This month we get the great pleasure of riding on mottos (motorcycles) around the city. They are fun, convenient, safe and our typical mode of transportation. Here, they are the safest they have been in any country We get a helmet each time we jump on one and they only let us ride one by one rather than squeezing on two passengers. I know, I know, Todd (my brother) I have to apologize because a few years ago I tried my hardest at convincing you not to buy a motorcycle and now here I am having ridden countless mottos to get around foreign lands. Sorry bro, I hope you will forgive me as it has become part of this journey abroad.
So back to “livin’ on a Prayer.” Every time I jump on the back of the motto the scene is set perfectly to pray. Whether it be a prayer of “Lord, help us get to the correct location despite the enormous language barrier,” or “Thank you for today and the opportunity to have the breeze as we drive,” it always seems to be the perfect setting to pray. As we drive around the city, it’s a perfect way to recognize the reconciliation and healing that has occurred here. I love celebrating how we get to witness it firsthand from seeing Rwanda’s amazing growth. I love having the opportunity to pray over the beautiful countryside while we fly by the green pastures. I am humbled by all the sites to see and the reasons to pray.
I have to admit, the first time I realized how much prayer I do on the back of mottos was during a night ride when I got separated from our team of six on the way back from a mall and I recognized the fear I had in not being able to see another racer. The reality was, it was a 15 minute motto ride, and I knew I was in the middle of our pack but just was too far off to see the other squad leaders. In the midst of the fear I felt I started praying hard. I prayed for the driving, the driver’s life, the cars we passed, the walkers out taking their evening stroll. And as I was sitting there on the back of a motto praying, I realized the peace that came over me. I got giddy. I got giddy for the opportunity to see the city. To be on the back of a motto and for getting to be in Rwanda.
As I was reading one of my favorite authors this week, I stumbled across a quote that fits how I feel about this quite perfectly. In “BitterSweet” by Shauna Niequist, she says “…we should pray as often as we need to until the anxiety subsides, until, as it says in the Bible, we are filled with the peace that passes human understanding. That sounds delicious: peace that passes human understanding.” So as I recognized my anxiety on the motto, and prayed through it, God gave me sweet sweet peace. This peace gave me so much joy to pray in. I mean, how could I be riding through this beautiful country and feel anxious when there’s so much green hills around and when I have the opportunity to be in Rwanda?!
As I reflect on my life ahead, I want this to be my constant state of mind. It doesn’t have to be my motto rides that this is limited but in everything. For when I feel anxious to pray, to pray until God gives me the peace that surpasses the human understanding. I mean, how sweet must this peace be if it doesn’t even make sense to our human minds? It humbles me hardcore to be reminded of the power of peace through prayer. God is good.
So, I’m off to ride a motto, to pray through the mountain air! “oh, oh, livin’ on a prayer”
