka religion=society), but Durkheim has religion wrong. We won't discuss that now, considering my lack of knowledge of the debate regarding Durkheim and not having a Ph.D. Part of my wants to believe, however, that sociological theory cannot explain a group of Christians coming together to bond and share their love of Christ and the women of the DRC.

Til next time,
BMD

Curt's Cyclery

So, if this isn't answer to prayer I don't know what is. But as me (Lewie), Jenna, and Marianne were bike shopping we went to a bunch of different shops to compare. Our pastor Tim Ackley referred us to Curt's Cyclery in Nazareth, PA and we went and talked to Curt. He was so supportive and ended up getting us a great deal on our bikes. As if that wasn't enough, when we had to get our bikes packed and shipped, they did it for us for free! We couldn't believe it. So if you ever need any bike stuff, Curt's is the place to go. Curt is a Christian and really identified with our mission this summer, and that was such an encouragement. So Thanks Curt and Mike for all of your support and help!!

And for those of you who are interested, you should do the Century ride that they are doing June 11th...that's right...100 miles in one day! Check out their website at http://curtscyclery.com/

Thursday, May 19, 2011

More Flight troubles

So I show up to Allentown airport with Marianne and Jenna. We take the bus to Newark, stand in line to get on the plane, and Marianne and Jenna get on but my ticket doesnt work. THe lady looks at it and tells me I'm on the wrong flight. My flight didn't leave for another 5 hours. Thanks Marianne (who booked my flight). Needless to say, I had myself a good sit.

~Lewie

An Adventure To and In Miami

So I (Bryan) had an early morning: 5:30. Rolling out of bed at 6, I leave for BWI (Baltimore) to catch my 8:36 flight to Miami, arriving at 7. I figured that this was plenty of time to make my flight. Well...it would prove to be close. They called my flight, yet I, along with at least two others (so I couldn't blame my hearing loss), didn't hear it. I figure this out at, say, 8:05. So I get my boarding pass. I call my mom. Per her suggestion, I look to see if I can get escorted through security. But the airline has six people working two LONG lines, so they have no extra staff. I return to the line. While standing in line to go through security, I prepare to run. I put everything in my bookbag (shoes, belt, cell phone, etc.) and have my computer in hand. I clear security and I am off to the races. It's 8:26 or so and I am running through the airport with a computer in hand, in my socks (argyle, of course). I make it to the gate with probably seconds to spare, out of breath and pained feet.

So I make it to Miami. I wish they had the Will Smith Song "Welcome to Miami" playing on loop, but they don't...After checking into the hotel, I decide to go to downtown Miami-South Beach. So after a 20-30 minute taxi ride (you can imagine the cost), I'm set to explore. But it's hot, I have eaten nothing beyond three tiny cookies (that term is questionable for them). So I find a pizza place. Largest slices I have ever seen. I get some water. I walk down to the beach itself. The water is actually that clear blue color you see on the travel commercials on TV - who knew?! No water, however, coupled with the heat sends me into a state of feeling dehydrated. I'm bored and hot in an unknown city. But I did learn a thing or two (in no particular order):

1-Never travel in taxis alone for long distances. It will hurt your wallet.
2-Domestic airlines can never provide as good of a food service as international flights.
3-Before going into a city you've never been to, look up what there is to do!

Tomorrow, we travel to Daytona and meet up with more of the group!

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Two flat tires later...

Me (Lewie), Jenna, and Marianne went on a ride together today. It was supposed to be about a 50 mile ride, but we had some trouble. First, in Nazareth, I got a flat tire. Luckily for me, we were right next to Curt's Cyclery where we purchased our bikes, so I got it fixed ad we kept riding. Then, about 30 minutes later, Jenna got a flat tire in Bath. I guess it was good to get it now cause we learned how to repair it, but it seriously inhibited our ride. I called Tess (my little sister) and she picked Jenna up; me and Marianne rode back. Ended up going only about 30 miles today. But we left our bikes at the shop to get packed up so we can ship them to Florida through UPS. 2 more days till we leave!!

~Lewie

Monday, May 16, 2011

Lewie's Training stories

Story #1:
Was on a ride with Jenna Liew for about 20 miles. We were going down a hill and I was looking at Jenna's iPhone to see how far we had gone (lesson learned: don't look at phones while riding). As I was speeding down the hill without hands on my bike, a little weiner dog ran up to me. I didn't want to hit it, so I slammed on the breaks and flipped over the handlebars. I didn't want to look stupid though so I laid on the ground still looking at the phone for about a minute until Jenna made me get up. Both me and the phone were okay.

Story #2:
I just got my new bike and was riding it all around. It has these funny little slots that you are supposed to put your feet in, which I did. Small problem though. I was going down a grass hill (shortcut: not suggested) and the wheel clipped on the side of the sidewalk and the bike was tipping over. I tried to put my foot down to catch myself but it was caught in the foot slot and I fell right on my side. It also pulled down the left side of my shorts and cars were passing by! Trying desperately to save as much of my dignity that was lift, I jumped up and fixed myself as fast as I could. Just a little embarrassing haha.

Story #3
Went on a 50 mile ride today. Rode 20 then took a break. For the next 30 miles, I forgot to bring anything to eat or drink and hit a wall at mile 40. I felt like I couldn't move my legs anymore and most of all my arms were sooooo tired! Pretty crazy. I was going up a hill (very slowly...) when I heard someone yell HEY! I turned around, and two people had come out of a pizza shop and yelled "YOU CAN DO IT!!" I just laughed and yelled "THANKS!" and pushed up the hill. Then I just had to stop. I could barely move, so I went to a Walmart to use the bathroom but the guy wouldn't let me take my bike in (I shouldn't have asked!). So, since I did not have a lock, I went to Giant across the street and just walked in with my bike. No one said anything.

Anyway...my body feels tired, but my toosh feels okay! And that's all that matters. Praise God. I'm riding with Marianne and Jenna tomorrow before we ship off our bikes to Florida.

Sunday, May 15, 2011

Gearing up

Okay, the countdown begins. We've got our bikes and we've got our plane tickets. We are all flying down to Florida this week to start the tour. Please be praying for us, and tell all of your friends to support the tour! We are trying to raise $500,000 for our sisters in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and 100% of the money donated goes directly to the Scripture-based trauma counseling programs by the American Bible Society. Follow our blog and stay updated about the things we see and experience along the way!