When you were young you most likely rode countless miles on your bike. Whether it was a fancy 10-speed with gears that clicked from a shifter operated by your thumb or a classic Schwinn roadster sporting a colorful banana seat, your bicycle was your way to feel free.
In fact it wasn’t so much actually riding the bike that was so inviting, but instead the feeling of the wind in your hair and road literally floating beneath you. And the ability to get from one place to another on your own and by your own power made that bike truly special.
Now inevitably this feeling of freedom was interrupted by the occasional chain malfunction. The chain is, of course, the part of the bike that transfers the power from the pedals (supplied by your legs) to the back wheel, which propels the bike forward. When this chain would slip off the gears, no matter how hard you pedaled, you would come coasting to a disappointing stop.
So you would hop off your bike, slip the chain back on the gears, and with greasy and blackened hands, remount your bike and keep on pedaling. If you couldn’t get your chain back on the gears, you would walk your bike home where you’d crack out the tools or turn to Dad for a helping hand.
Either way, the lesson can be applied to so many facets of our lives. Do you sometimes feel like you are pedaling and pedaling and not really getting anywhere? Did you ever feel like your “life chain” is just a bit off of the gears? We’ve all been there. The fact is, when your life chain is slipping, your life slows down and everything we do seems just a “little off”.
So what can you do about it. We are going to explore the options to getting your “life chain” back in gear over the course of the next few weeks:
Here is the first option to dealing with a slipped chain in life:
- Stop what you’re doing (stop pedaling). Why? If you keep on coasting, you may go for awhile but will inevitably stop and have to get off the bike and fix the problem before you can ever hope to get back to full speed. Sometimes this means turning to a friend, your church, or a family member to help you figure out that your “life chain” is slipping. Sometimes we get in “coast” mode and don’t realize we could be doing things better and more efficiently or with more consideration for others. That’s because we are not opening our ears to those around us but instead wasting energy pedaling, thinking we’re actually achieving something, but transferring very little power to our wheels of progress.
Sound familiar? Well, if you feel just a little “off” at times, heed this advice and stop, take a deep breath, and…
(Stay tuned for Option Two)
