Week 1: complete

Last night we arrived in Spokane, WA and today we're all enjoying an off day resting and sightseeing in Spokane with our amazing hosts, Whitney and Josh.  Even though we've only been on the road a few days, everyone is completely worn out due to the fact their bodies haven't fully adjusted to the harsh reality of tour life.  

Over the past week the team has been bonding and just focusing on getting to know each other.  It's been pretty clear from the first day or two that this group is very tightly knit.  Even churches have commented that of all the teams they've hosted over the years, this one seems especially close and laughs more than others they've seen.  Everyday I am more and more appreciative to be apart of this community. It's truly a joy to get to know each and every one of this people and to hear their stories while riding and serving/supporting along side of them.  

Although the first days of tour have been fun and full of amazing scenery and experiences, we've already had a couple of participants get injured.  While all are using extreme caution on the road, sometimes accidents happen.  One girl in particular had a really nasty fall from hitting a pothole.  However, she's handled the whole situation like a champ and has been such an inspiration to the entire team.  

We continue on our journey tomorrow morning and will be crossing our first state border into Idaho.  The team will continue to interact with churches, schools, and random strangers on the road as we connect with various communities across the country.

Prayers for safety are our greatest request right now.  Road cycling is fairly new to many of the participants, and over the next couple of weeks we'll be encountering some pretty difficult terrain.

Here are a few pictures from the last few days that will better show what life has been like lately.  If you have any words, verses, prayers, or quotes of inspiration or encouragement for me and the team, please pass them on to me either on Facebook or send them to my email: saraba1991@gmail.com.  It's great to get feedback from family and friends that are following our journey.  It's those little thoughts and prayers that help us move on down the road everyday. 

Blessings,

Sara

P.S. If you would like more consistent updates, follow me on Instagram.  I post out there multiple times a day due to the easy accessibility.  Blogging is great, but it's much more time consuming and I don't always have wifi.

Sometimes after you climb a killer hill you have to play on the playground at the top and ask all the kids to push you.

Post training ride to Seattle

Seattle and Mt. Ranier

Parking like a pro

They're off! Beginning the first official ride east.

Riding is tough, but naps are great.

The team heading off for their last leg up Stevens Pass

Post climbing stretches with Amanda

And now, for the well deserved descent down the Cascades

Anxiously awaiting a group of very tired cyclists at a rest stop.

Tour life= showers at a campground and walking back to the church with towels on your head.  I'm so very thankful for Carmen and all she contributes to the team as one of my co-leaders.

t-minus 3 weeks

On Tuesday the semester came to a close, and tomorrow I'm moving back to Athens to begin Maymester which will run through June 4th.  Early on the morning of the 5th I'll be hopping on a plane and flying directly to Seattle to meet with the team and begin tour.  Honestly, right now these 6 days of summer break I've had have not even begun to repair the physical and mental tole this semester has taken on me.

This semester has brought huge challenges that have taught me that I have limits.  I cannot be at every meeting, make perfect grades on everything, or say yes whenever asked to do something or be somewhere.  I've known for years I have trouble saying no to people, it's just that this semester it has become an issue.  In effort to maintain my perfectionistic, type A tendencies, I have stupidly taken on more than I can handle.  I have survived thus far, but only because I believe God wanted to humble me and show me that I am human.  I've found myself frequently saying yes to everyone except God.  And, when I do say yes to Him, it's more of a "hey God, I have 5 minutes to talk to you while I walk to my first class," rather than actually conversing and listening.  

This brings me to my latest life ambition: to slow down and just be for a while.  These two verses keep running through my head as I think about my self-induced chaos:

"Be still and know that I am God.  I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth."

Psalm 46:10

and

"Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand."

Isaiah: 41:10

Actually, I should be honest.  My brain had me convinced that this was once verse that read "Be still and know that I am God.  I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand."  Even though I got the verses wrong, I got the the content right…. 

Thankfully, tour will allow me to slow down for a little while.  Even though my leadership responsibilities will be a lot more time consuming and stressful than my role as a participant last year, it'll be impossible not to stop and reflect on God's creation on the days I get to bike.  I can't wait to be back on that too tiny of a bike seat, biking the mountains and valleys on Montana and everywhere to the east and west of that state.  I look forward to spending time in community with my team and learning to grow in Christ together as we ride this country one pedal stroke at a time.

