In 1819 W. K. Clarkson, Jr. patented the bicycle.

You’ve ridden a bike most of your life, starting with a tricycle. What kind do you ride now? A mountain bike? A many-speed racing bike? Whatever, you’d have to agree that W. K. Clarkson, Jr.’s marvelous invention sure beats walking everywhere.

What’s the most important part of a bike? We need just about every part to ride safely and comfortably—handlebars, seat, gears, brakes, etc.—but we could still get around without one of those. But imagine trying to ride without wheels—that would be impossible. And for the best ride, the wheels should be balanced, with the spokes tight and the tires inflated with the correct air pressure.

A bicycle wheel provides a good illustration for today’s lesson. Compare your life to a wheel, and you’ll get the idea. A good bicycle wheel needs a solid hub with strong spokes going out to the rim. For balance and strength, the spokes should be evenly spaced. The same is true with life. The hub must be solid, able to hold the wheel (life) together and keep it rolling. Our “hub” should be Christ—everything should center on him. Then the spokes represent various areas of life: physical, social, mental, emotional, spiritual, and others. These should go out from the center and be balanced.

Today’s verse says Jesus grew in all areas of life, not just one or two. We should do the same. If all we think about is the physical area, we’ll be unbalanced and wobble along. The same is true with being all-social, and so forth. And if we are flat on one side, we’ll really have a bumpy ride through life.

Every time you see a bicycle, remember the hub and the spokes. Keep Christ at the center and develop all the areas.

Have a great ride!

So Jesus grew both in height and in wisdom, and he was loved by God and by all who knew him. (Luke 2:52)

To Do

Take a bike ride. As you ride, pray for needs as you see them. And think about what you need to do have a more balanced life.

Also on this day . . .

1959—The St. Lawrence Seaway was opened.

1981—In Mountain Home, Idaho, Virginia Campbell took the coupons and rebates she had collected and bought $26,460 worth of groceries. After all the discounts, she paid only 67 cents for everything.

1911—The Nieuport aircraft set an aircraft speed record of 83 mph (133 kph).

From Betsy Schmitt and Dave Veerman, 365 Trivia Twist Devotions: An Almanac of Fun Facts and Spiritual Truth for Every Day of the Year (Cincinnati: Standard, 2005).