Participants:
Series Code: IIWC
Program Code: IIWC202329S
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00:00 [CHRIS] I do what's called
00:01 ultra-endurance bikepacking 00:03 races and these are races 00:05 typically of several thousand 00:06 kilometres long. 00:07 I've done a seven and a half 00:09 thousand kilometre race from 00:10 Norway to Spain, four and a half 00:12 thousand kilometre races, London 00:13 to Istanbul, length of New 00:15 Zealand across Australia. 00:17 And the concept behind these 00:18 races is it's you and your bike 00:21 with no outside support 00:23 to the finish line. 00:24 And you ride, 00:26 you follow a set route 00:28 and you ride as long as you want 00:30 each day. 00:31 And so I've averaged 230 00:33 kilometres for 32 and a half 00:35 days right now. 00:36 So I've done 7,400 kilometres to 00:38 where we are right now. 00:39 And this race has got-- is a 12 00:41 and a half thousand kilometre 00:42 race, it's the longest one 00:43 in the world. 00:46 >> Welcome to It Is Written 00:47 Canada. 00:48 Thank you for joining us. 00:50 Chris Bennett is a civil 00:52 engineer and an avid cyclist. 00:55 When Chris is pedalling along a 00:57 trail on his bike, he is in his 01:00 happy place. 01:01 In fact, Chris enjoys cycling so 01:04 intensely that he has taken on 01:07 some of the world's most 01:08 beautiful, most demanding and 01:11 longest cycling trails, tracks, 01:14 paths, and lanes connected by 01:17 enjoyable wilderness roads. 01:19 >> Chris challenged himself to 01:20 ride the Tour Aotearoa, 01:23 a cycle along the entire coast 01:26 of New Zealand, stretching 3000 01:28 kilometres from Cape Reinga in 01:30 the north to Bluff in the south. 01:32 His first attempt in 2016 was 01:35 promptly curtailed by a health 01:37 challenge, and his second effort 01:39 in 2018 ended 01:40 in a bad crash 01:42 at the 750 01:44 kilometre mark, 01:45 which meant 4 hours 01:48 of facial reconstructive surgery 01:50 and a traumatic brain injury. 01:53 [RENÉ] Four years later, Chris 01:55 trained hard and promised his 01:57 wife, Lis, that he would not 01:59 overdo it. 02:00 Then he took the road on his 02:02 bike, finishing first in his 02:05 wave of riders. 02:07 However, Chris disqualified 02:08 himself in the end because 02:10 although he finished first, 02:12 he was unable to ride a few 02:14 unpaved trails when his brain 02:16 injury acted up and so he chose 02:19 to stay on adjacent, smoother, 02:21 paved roads. 02:22 [MIKE] But that wasn't enough 02:24 for Chris. 02:25 A Canadian by birth, a few 02:26 months later, he also took the 02:29 challenge of the hardest and 02:31 longest, self-supporting ultra 02:33 endurance bike race in the 02:34 entire world. 02:35 And he won. 02:38 The TransCanada Ultra crosses 02:40 Canada from the north to the 02:42 south and from the west to the 02:43 east, a distance of 12,500 02:46 kilometres from Whitehorse to 02:49 Newfoundland. 02:50 >> Our film crew met up with 02:52 Chris while he was pedalling 02:54 through Oshawa, Ontario, and he 02:56 graciously stopped to share some 02:58 of his insights on how he has 03:01 chosen to trust God to take care 03:03 of everything while he rides 03:05 along some of the world's most 03:07 arduous and impressive 03:09 cycling trails. 03:10 >> In a moment, you will meet 03:11 Chris and hear some of the 03:13 stories of his incredible 03:15 faith-building adventures. 03:19 [theme music playing] 03:22 ♪♪ 04:03 >> Welcome back to It is Written 04:04 Canada. 