Ahhhh another glorious day away on Harleys! Saturday morning Omar and I got on our bikes, loaded up our wives and headed out to the 61st Annual Hollister Motorcycle Rally. This is what gentlemen pastor types look like on a day away. 
At one point we were walking down the road and I heard someone shouting over a bullhorn. It was these fellows...
As they shouted to the crowd about God's love (and a really hot Hell) Omar and I began to ask onlookers what they were experiencing. One guy said he wished they'd stop and that "people knew where to find it if people want it", a Christian lady mentioned how it seemed condemning, some yelled "shut up", a few mocked them. I spoke to a guy from the Hells Angel's motorcycle club who just seemed baffled by it - he wasn't the only one, several people looked really confused by the message. The only person who said it was good was a youth pastor I spoke with who said "you've got to be bold" tersely. I ran into some Christian friends of mine at one point and they said "you aren't here with these guys are you?" (yes, when pigs fly). Overall it tasted pretty bitter on the palate of almost every Homo Sapien within earshot. I'll bet these guys really feel like they are doing the loving thing deep down inside. I kept thinking how much more powerful their "ministry to bikers" would have been if they had stayed home and helped their neighbor fix their motorcycle as an act of love and a bridge of ongoing friendship. It is possible to use the Gospel to negate the Gospel. Incarnation doesn't usually require a bullhorn.
