The Cause: Cycling to end Poverty

"Cycling to end poverty". That's the reason behind this bike trip--to raise awareness and money to overcome poverty in our country and around the world.

In my mind, raising awareness is just as important as raising money. After all, there are easier ways to raise money. Our church has regular collections for World Renew, the local Food Bank, and other causes. Our church also has a field for the Canadian Food Grains Bank. For example, on Dec 23 the church's collection for the Dundas Foodbank was $896, the Christmas Eve collection for the House of Lazarus was $333, while the Christmas Day collection for World Renew was an amazing $3233. In three days, our medium-sized church raised over $4000 for organizations that deal with poverty related issues. And so, there are easier ways to raise money than biking over 6000 kilometers.

Just as important as raising money is raising awareness about the issue about poverty. This will not simply be a one-time collection for a special cause. Because of the nature of the trip, the training and the promotion for it, it will be brought to the congregation's attention for a good portion of a year. It will lead me to reflect upon the causes and solutions about poverty, from a Biblical perspective. As a pastor, I can use my preaching to highlight this cause. For example on Dec 30, I preached on the Slaughter of the Innocents (Matthew 2:18), relating the text to the shootings in Newtown. But I reminded everyone that every day, every hour, at least 20 children die of hunger related causes. The slaughter of the innocents continues! And so, for me, raising awareness about the issues connected to poverty is just as important as raising money.

Yes, I do have to raise $10,000. I also have to train to be able to bike over 6000 kilometers. I'm not sure which will be the more difficult challenge. Time will tell. My prayer is for the Lord to bless both challenges, as well as the overall goal of bringing shalom to our brokenness world.