04:05 Thank you for joining us. 04:05 Imagine discovering your dream 04:07 job, I mean, you see it, your 04:10 dream job, and you say to 04:12 yourself, "I'm gonna do whatever 04:15 it takes to get that job." 04:17 And so you set out with all your 04:20 grit, all your guts, and all 04:21 your determination 04:23 to get that job. 04:25 >> You study, get the 04:26 necessary degrees and 04:28 qualifications and experience, 04:31 and you rise in the ranks 04:33 at your work. 04:34 And what if it takes you 19 04:37 years of blood, sweat, and tears 04:39 to get to the place where you 04:41 are perfectly qualified to do 04:44 your dream job? 04:46 And the person in charge gives 04:48 you a call and says, 04:50 "The job is yours." 04:52 >> But instead of accepting it, 04:54 you pause and you say, "Give me 04:56 a week to pray about it 04:58 and to talk to my wife." 05:00 And the next day you pray and 05:02 God speaks to your conscience, 05:04 telling you not to take the job. 05:07 What do you do? 05:10 >> Our special guest on It Is 05:12 Written Canada today is 05:14 Chris Bennett, who faced this 05:16 precise predicament. 05:19 Chris is a passionate ultra 05:21 endurance cyclist who our film 05:24 crew met up with while he was 05:26 pedalling through Oshawa, 05:27 Ontario, cycling across Canada 05:30 in a 12 and a half thousand 05:33 kilometre ultra-endurance 05:36 bikepacking race, 05:38 the hardest and longest 05:41 self-supporting bike race 05:43 in the world, 05:45 The TransCanada Ultra, 05:48 which he later won. 05:50 [MIKE] We'll let Chris tell you 05:51 himself how he handled this 05:54 unexpected, unwanted answer to 05:56 prayer and how trusting God's 05:58 "No" turned out to be way better 06:01 for his career than his burning 06:04 desire to say yes to his dream 06:06 job when it was offered to him 06:09 for the taking. 06:10 Here's Chris. 06:12 >> Hi, I'm Chris Bennett and as 06:14 you can see from my outfit, I'm 06:15 a passionate cyclist. 06:17 In fact, cycling has been a key 06:18 part of my Christian walk. 06:20 I'd like to share with you a 06:21 testimony of how God changed my 06:24 entire life through cycling. 06:27 When I was 25, I was studying in 06:29 Auckland University for my 06:30 master's degree. 06:31 I was looking for a topic for my 06:33 thesis and this guy from the 06:34 World Bank came in and presented 06:35 on his job and I thought, 06:37 "I want your job." 06:39 It was working developing 06:40 countries, helping people. 06:42 So I did a master's degree, then 06:43 a PhD, and I worked for 06:46 17 years getting experience 06:48 so I could actually get this job 06:49 at the World Bank. 06:50 And so that was 1983. 06:52 In 2002, I got a phone call from 06:55 World Bank, I was working in 06:56 Cambodia, and they said, "We'd 06:58 like to offer-- to interview you 06:59 for a job." 07:00 So they flew me to Bangkok and I 07:02 had an interview and they called 07:03 me the next morning and said, 07:04 "Right, the job's yours. 07:05 Here's the package. 07:06 I guess you accept." 07:08 So here it is, for 19 years I've 07:10 waited for this moment. 07:12 What was my response? 07:12 I said, "I need a week to pray 07:15 about it and talk to my wife." 07:17 The next day for my devotions I 07:19 was reading this book 07:20 and the first thing it said was, 07:21 "The Commandment says 'Thou 07:23 shall have no other God before 07:24 me,'" dot, dot, dot, "'and that 07:26 includes your job.'" 07:28 So imagine giving 07:29 that response. 07:32 And then the next morning God 07:33 says to me, "Be very careful." 07:35 And as I thought about it and 07:37 prayed about, spoke to my wife, 07:38 I became convinced this wasn't 07:40 what God wanted me to do. 07:41 So what do you do? 07:42 You know, 19 years, five years 07:44 of university, all this work. 07:46 So I contacted them back and I 07:47 said, "Look, it's not the job, 07:48 I really want this, but I've 07:49 prayed about it, it just is not 07:51 the right time frame. 07:52 I'm really sorry." 07:52 And that was it. 07:53 So afterwards I was, you know, 07:56 kind of a total loss as to what 07:57 to do so I went and rode my 07:58 mountain bike from Canada to 08:00 Mexico, along the Rocky 08:01 Mountains. 