However, before I head off for this journey, I have a little less than $1000 to raise.  It was my goal to work and earn all of my funds this year without having to ask for help, but considering I leave in 3 weeks, I am going ahead and mentioning that I do in fact in need help, friends.  Please only donate if you feel lead.  I know many of you have mission trips and adventures of your own, but if you do wish to help me out, I would be very appreciative.  I can wholeheartedly say this is a cause I truly believe in. If you're interested in donating, checkout my donations page on this blog, or contact me.

Until I land on the ground in Seattle, I'll continue to work, study, and ride my bike when I get the chance.  I ask for your prayers for all the above mentioned concerns as I know that returning to Athens tomorrow will bring incredible stress once again.

As always, please contact me if you have any questions about the cause, tour, or where your donations will be spent.

Blessings,

Sara 

Road of Resistance

With all the urgency of fundraising and training, I've been bad about posting about the actual cause we're biking for.  I posted this documentary last year before I left, but it's the best visual for showing people what the refugees we're riding for are experiencing. (note: this documentary was not made by Venture, but it is about the same cause and people we're biking for)

In short, the documentary talks about the situation in Burma and "the road" that they must travel in order to reach the Thailand boarder.  While the video is a few years old, things really haven't changed much since.  It's important to remember that this is the longest running civil war in the history of the world, so this is what these people have been experiencing since about World War II.  

Even though it's hard to see, I really encourage you to set aside 40 minutes to watch.  Once you're done watching, I encourage you to take a moment and just pray for the situation in this region (Thailand/Burma boarder). 

**Warning: the video is graphic in parts, so watch with caution.**

Isaiah 1:17 

Learn to do right! Seek justice, encourage the oppressed. Defend the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow.

I'll probably post again on Sunday about what's been happening here lately, so stay tuned. :)

Blessings,

Sara

Selfless, Advocate, Hope

My co-leader Carmen had the idea of picking three words to define our mission as a team.  We then asked each teammate to pick their top three before Carmen decided on the final trio.  The idea behind this is that we use these three words as a reminder of where our hearts, mission and focus should be.  Here's what she picked:

I was going to define the reasoning behind each word, but instead I'm going to copy and paste from Carmen's email because she says it best:

"Selfless: We want to completely give each day on the road to God's glory and to understand that the miles we bike are for the helpless (Burmese refugees) and for those that are oppressed. 

Advocate: Our bodies, bikes and hearts are tangible representations of the sacrifice we will be doing on behalf of those that need support and awareness! 

Hope: With our biking and with raising funds for Venture projects, we want to bring hope for those that need God and ultimately, we know our hope is always in God."

I love the three she chose.  She said one of the reasons she chose them is because they flow so well together; We want to be selfless advocates of hope.

While writing this, I'm listening to one of Bob Goff's podcasts (note: if you have a lot of work/school to do, don't listen or read Bob Goff's work.  It'll only make you want to drop what you're doing to go on amazing adventures to incredible places).  He starts by reading this passage:

"I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace.  There is one body and one Spirit-- just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call-- one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.  But grace was given to each one of us according to the measure of Christ's gift."

- Ephesians 4:1-7

I like this passage because it takes us back to the bigger picture of Christ's love and the hope that He brings.  Each of us has a specific call for our lives, which Bob describes as what it is that God has created each of us to be passionate about and spend our lives pursuing.  Despite the different individual calls we hear, each of us has the same big picture call: to be humble, gentle, patient, and loving to all.  

I'm still trying to connect the dots how these verses apply to the three words Carmen chose, but here's what I have so far: love is the ultimate action that trumps all others, and selfless, advocate, and hope outline how and why we should love.  We should love selflessly because we are advocates of the hope Christ gave us when He sent his son to earth as the ultimate sacrifice and greatest gift of love.

Thoughts?  Comments?  Let me know!  Hope you all are enjoying this beautiful, spring Sunday!

Blessings, 

Sara 

1-2-3

Hi folks!

Tomorrow is exactly two months until I arrive in Seattle.  Time needs to slow down just a little so I can catch up on life.

I'm going to have to speed type this post because I have a lot to get done.  Apologies in advance for poor punctuation and grammar.

