Long distance bike ride brings cyclists, two churches together for a common, faith-filled cause

Long distance bike ride brings cyclists, two churches together for a common, faith-filled cause
By: Michael Lander

Darin Day, a member of Grace Bible Church in Olive Branch, Miss., conceived the idea of
doing a long distance bike ride, along with Trinity Baptist Church, to benefit a Christian
ministry, that he and his church have long supported.

Cyclists have any number of reasons why they like to ride a bike, but for about a half a dozen cyclists in around Memphis, one ride in late September, is for a higher purpose.

These cyclists, representing two Memphis area churches – Grace Bible Church in Olive, Branch, Miss. and Trinity Baptist Church in Cordova, Tenn., are joining forces not just to ride, but to do so for a Christian ministry that they both want to support.

Through faith and a unity of spirit and unity of love of Jesus Christ, these cyclists have been drawn together for an upcoming, one-day, 100-mile bike ride on Saturday, Sept. 29, 2018 to help raise money for a Christian ministry known as the Mexican Indian Training Center (MITC) in Cordoba, Veracruz in central Mexico.

The MITC, for which these cyclists plan to ride, has been around for over 60 years, with a Bible school, missionaries, mission churches, and medical missions that, collectively, are focused on helping people and spreading the Gospel in rural areas of southern Mexico and beyond.

Darin Day, a member of Grace Bible Church, came up with the idea of this ride, finding the inspiration and motivation to do so from God's Holy Word and from his church.

“I wanted to apply my cycling to a cause that is greater than I am and I wanted to support MITC’s mission.  I also wanted to do this in memory of my pastor’s wife, Linda Webb.  MITC was an important Christian ministry that she faithfully committed herself to as has our church.  Linda worked especially hard, over the years, to provide a Vacation Bible School (VBS) program for the children in Mexico,” Day said.

Grace Bible Church has always been very involved, over the years, in mission work in Mexico, according to Day, and he would love nothing more than to see other churches come work alongside them, and to support them, like Trinity Baptist Church is doing, with this bike ride.

“Many villagers in the mountainous regions hear the Gospel, sometimes for the very first time, preached in their own language, from those who have been trained at MITC. It is for this reason, and all of the other important work being done there, that makes this bike ride that we are doing more than just any other ordinary bike ride,” Day said.

The 100-mile bike ride for MITC will begin at 8:00 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 29, in New Albany, Miss. with a planned route, on the Tanglefoot Trail, to the south in and around Houston, Miss., and back to New Albany.  Friends and family of the cyclists will provide support for these cyclists throughout their ride.

Anyone wishing to support this ride for MITC, is asked to make a pledge for any amount that they wish to for each mile that the cyclists ride.  After the ride is over, they can make their checks out to MITC and then mail them to Grace Bible Church at 7145 Malone Rd., in Olive Branch, Miss.  38654.

For those interested in further information about this ride, they can contact Darin Day by email at: mailto:dmday3000@gmail.com.