08:01 Four and a half thousand 08:02 kilometres, took me two months. 08:04 And I was in New Mexico, just 08:05 south of Silver City, when a bad 08:07 storm hit. 08:08 And I was sheltering in my tent 08:10 and I got this really clear 08:11 impression from God saying, 08:13 "You can take the job, but you 08:14 can't ask for it." 08:15 And I thought, "Is this hunger, 08:17 is this tiredness? 08:17 Because how can you take a job 08:19 and not ask for it? 08:20 And besides which, this is now 08:22 six months since I said, "No 08:23 thank you." 08:24 So I thought, this is just 08:25 crazy. 08:26 So I finished my bike ride and I 08:27 went up to Toronto to visit 08:28 my parents. 08:29 Monday morning, 9:30, the phone 08:31 rings, it's the World Bank. 08:32 They said, "Have you changed 08:33 your mind?" 08:34 And I said, "Well, actually, now 08:35 that you ask, um, yes." 08:37 So I ended up in October 2003 08:40 working for the World Bank. 08:42 So a lot of people ask me, why 08:43 is it that you had this delay? 08:46 Because you could have gone a 08:46 year earlier and made such a 08:48 difference. 08:48 But it was really clear to me. 08:49 You see, I had spent 19 years 08:52 of ambition for this job, 08:55 and by saying no to it, 08:58 God showed me I wasn't there for 08:59 my ambition, I was there 09:00 to serve Him. 09:01 And it really changed the whole 09:02 dynamics, because it meant that 09:04 when presented with 09:05 opportunities with the World 09:06 Bank, it wasn't, "Oh, how can I 09:08 progress my career?" it's, "Is 09:09 this consistent with what God 09:10 wants me to do?" 09:11 And it also gave me a huge sense 09:13 of freedom. 09:14 Like, one time my boss said to 09:16 me that, you know, he wasn't 09:17 happy with me and he might fire 09:18 me and I said, "That's really 09:19 okay because I'm here at God's 09:20 will and He opens and closes 09:22 doors all the time. 09:23 So if you choose to move me on, 09:26 it's really okay with me because 09:27 that means God has other plans 09:28 for my life." 09:29 He goes, "You're crazy." 09:30 I said, "Don't ask you to 09:30 believe it, just accept that I'm 09:32 really quite indifferent 09:33 because, you know, in the end 09:34 I'm here to serve God." 09:36 And it was a great opportunity 09:37 and I spent 18 years at the 09:38 World Bank and it was a 09:40 fantastic job and I'm really 09:42 grateful for God's opening that 09:44 door in my life. 09:48 >> Why do you do what you do? 09:49 Is it just the job? 09:51 Is it your career? 09:53 Or is it your calling? 09:55 >> Remember what Chris said. 09:57 Having said no, gave him a 09:59 chance to ask the question, 10:02 is this job consistent with what 10:05 God wants me to do? 10:06 >> And it also gave Chris a huge 10:08 sense of freedom. 10:11 He had no fear of losing his job 10:13 because in the end he knew that 10:16 he was working to serve God and 10:18 not for the paycheck or the 10:20 status, or because the job was 10:22 his idol. 10:25 >> His job at the World Bank was 10:27 not his sense of identity 10:30 or his sense of value 10:31 as a person. 10:33 He was free from all fear. 10:36 Just imagine working 10:38 every day, free 10:41 from all fear. 10:42 >> Working in a high-stress job 10:45 like he did at the World Bank 10:47 was very gruelling and was, in 10:49 fact, wearing him down. 10:51 So besides not being afraid of 10:54 losing his job, just knowing 10:56 that God wanted him in that 10:59 particular job would make it 11:02 a lot harder to quit when the 11:05 going got really, really tough. 11:08 We'll let Chris himself tell you 11:10 what his dream job was like. 11:15 >> So during my time with the 11:16 World Bank, I'm a civil 11:17 engineer, I did a whole range 11:18 of things. 11:19 And in fact, I ended up being 11:20 appointed the World Bank's first 11:21 advisor for addressing 11:23 environmental and social issues 11:24 on the transport sector. 