All About Change:
Two years ago I took a two-week ministry trip to South Africa (surviving the 30-hour journey from Phoenix to Johannesburg). In addition to spending time with our Racers For Christ national director, I was the featured speaker for the Christian Motorcyclists Association's 20-year anniversary in South Africa, where I spoke to more than 1,000 bikers during their four-day national rally. What an awesome experience! This was my fourth trip to South Africa in six years, but I was especially impacted this time by the changes that had taken place during those six years, particularly to the political and economic climate of the nation. As a result of things happening within the country, a growing sense of fear and paranoia is developing within many of the South African people. The amazing thing to me is how subtle these changes have been during the years that I have been traveling there. Without commenting on the political or social aspects of those changes, suffice it to say that they have come as a result of a series of small, incremental changes in governmental policies and a more liberal interpretation of certain laws in recent years. In our ministry to people in motor racing, I have always admired the talented mechanics who have the skillful ability to make small, incremental adjustments in search for that ultimate combination or tune-up. Each adjustment in and of itself often goes unnoticed in terms of significant performance improvements, but a sufficient combination of such adjustments will soon be seen in (what appears to be) a major leap forward in performance. A similar scenario takes place in life as well. Small, incremental changes that do not seem all that major will soon become significant in scope over a longer period of time. I am the first to admit that we do not live in a perfect country or have a perfect society, but the more I travel outside of our borders, the more I realize that we are far closer to that ideal than most. I'm certainly not ready to trade-in my passport anytime soon. I have all the confidence in the world that six years from now, our country will be just as safe, reliable and stable as it is today (and most likely more so). And I believe our nation's leaders are trying their best to maintain that level of stability and success, without undermining the need for constant improvement. So be proud of this country and continue to pray for its leaders. And remain grateful to God that we live in the greatest nation on earth.
Ken Owen
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