1-2-3 here we go…

1. This past weekend I flew up to Minneapolis for the Venture Leaders Weekend.  While there, I finally met one of my co-leaders (Carmen) who is wonderful.  I cannot even begin to express how excited I am to lead with her!!  The third co-leader in the trio (Chris) couldn't make it up, but he was able to Skype in a for a bit.  In short, the weekend was very informative and answered a lot of questions that I had.  Being able to just talk to the people that I'm emailing all the time that run Venture was great.  The more I'm in Venture community, the more I love everything they work and stand for.  I was inspired rehearing the stories of how Venture came into existence, the projects we're biking for in Thailand/Burma, and the hilarious/funny/scary stories from other co-leaders of their previous tour stories.  Everyone at Venture has such a passion for Christ and Biblical justice that it's almost contagious.  After the retreat I now feel much more equipped and to lead this tour.

Here's a pic of all the leaders present at the retreat: 

2. Fundraising.  I've recently reached that point where I'm thinking "well shoot, I have two months to get a significant amount of money raised." However, I'm not stressed.  Yes, I need to get it in, but I know it'll happen (it always does).  I do need help though.  I'm working and saving everything I can because I want the fundraising process to be a form of physical sacrifice for me, too.  However, I won't be able to do it all alone like I was hoping.  

To give you the breakdown, here are my deadlines and amounts I have to raise:

4/11/14  → $200

4/27/14  → $200

5/13/14  → $200

5/30/14  → $200

---------------------

= $800

***every penny of this $800 goes directly to food security, discipleship, and education for Burmese refugees***

However, on top of the $800 listed above, I also have have to raise a good bit to get my bike tuned up ($200) plus money to replace gear and parts that are very worn out. Sponsorship in any form and amount is very appreciated! I do want to do what I can to thank you publicly for donations. All sponsors names (and logos if you're a business) will be on my blog. Remember, all donations are 100% tax deductible!

I've decided to break it down differently this year:

$.50 is a one mile. So, if you donate $50, you've sponsored 100 miles. Whatever state the miles you sponsor me are in, I'll be sure to send you a postcard from that state as an extra little thank you. There's a link to donate on the Venture website at the top of my page. Be sure to click 'Sara Aho' on the drop down box so that the donation goes to me! I also will accept cash and checks which you can send to my house. (just contact me if you need the address) Just remember every bit helps. Give as you can and feel lead.

3. Life outside of tour stuff is pretty busy; School is keeping me on my toes constantly. Thankfully the semester is coming to an end though. I'll have one week off before I go into Maymester where I'll be taking two classes (6 credits) in 3 weeks. I'll be leaving directly from my last Maymester final exam to fly out for the tour. Prayers for sanity are appreciated.

This sums it up for now. If you have any questions, thoughts, or words of encouragement you'd like to pass on to me or my team, contact me! I'd love to hear from you! Sometimes I feel like I'm blogging to myself. However, I know people are out there reading this because I see the number of page views…. (you're not as sneaky as you think)

Blessings,

Sara

March Madness

Spring Break ended for me on Sunday and suddenly I feel like I'm drowning in homework.  Not to mention I've lost my planner so I feel like I'm wandering around aimless and lost.  Only 5 more weeks left in the semester, thankfully.

As the semester is quickly coming to an end, tour is getting closer, too.  I can't believe I'll be heading out in exactly 11 weeks.  It feels like yesterday I arrived home from last year's tour.  Here's a [not so] brief update of what's happened the last couple of months as preparations for this year's adventure are now underway.

First
A few weeks ago I thought I was going to be backing out of tour due to the fact that I couldn't find anyone to sublease my place.  I couldn't afford to let a couple thousand dollars go to waste on rent when I could be there taking classes and potentially graduating early.  However, I had someone commit, the landlord approved the sublease, and the girl signed today.  Hallelujah!  I should really learn to quit stressing and just wait patiently as God works things out for me.  It's a lesson in progress though…

Second
The team seems like a very well rounded group so far.  Everyone has been very proactive in connecting and getting to know one another ahead of time which will greatly help in cutting down on the level of awkwardness when we first meet one another in our full, spandex glory.  My impression so far is that:
1) everyone has a sense of humor (thank goodness)
2) they are all really passionate about learning about the cause and connecting with the communities we'll encounter to share why we're biking
3) almost everyone is new at biking (so someone needs to become a pro at changing flats ASAP…. because everyone knows I'm pretty much a useless bike mechanic and I tend to get my fair share of flat tires).
4) everyone seems really open to learning and being vulnerable enough to not only impact the lives of the people in Thailand/Burma that we're biking for, but also to see changes in their own lives.