11:26 And that was because I took a 11:27 real interest in the soft side 11:29 of things. 11:30 For example, I introduced 11:30 HIV/AIDS training to China for 11:32 construction workers. 11:34 And the World Bank is a 11:35 fantastic job, but really hard. 11:37 I travelled six months of the 11:38 year to all these developing 11:39 countries. 11:40 I got really worn down. 11:42 And in 2010 I was just really 11:45 tired of the job. 11:47 And one day before church I went 11:48 out for a bike ride and cycling 11:50 is my real happy place where I 11:52 can just meditate and I can just 11:54 zone out. 11:55 And I was praying to God during 11:57 my bike ride saying, "You know, 11:59 I'm really tired. 12:00 I really don't want to do this 12:01 travel anymore. 12:02 I really just want to do this, 12:04 this, this, and this." 12:05 And God came through really 12:06 clear to me and said, 12:07 "Everything you said there 12:09 starts with the word, 'I.' 12:10 You are not at the World Bank 12:11 for yourself, you're there to 12:13 fulfill My will." 12:14 So I went back from my bike ride 12:15 and told my wife this story, 12:17 and we went to church. 12:19 And that day the theme of the 12:20 sermon was fulfilling God's 12:22 purpose in your life. 12:23 So my wife turned to me and 12:24 said, "Um, I think God has 12:26 pretty clearly answered your 12:27 question about what He wants you 12:28 to do, it's keep staying where 12:30 you are." 12:31 And subsequent to that, I 12:33 started working more and more in 12:35 the Pacific Islands. 12:36 And one of the things in the 12:37 Pacific Islands is there's a 12:38 huge problem with gender-based 12:39 violence, where seven out of ten 12:41 women are victims of 12:42 gender-based violence, there's a 12:43 lot of child abuse as well. 12:45 And so my team and I, we started 12:46 a process to... 12:50 ...have programs to try and 12:51 ameliorate the effect of 12:53 gender-based violence in the 12:55 communities where we were doing 12:55 our projects. 12:57 And we developed all these 12:58 protocols and we're really 12:59 making a good impact in the 13:01 Pacific. 13:01 And then what happened was, 13:03 there's a problem in Uganda. 13:04 And it transpired that the other 13:06 parts of the World Bank were 13:07 doing what we were doing. 13:08 So I got the opportunity to lead 13:10 the work at the World Bank and 13:12 develop the guidelines for 13:12 addressing gender-based 13:13 violence, which is now used 13:14 throughout the World Bank. 13:16 And then an opportunity came up 13:18 to develop the guidelines for 13:19 doing road safety and how to 13:20 actually do projects to 13:22 prevent-- to protect people from 13:24 traffic accidents and save lots 13:25 of lives. 13:26 And so I really could see how if 13:28 I'd left the Bank when I wanted 13:30 to leave it, I wouldn't have had 13:31 that impact of helping out with 13:33 gender-based violence, child 13:34 abuse, developing standards for 13:36 road safety. 13:37 And it was interesting is that 13:38 after I finished those 13:41 elements of my work, I felt at 13:43 peace for leaving the Bank. 13:44 And it's as if God had said, 13:45 "Right, you've now fulfilled 13:46 what I wanted you to do." 13:48 And so I was able to retire 13:49 and quite happily end my time 13:51 at the Bank. 13:54 >> Chris had to stick it out to 13:56 fulfill God's purpose 13:57 in his life. 13:58 Interesting word, "fulfill." 14:00 It's actually two words, "full" 14:02 and "fill." 14:03 Or in other words, to fill full. 14:06 To fulfill God's purpose in your 14:08 life, you need to complete what 14:11 He asks you to do. 14:14 >> Jesus told an embarrassing 14:16 story of a man who started 14:17 building a tower, and then he 14:20 ran out of money. 