Straightening out the curves...

This spring, my husband and I, along with several of our friends, drove up to Seneca, SC, to attend a biker revival.
The revival runs from Thursday through Sunday; we headed up early to get in a few days of rest and mountain riding. I'd been hearing about the Tail of the Dragon for several months, and I knew I needed to ride it, because ever since learning to ride last year, sharp curves have been my biggest challenge.
I believe God gave me my bike (due to many reasons I may cover in another entry), and I know He has promised to take care of me in all circumstances. I just needed to learn to trust Him in curves... so one of my goals during the week was to ride the Dragon, if at all possible.
DH and I talked to some of the others in our group, and we decided we'd leave out on Friday morning and be on the road by 8 AM to get there and back by supper (about 120 miles one way, through curvy small country roads). We saw some beautiful country and I got a TON of practice on curves; we didn't realize it but the road we took to Deal's Gap is nicknamed Hellbender...
I was escorted on my ride by some very nice guys- besides my husband, I had Robert, Donnie and last but certainly not least, my riding buddy Byron.
Robert knew how nervous I was about the ride, so before we left, he told me he'd had his morning devotional and had found a verse that God specifically sent to me. Isaiah 45:2 says in part, "I will go before you And make the crooked places straight"; I spoke that verse to myself on a regular basis during the day.
The ride was exactly what I needed- by the time we got back that afternoon, I had perfect confidence in God's ability to take care of me, and confidence in myself, that He'd given me the knowledge to do something I'd set out to do.
You see, I knew in my head how to handle those curves:

• keep your chin up so you're looking on out past your bike's fender to see what's coming up instead of worrying about what's right in front of you
  
• use your clutch and brakes to control how the bike traveled through the switchbacks
  
• keep speed as constant as possible- not so fast that the bike travels over the line, but fast enough to keep the bike moving smoothly
• adjust your sitting position so you're giving the bike as much flexibility as it needs
• relax on the bike so you don't wear yourself out

But what I needed was to know down in my heart that I could do what needed to be done, and that God was with me the whole time.
I'm a much better rider than I was, and it was all because I looked my fears in the eye, and took God at His word.
Keep your chin up!