It's been really fun watching and talking to each of them as they go into this tour unsure of what to expect.  The more vulnerable mindset we all keep, the more we'll all get out of it.  I love the saying Venture people throw around for team participants to live by on tour:

"Be like spandex: flexible, vulnerable, and a little translucent."

When you're living in community with one another for 8 weeks, you get to know one another pretty well whether you're ready to or not.  The more quickly your embrace it, the more you'll get out of opportunity.

Third

I'll be fundraising for the $1000 I have to raise that all goes directly to the Venture projects in Southeast Asia for food security, discipleship, and education.  If you feel lead to donate, go to and be sure to click http://www.ventureexpeditions.org/page/donate-now and be sure to click on my name in the drop down box.  I'll be having at least one yard sale fundraiser, but the date and location has yet to be determined.  I'm thinking possibly mid April?  It'll just depend on when I'm home from school.  

Also, as a lot of y'all know my mom has a photography business.  She's agreed to give half of the proceeds from photo shoots I help to schedule to me for tour.  So all you seniors, families, engaged couples, etc., get in touch if you need pictures, because I'm a pretty critical photographer and I think she's pretty darn good.  But don't take my word for it though, her photos speak for themselves.

Fourth

I had the opportunity to talk to Brian and Amanda Elliott who are missionaries to the region of Thailand and Burma that we're biking for.  Although they aren't working in Venture's community centers right now, they have spent time working there in the past and still have close ties to Venture.  It was really great to hear more about the area they are located, their work, and just talk to them about them about a few specific prayer requests they have.  Talking to them firsthand just helped to make everything we're biking for seem more realistic.  Sometimes it's easy to forget the severity of the situation over there and just how culturally different it is when I'm thousands of miles away on the opposite side of the planet.  It was also encouraging to hear the progress that's taken place so far and just how the funds raised over the years have been and continue to be put to good use.

If you want to read more about them and the work they're doing, check out their website:

http://ajourneyworthtaking.com/

Fifth

I'll be heading to Minneapolis April 4th for the leadership retreat for all the Venture tour leaders for the summer.  I'm so excited to meet at least one of my co-leaders (shout out to the wonderful Carmen!).  While we're there we'll be learning all the legalistic and strategizing type stuff that we'll be handling on the road.  Oh, and if we're lucky we'll get an early lesson in how to drive the 15 passenger van and trailer.  Lookout, world.

Okay, I believe this about covers it for now.  I'll be writing a post about the exact cause and situation in the Thailand/Burma region in the next couple weeks.  If you followed along last year, it's the same cause that we biked for then.  I don't want to overwhelm y'all with more information in one post than I already have.

General prayers are appreciated as we begin to get a feel for what this summer will look like.  Apparently every tour is completely different, so even though I've done this same route before, it'll be very new for me, too, especially from a different point of view as a leader.  As I mentioned in my last post, I'll only be biking about every third day this summer, which will give me a chance to encourage and support (both emotionally and physically with food) the team.  Leading will be a new experience for me, but the closer it gets, the more excited I get about the new challenges and joys that will come with it.

I'll leave you with a picture from our first team google hangout meeting.  So far there are 16 of us, so not everyone made the picture.  All are equally as fabulous though. :)

Blessings,

Sara

Physical sacrifice

You might have seen me post about how physical sacrifice is one of the biggest ways Venture wants to sacrifice during the trip.  God chose his Son to physically sacrifice Himself physically in the hardest, unimaginable ways that no human mind can ever fathom.  Our biking 3,448 miles from Seattle pales in comparison to the price Jesus paid for our sins, but we're doing what we can to use physical sacrifice of sore muscles, aching backs, no showers, and sleepy eyes to focus our attention on the causes we are biking for in Thailand and Burma.

When people we encounter ask what we're doing, generally their first response is "why?!".  This is exactly the reaction we want because it's a wonderful opportunity to share with them our passion for helping with the Venture projects in Southeast Asia.  Our unusual approach to benefiting the world through physical sacrifice hopefully emphasizes just how serious and passionate we are about what we're fighting for.