14:21 He did not fulfill his purpose 14:24 because he did not count 14:26 the cost. 14:27 >> Since Chris does ultra 14:29 endurance bikepacking races, 14:32 races that are typically several 14:34 thousand kilometres long, he has 14:36 learned what it means to 14:38 stick with it 14:40 until you get the job done. 14:43 As a Christian, your job is 14:45 never finished. 14:47 I am reminded of how Jesus was 14:50 possessed of one purpose. 14:53 He lived to bless others. 14:56 There is always work to do when 14:59 you're blessing others. 15:00 Helping those who are lost or 15:03 lonely, or just needing a 15:06 helping hand. 15:09 >> I do what's called 15:10 ultra-endurance bikepacking 15:11 races and these are races 15:13 typically of several thousand 15:15 kilometres long. 15:16 I've done a seven and a half 15:17 thousand kilometre race from 15:18 Norway to Spain, four and a half 15:20 thousand kilometre races, London 15:21 to Istanbul, length of New 15:24 Zealand, across Australia. 15:25 And the concept behind these 15:27 races is it's you and your bike 15:29 with no outside support 15:31 to the finish line. 15:32 And you ride, 15:35 you follow a set route 15:36 and you ride as long as you want 15:38 each day. 15:39 And so I've averaged 230 15:41 kilometres for 32 and a half 15:43 days right now. 15:44 So I've done 7,400 kilometres to 15:46 where we are right now. 15:48 And this race has got-- is a 12 15:49 and a half thousand kilometre 15:50 race, it's the longest one in 15:52 the world. 15:53 Yeah, and I find them uniquely 15:56 challenging because when 15:58 something goes wrong, you've got 15:59 to deal with it. 16:00 Like my bicycle broke to the 16:02 west of Sault Ste. Marie and I 16:04 had to cycle 600 kilometres to a 16:06 bicycle shop with one gear. 16:08 And you just deal with it. 16:10 We've had people with their 16:11 bikes brake in the deserts and 16:13 they've had the cable tie their 16:14 cassettes to the spokes to get 16:15 to where they want to go to. 16:16 So it's all about you and your 16:18 bike and your personal 16:19 resilience. 16:20 When things go wrong, you can't 16:21 throw a hissy fit next to the, 16:23 next the right side of the road, 16:24 just deal with it. 16:26 I also really find, because my 16:28 bicycle's my happy place, I like 16:29 just spending the hours and 16:30 hours just pedalling. 16:32 I'm very happy doing that. 16:34 I often listen to the Bible, 16:36 I listen to music, podcasts, 16:38 but like today I've cycled 7 16:40 hours just with nothing on just 16:42 because I really just enjoy just 16:43 the peace of riding my bicycle 16:44 through beautiful scenery and 16:46 meeting people. 16:47 And this is the other aspect to 16:48 this racing is that you meet 16:51 people from all over as you're 16:52 cycling along, meet people and 16:54 they say, you know, "Why are you 16:56 doing this, are you being paid?" 16:57 And they say, "No, I just like 16:58 to ride my bike." 16:59 It's a huge source of discussion 17:02 and I often can use as a witness 17:03 to people as well when I explain 17:05 how God's influenced my-- in my 17:07 life and creating opportunities. 17:09 I think we witness as Christians 17:11 in ways that we're not aware of. 17:13 For example, because people know 17:14 I'm a Christian, if something 17:15 goes wrong and I start, you 17:17 know, they look at how 17:18 I respond. 17:19 It's like in this race, the 17:20 organizers said it's amazing how 17:22 I just accept whatever 17:23 goes wrong. 17:24 Well, I think that comes with 17:25 our faith, that we learn just to 17:28 roll with how things are and... 17:31 ...people watch us. 17:32 But you also interact with a 17:34 totally different group of 17:35 people that you normally have. 17:36 In these races, you-- I've raced 17:38 against bike couriers, I've 17:40 raced against different 17:41 nationalities, I've raced 17:43 against all sorts of people. 