Testimonies
By RAY & DONNA Jackson
MUD & TAR IN CMA
you had told us a few years
ago that we would be travers-
ing the countryside looking for hills,
rocks, and mud to ride through we
would have laughed. Now we laugh
because we have found the hills,
rocks, and mud! We have found
them at rallies in New York, West
Virginia, Kentucky, Maine, and New
Hampshire. Believe me when I say
these rallies are about fun, fellow-
ship, food, and lots of riding! Every
one of these Roads and Trails ral-
lies were different from any other.
New York is the king of mud as in
muddy water that comes up to
your seat in some puddles. In West
Virginia, we were on the roads and
we saw some beautiful sites includ-
ing a huge bridge the locals bungee
off! Kentucky is all about the hills,
rocks, great food, and history. New
England has the mountain views
and windfarms. Each state is differ-
ent, but the people are all the same
no matter what rally we are at;
whether we are riding a motorcy-
cle, side-by-side, or off-road bike,
we find ourselves serving the Lord.
“Therefore if you have any
encouragement from being united
with Christ, if any comfort from his
love, if any common sharing in the
Spirit, if any tenderness and com-
passion, then make my joy com-
plete by being like-minded, having
the same love, being one in spirit
and of one mind” (Philippians 2:1-2,
I F
NIV).
We had the opportunity to pray
with folks in the hills of Kentucky
when we stopped for a while on the
trails, and when we camped in New
Hampshire, we had two men par-
ticipate in our devotions one morn-
ing and join us for Saturday night
dinner. When one of them broke his
foot these two men knew we were
praying for him and his friend
joined us in prayer. We had the
opportunity to pray for our wait-
ress and cook after lunch this past
year and there was no hesitation
when we asked, “Can we pray with
you?” People appreciate the fact
that we care and listen to their sto-
ries or needs and then pray for
them.
At the Roads and Trails in Maine,
we had the blessing of seeing a 16
year old accept the Lord! This boy
is the grandson of one of our Area
Reps and had ridden with us last
year where he heard us pray and
heard the conversations we had,
but this was the year that God
spoke to his heart! A month later,
we witnessed him being baptized in
the Saco River at our New England
State Rally. Imagine; that grandfa-
ther was there when his grandson
accepted the Lord and then he was
with him in the river participating in
his baptism!
“Yet to all who did receive him,
to those who believed in his name,
he gave the right to become chil-
dren of God” (John 1:12, NIV).
Through these rallies, we have
made some lasting friendships and
we look forward to going and
spending time with these friends.
Not all are in CMA, such as our
guide and fearless leader in
Kentucky. He’s a local veterinarian
who gladly gives of his time to
show us the trails. These rallies
include so many more people than
those members and friends who
attend. We get to meet other
campers, restaurant workers, cof-
fee shop workers, and vets, just to
name few and we get to pray and
witness with some of them!
“But you will receive power when
the Holy Spirit comes on you; and
you will be my witnesses in
Jerusalem, and in all Judea and
Samaria, and to the ends of the
earth” (Acts 1:8, NIV).
You might be thinking you can’t
go because you don’t have a side-
by-side or an off-road bike. That
doesn’t matter because someone
else will have a motorcycle there
and will hit the roads with you or
someone will take you out on the
trails. At our first Roads and Trails
rally we didn’t even own a side-by-
side, but after one trip out we
decided that was it, we were all in!
Well, one of us decided that, the
other needed a little coaxing! Still,
we knew we didn’t want to miss out
on the fun that we saw happening
at this rally in West Virginia.
(continue on page 16)