During my quiet time the other day, I came across this passage in Isaiah.  It's on the "true and false of fasting" which is essentially another form of physical sacrifice.  When you fast, you're hungry.  Obviously.  The point of fasting is to focus the time and attention you usually would on eating to prayer and communion with God.  Instead of looking to physical nourishment such as food for your strength, you look to God for your strength to continue to function and carryout everyday tasks.  On this bike tour we aren't fasting, but we're definitely sacrificing physically by being constantly aware of how sore and tired we are.  We try and use these moments to pray to God for strength to take one more pedal stroke and keep going.  I can't even begin to list the number of times I've been so exhausted on my bike and rounded a corner to see a hill that is really more of a wall and just wanted to quit.  It's in these moments I put my head down, pedal harder, and pray that God somehow gets me to the top of yet another hill.  God has definitely faithful in bringing this far already and Lord knows it is NOT of my own strength.

Anyway, here is the passage I mentioned that talks about fasting/physical sacrifice:
"Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer;
     you shall cry, and he will say, 'Here I am.'
 If you take away the yoke from your midst,
     the pointing of the finder, and speaking wickedness,
 if you pour yourself out for the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted,
 then shall your light rise in darkness and your gloom be like the noonday.
 And the Lord will guide you continually and satisfy your desire in scorched places and make your
     bones strong;
 and you shall be like a watered garden,
     like a spring of water,
     whose waters do not fail."
    -Isaiah 58:4

The reason I decided to focus on physical sacrifice in this post is because this has been a really trying week for the whole team.  We had our two longest rides of the entire tour back to back Tuesday and Wednesday.  Tuesday was 111 miles with, no joke, a 20% grade hill at the very last mile.  I honestly didn't think I'd make it but I did.  Besides the hill, earlier that day we had a storm hit us and we were all soaking wet ALL DAY.  We voted as a team whether we should shuttle the last 40 miles to our destination to make it to showers in time and the majority voted to keep riding because this was after all physical sacrifice.  We arrived at that church tired, hungry, and nasty but didn't have showers.  The next day we woke up early still smelling badly and headed out to our next destination 110 miles away.  Again, we made it.  God was good and proved His strength through us once again.

Today is a lighter ride into CHICAGO!  I'm so excited.  I'm currently sitting in a Starbucks for early morning quiet time before I hit the road in chaos once again.

Prayers appreciated for everyone!  Especially as we navigate our way out of Milwaukee this morning and through downtown Chicago.  It could be interesting….

Blessings,
Sara

Minnesota!

As of yesterday we're officially halfway across the country!  Honestly, it doesn't even feel like it.  Time is flying.

But, we're in Minnesota now!!  We're currently staying in Hutchinson and tomorrow we bike into Minneapolis where we'll have Friday and Saturday off before we hit the road again Sunday after church.  Venture Expeditions is actually based in Minneapolis so our time off will be filled with Venture people and activities.

One of the biggest things Venture emphasizes is community, both around the world and within the organization itself.  For months I've talked to a lot of the people from the office and I'll finally get to put faces with the names tomorrow.  It'll be wonderful to be able to talk about the journey and cause with those we are equally as passionate about it as I am.  About 7 people from the Venture community including some of the founders are actually meeting us about 30 miles out tomorrow to bike in with us.

It'll be nice to have a few days off to let our bodies recuperate a little bit.  We'll get to watch fireworks on the Mississippi River, hangout at the lake, eat lots of yummy food, and SLEEP.  As much as I love biking everyday, my whole body needs a break.  I think more excited about tomorrow and this weekend than I am about any of the other previous days on tour.

Besides biking everyday, not much has happened.  I feel like this past week the entire team has just been exhausted and blogging/journaling/updating has been really rare.

But, pictures are really the only thing people look at anyway, so here's a few for you:

Best rest stop EVER in South Dakota!  Someone had TEN Miniature Australian Sheep Dog puppies with them and we got to play with them for a while.

 Minnesota!!  This is also where we celebrated our halfway point.

                                     Riding with no hands in Montana

                                     North Dakota!

Visiting World of Life in Hutchinson, MN today.  They were gracious in preparing us a wonderful dinner and letting us stay here overnight.

                        South Dakota!