17:45 And in fact, one time I was 17:47 doing London to Istanbul, 17:49 and this is an interesting story 17:50 because it shows the 17:51 interactions, we tend to fall 17:54 into groups of similar distances 17:56 every day. 17:57 And so I was doing about 250 17:59 kilometres a day and there were 18:00 half a dozen others with the 18:01 same distances. 18:03 And so we'd often find ourselves 18:04 in the same hotels at night or 18:06 the same campgrounds. 18:07 And one morning we were having 18:09 breakfast with three other 18:10 racers and one who looked at her 18:11 phone and said, "Oh, there's 18:12 riots in Kosovo. 18:14 I can't go that route and I 18:16 don't know what to do." 18:17 So I took my Garmin 18:20 and took out the memory card and 18:21 said, "Here's a route through 18:22 Albania and Greece that'll get 18:23 you to the finish line." 18:24 And she said, "Why are you 18:25 giving me this?" 18:27 And I said, "What do you mean?" 18:28 She says, "Well, this is a £100 18:29 memory card. 18:30 You just met me this morning." 18:31 And I said, "Well, you're in 18:33 trouble and this is what 18:35 people do." 18:36 So we ended up riding together 18:37 and we spent the next night in 18:40 an Albanian brothel. 18:41 That's another story. 18:42 And... 18:45 ...about two days later on, she 18:46 said to me, "You know, I'm a 18:47 lesbian." 18:48 And I said, "Yeah, I worked out 18:49 that the first day." 18:50 She says, "But you're Christian, 18:51 you're being so nice to me." 18:52 And I sort of realized that her 18:54 only interaction with Christians 18:55 had come from a negative, 18:57 critical side. 18:58 And I said, "Well, I mean, who 19:00 you are and what you do is not 19:01 my business. 19:02 My business is just to help you 19:04 and be nice to you." 19:05 And since that time, she has 19:09 become like a foster daughter to 19:10 my wife and I. 19:11 She's visited us twice in New 19:12 Zealand and we've helped her get 19:14 established in the UK. 19:15 And it just shows how God will 19:17 bring people into your lives you 19:18 would never normally interact 19:20 with and you have an opportunity 19:22 as a Christian just to show 19:24 God's love to people. 19:25 And that's what we're 19:26 supposed to do. 19:29 ♪ Do not wait until some deed ♪ 19:31 ♪ of greatness you may do ♪ 19:34 ♪ Do not wait ♪ 19:36 ♪ to shed your light afar ♪ 19:39 ♪ To the many duties ♪ 19:41 ♪ ever near you now be true ♪ 19:45 ♪ Brighten the corner ♪ 19:47 ♪ where you are ♪ 19:49 ♪ Brighten the corner ♪ 19:52 ♪ Shine for Jesus ♪ 19:53 ♪ where you are ♪ 19:54 ♪ Brighten the corner ♪ 19:57 ♪ where you are ♪ 19:59 ♪ Someone far from harbour ♪ 20:01 ♪ you may guide across the bar ♪ 20:04 ♪ Brighten the corner ♪ 20:06 ♪ where you are ♪ 20:10 ♪ Just above are clouded skies ♪ 20:12 ♪ that you may help to clear ♪ 20:15 ♪ Let not narrow ♪ 20:17 ♪ self your way debar ♪ 20:20 ♪ Though into one heart alone ♪ 20:22 ♪ may fall your song of cheer ♪ 20:26 ♪ Brighten the corner ♪ 20:28 ♪ where you are ♪ 20:30 ♪ Brighten the corner ♪ 20:33 ♪ Shine for Jesus ♪ 20:34 ♪ where you are ♪ 20:35 ♪ Brighten the corner ♪ 20:38 ♪ where you are ♪ 20:40 ♪ Someone far from harbour ♪ 20:42 ♪ you may guide across the bar ♪ 20:45 ♪ Brighten the corner ♪ 20:47 ♪ where you are ♪ 20:51 ♪ Here for all your talent ♪ 20:52 ♪ you may surely find a need ♪ 20:56 ♪ Here reflect ♪ 20:57 ♪ the bright and Morning Star ♪ 21:00 ♪ Even from your humble hand ♪ 21:03 ♪ the Bread of Life may feed ♪ 21:06 ♪ Brighten the corner ♪ 21:08 ♪ where you are ♪ 21:11 ♪ Brighten the corner ♪ 21:13 ♪ Shine for Jesus ♪ 21:14 ♪ where you are ♪ 21:15 ♪ Brighten the corner ♪ 21:18 ♪ where you are ♪ 21:20 ♪ Someone far from harbour ♪ 21:22 ♪ you may guide across the bar ♪ 21:25 ♪ Brighten the corner ♪ 21:27 ♪ where you are ♪ 21:35 >> So although these are 21:36 bikepacking races, as a 21:37 Christian, we have a different 21:40 philosophy towards competition. 