Greetings in the name of the Most High God, a tower of strength against my enemies (Psalm 61).

I am penning this report in yet another public library in Ashland, KY. It's nice to find free internet access for email purposes; I guess the public libraries in this country are still good for something. Anyway, the last couple of days have been rough. Yesterday, in particular, was one of those days when I wondered, "What in the world am I doing out here? I am so sick of this; I want to quit." As I struggled like Paul in Romans 7, the grace of God did that much more abound (Romans 5:20). And thankfully, today dawned anew with a recharged vigor to keep pressing on.

Part of my discouragement was directly related to the route. After my last email, it was 12 miles into Charleston, WV. We stopped at the Daniel Boone City Park, hoping to cook some dinner and crash for the night. Unfortunately, we were hemmed in by reflections of Sodom and Gomorrah. Male prostitution was going on all around us in broad daylight. I won't go into any details. I desperately wanted to walk out into the center of it all and start preaching a little Romans 1 coupled with some hellfire and brimstone, but the Lord restrained me. Reprobation and recompense of the error that was meet were surely inevitable (Romans 1). This country is so messed up. Of all places, I did not think to run into such blatant garbage in West Virginia. GOD SAVE THE UNITED STATES.

Thus, I pedaled on. I ended up biking right through downtown Charleston and out to St. Albans before quitting just as it got dark. The roads were in poor condition, the neighborhoods were run-down, and XXX bars lined the streets. I ended up witnessing to this guy who was also out on a bicycle for a few minutes. It was a good conversation, but he told me it would be best to keep biking right on through Charleston because I was not safe in those neighborhoods after dark. By this time, we were praying earnestly for a place to crash for the night. Just as I began to lose hope, Jamie radioed me that she and Chad had found a roadside campground with FREE camping, right on the Kanawha River. This was a blessing from God, another instance of divine provision. After 65 miles of pedaling, it was time to call it a day.

We ended up camping right beside a Christian family (husband, wife, six kids) who had just returned from the mission field and were taking some time to see the country—a "decompression trip," he informed us. Anyway, their presence, along with a couple of other RVs, made the place seem a little safer. We were right across the street from a grocery store, so we were able to stock up on foodstuffs. There was a nasty bathroom (so nasty, I even missed the public toilets in Kathmandu, Nepal), and no showers. I was so disgustingly dirty from the day's bike ride, including a double-layer of coal soot recoated every time a coal truck flew by me on the busy highway. There was no way I was going to try and sleep like that, so I opted for a midnight bath in the polluted Kanawha River. Thanks be to God that is was dark, so I could not see what I was really bathing in. Most importantly, I felt better, but whatever was in that water stuck to me all night and throughout the next day—a greasy, oily, film. At least the BO was gone (Jamie was grateful for this).

Needless to say, we did not get any sleep. The campground was literally right beside a busy 4-lane highway. All-night traffic, including some street racers, police cars in siren mode, and loud motorcycles, plus the bright neon signs from the strip mall across the street, made for persistent tossing and turning.

Yesterday morning, we all felt like garbage, but I wanted to press on and finally get out of West Virginia. This state has some beautiful mountainous areas (e.g. Seneca Rocks, Dolly Sods, Canaan Valley, New River Gorge, Lake Moncove, Lick Creek, the Gauly River, Pipestem, Hawk's Nest, Babcock, Monongahela National Forest, Harper's Ferry, etc.), but there are also a lot of "not-so-beautiful" places as well (e.g. Charleston, Huntington, the Kanawha River Valley, I-77 from Beckley to Parkersburg, I-64 from Charleston to Huntington, etc.). Succinctly stated, it was just time for a new state. West Virginia does, however, leave us with a lot of sweet memories from this heretofore nomadic adventure, one of which was Route 20 near Sandstone.

Thus far, Kentucky has not proven any better. Yesterday, I biked 50 miles from St. Albans, WV to Ashland, KY, right along the Ohio River. Once again, the route was through dumpy industrial areas, and a lot of traffic made things a little sketchy at times. Huntington, WV was no better than Charleston, and the outside temperature reached a whopping 96 degrees F. This, coupled with the worst humidity I have felt in days, made each pedal revolution a cumbersome chore. Needless to say, I developed a pessimistic and "down in the dumps" attitude throughout the day. Several times, however, the Lord picked me up enough to share the Gospel with a few passersby.

When we crossed the river into Kentucky, I finally had enough. It was about 2:00pm, and we were going to find a nice room for the night. We crashed at a decent Holiday Inn Express in Ashland, sleeping for most of the afternoon. All the while, the Lord was at work. Previously, God had impressed upon Chad's heart to give his bicycle away to some needy kid before he got on the bus headed for home. We had been praying earnestly that God would put such a person in our path. Late last night, I was talking to the front desk clerk and it came up that her daughter was going through a nasty divorce and her grandson had been wanting a bicycle. She explained that his mother had been trying to help him understand that they could not afford one at this time. The Lord works in mysterious ways.

The rest is history . . . This morning, we made contact with this lady and her son and drove to their apartment in Kenova, West Virginia (God knew that it wasn't quite time to be finished with West Virginia). Chad was able to give his mountain bike to a very happy 10-year old boy. This, of course, provided an excellent witnessing opportunity. We explained that the gift was from God and that only the love of Jesus Christ constrained us to give it away. In the end, we gave them a couple of nice leather-bound Bibles along with some Gospel literature. Once again, we had a divine appointment where seeds were planted. May God give the increase. We promised the mother that we would be in prayer for her over this divorce. According to the Bible, the Lord hates divorce (see Malachi) just like He hates all sin. Thus, our prayer is for the best—that the marriage would be reconciled so that her son can grow up in a healthy two-parent family. Of course, all would be meaningless without salvation. Please join with us as we pray for salvation and reconciliation in this broken family. May our divine appointment and the bicycle be the start of something big.

Right now, I am tying to get motivated to bike the 40 miles to Portsmouth. Last night, we all slept great, and the shower felt so good. It looks like a thunderstorm is brewing, so we are trying to wait things out. Tonight, I must make it to Portsmouth because we are putting Chad on a bus for home at 5:05am at the Greyhound Bus Station right in downtown. His presence has been a blessing, and we will miss him terribly. Please pray that God will send others like him for subsequent legs of the journey.

We plan to spend the night inside the bus station. Pray that this will provide some interesting witnessing opportunities as people come and go throughout the night. It would also be nice to get a shower somewhere. Though a simple prayer request, these are things we no longer take for granted.

Finally, please pray for Chad's safety as he travels back to North Carolina in the morning. We hope that this whole experience will spur him to embrace evangelism as more than an occasional activity or church program, but as a WAY OF LIFE (Mark 16:15-16).

Well, I better sign off. The road lays naked and open before me. Until next time, we are most affectionately heralds of the BOOK, the BLOOD, and the BLESSED HOPE.

Jesse & Jamie Boyd, Chad Currin
Full Proof Gospel Ministries
Psalm 61

dumpy industrial zones