21:42 I'm not here to beat anyone, 21:44 I'm here to just do the best 21:45 that I can. 21:46 And that influences how I race. 21:49 And one time I was racing across 21:51 Australia in the Indian Pacific 21:53 Wheel Race, which was a five and 21:54 a half thousand kilometre race 21:55 from Perth to Sydney. 21:57 And a friend of mine, Vasiliki, 21:59 from Greece, was racing as well, 22:01 and she developed what's called 22:03 Shermer's neck. 22:04 And this what happens when you 22:05 spend too much time on your 22:07 aerobars, and you lose the 22:08 ability to raise your neck. 22:10 And the thing was, she wouldn't 22:11 withdraw from the race. 22:13 And I got a call from the race 22:14 organizer saying, "She ran into 22:17 a parked car, I've heard from 22:19 the police, she's gonna hurt 22:20 herself, but she won't withdraw 22:22 from the race." 22:23 So I contacted Vasiliki and I 22:25 said, "Vasiliki, just stop. 22:27 I will ride with you 22:28 and make sure that you're safe." 22:30 So we got together and I then 22:32 spent, we then developed 22:34 a strategy. 22:35 Because you couldn't raise her 22:36 head, she would ride along and I 22:38 would stay about 20 meters 22:39 behind her and when traffic 22:41 came, I'd yell, "Vasiliki, get 22:42 over, get over." 22:43 And so we rode from Adelaide 22:46 about a thousand kilometres that 22:47 way and I'd stopped my race 22:49 because to me it was no longer 22:51 about me doing the best I could 22:52 in the race, it was, my purpose 22:53 in that race was to make sure 22:55 Vasiliki didn't kill herself. 22:57 And I was totally okay with no 23:00 longer racing my race 23:02 because it was more important 23:03 that she was safe. 23:04 And this influences how we race. 23:07 Another time when I was racing 23:08 Norway to Spain, there were 23:10 three of us who were in 23:11 competition for eight, ninth, 23:13 and tenth place. 23:14 And we were in Spain, I was 23:16 going up this mountain and the 23:18 race, the rider who was going in 23:20 eighth place was coming down 23:22 and he was really, really sick 23:24 with a gastro problem. 23:26 And I had a chat with Mike, his 23:27 name was Mike and I said, "Mike, 23:28 what's going on?" 23:29 He goes, "Oh, I spent last 23:30 night-- I was really sick and I 23:31 don't know if I'm gonna finish." 23:33 Now, being an ex-World Banker, I 23:35 carry the ultimate medical kit 23:37 for things like that. 23:38 So I said, "Right!" 23:39 So I took my medical kit out and 23:40 I gave it to, I gave him 23:42 the medications and I said, "You 23:43 take these and they'll solve 23:45 your problem in a few hours and 23:47 you'll be able to keep racing." 23:49 Now, in a normal competitive 23:50 race, you wouldn't give the 23:52 person two spots ahead of you 23:53 the medicine to keep them 23:54 in the race. 23:55 But for me, it's far more 23:56 important that he finishes than 23:58 I come in ahead of him. 24:00 And once again, it's a 24:02 philosophy behind racing where 24:04 it's not about beating the 24:06 opposition, do the best you can, 24:08 and if anyone else that you come 24:09 across is in trouble, you don't 24:11 relish the fact you'll jump a 24:13 spot ahead of them, you help 24:14 them out. 24:15 And I think that's how it should 24:17 just be in life. 24:18 When you see someone in need, 24:19 you just help them. 24:20 After retiring from the World 24:21 Bank, I live in New Zealand in 24:22 this great place called Golden 24:24 Bay, and the retired people 24:26 asked me to give a talk about my 24:28 World Bank career to them. 24:30 So I discussed the work I was 24:31 doing, I built airports and 24:33 highways in China, and one of 24:34 the projects I did was I was 24:36 responsible to build 400 houses 24:38 in Tonga after cyclone. 24:40 So this guy, Frank, asked me a 24:41 question saying, "Chris, if you 24:43 can build 400 houses in Tonga 24:44 after a cyclone, can't you do 24:46 something about the housing 24:48 crisis here in Golden Bay?" 24:49 So God really put an impression 24:52 on me that I needed to do 24:52 something about this. 24:53 And as I prayed about it, 24:55 I realized that He wanted me 24:57 to do something. 24:58 So I started a project which we 24:59 call "The Golden Bay Affordable 25:01 Housing Project." 25:02 And what we've done is the 25:04 approach we used in Tonga was 25:06 quite unique. 25:08 By law, women can't own land in 25:09 Tonga, and after the cyclone 25:11 most of the beneficiaries for 25:13 housing were women and were 25:14 quite concerned they would lose 25:15 their houses that we built 25:16 for them. 25:17 So we found out that an approach 25:19 to use was to separate the house 25:21 from the land. 25:22 So we would sign a lease for the 25:23 land and then put the house on 25:25 the land. 25:26 And so by separating out land 25:27 from the house, it creates a 25:29 possibility of creating 25:30 affordable housing. 25:31 So I adopted that approach for 25:33 New Zealand and we've built four 25:35 houses so far and we have 25:37 another five under preparation. 25:40 And our goal is to 25:43 really make an impact on 25:44 the housing crisis. 25:46 And I've had a lot of support 25:47 from the Christians in Golden 25:48 Bay who are providing funding 25:49 for the houses. 25:50 One Christian couple provided 25:52 part of their land for free for 25:53 people to live on. 25:55 And so it's a really great 25:56 witness that you can help your 25:57 community to make a difference. 26:00 And it's been really great for 26:01 me to be able to continue to use 26:02 my World Bank skills today 26:05 when I'm not riding my bicycle 26:06 across Canada 26:08 and help people 26:10 because really that's what 26:11 Christianity is all about, 26:11 making a difference. 26:13 [gentle guitar music] 26:15 >> Near the end of his journey, 26:16 the Apostle Paul sounded 26:17 somewhat like an ultra endurance 26:19 bikepacking racer when he 26:21 declared... 26:44 Helping people, 26:45 that is what 26:47 this Christian ultra endurance 26:49 race is all about. 26:51 Making a difference. 26:54 >> And what it creative way 26:56 Chris made a difference, 26:58 by helping his community build 27:01 affordable housing and by 27:03 helping his fellow ultra 27:04 endurance bikepackers 27:06 see the love of Jesus in action. 27:10 That is what Christianity is all 27:12 about, and that is what our free 27:15 offer today is all about, 27:18 showing how God Still Lives 27:20 Even When You Wonder. 27:22 >> Just like Chris, let the love 27:25 of the Lord shine through 27:26 his life, our free offer reveals 27:29 how God still lives today. 27:32 >> These true testimonies of 27:34 God's faithfulness will 27:36 encourage you to trust Him more 27:38 fully and also inspire you to 27:41 live by faith and not by 27:43 sight alone. 27:47 >> Before you go, we would like 27:49 to thank all of you who have 27:51 supported the Ministry of It Is 27:52 Written Canada with your prayers 27:54 and financial contributions. 27:56 Without your support, this 27:57 television ministry could not 27:59 have reached so many people 28:01 for so many decades. 28:03 >> Yes, thank you. 28:05 And we would also like to invite 28:07 you to follow us on Instagram 28:09 and Facebook and subscribe to 28:11 our YouTube channel and also 28:14 listen to our podcasts. 28:16 And if you go to our website, 28:18 you can see our latest programs. 28:21 >> You, too, can experience the 28:22 fullness of life that is found 28:24 in the words of Jesus 28:26 when He said... 28:35 [guitar music continues] 28:38 [sea gulls calling] 28:40 [guitar music continues] 28:42 ♪♪ |
Revised 2024-04-12