“The Life Ride journey across America is a prophetic picture to remind the body of Christ who we are called to be,” declares Pastor.
What happens when a 60-year-old pastor gets the crazy idea to ride his bike across the country in hopes of making a difference for a worthy cause? Life Ride, a history-making and shaping event, kicks off May 4, 2023 as Pastor Jay Stewart, Lead Pastor of The Refuge Church in Charlotte, NC, begins an epic 3,400 mile cycling trip to raise money and awareness for pro-life organization Love Life. Stewart invites the Church to join him in boldly declaring God’s truth about the sanctity of life through participating in this effort.
Only God could take the seed of an idea from 40 years ago and turn it into more than I could ask or imagine, as He has done with Life Ride.
Stewart first dreamt of biking across the country to raise awareness for a cause back when he was in college. Deeming the idea crazy, he continued to put it off, until the Lord answered his prayer in a major way as he approached the age of 60. A series of confirmations made it clear that God was leading him to partner with an organization he had been connected to for years, Love Life. Love Life is committed to uniting and mobilizing the Church to create a culture of love that will result in an end to abortion and the orphan crisis through their House of Refuge program.
Stewart said, “My journey began in 2012 when friends took me to a local abortion center to show me the atrocity taking place in our city. When I heard the tragic truths of abortion, I was shocked and sad to see so few actively doing anything about it. The Holy Spirit convicted me of my own lack of action and I knew that needed to change. After much prayer, He downloaded a strategy in my heart to end abortion in Charlotte by uniting and mobilizing the Church.”
Now, nearly four decades later, Stewart’s dream will become a reality, partnering with Love Life for the ride of his life to save the lives of others.
“Sometimes dreams take a while to turn into reality. Only God could take the seed of an idea from 40 years ago and turn it into more than I could ask or imagine, as He has done with Life Ride. Together, as the Church, riding for a purpose, we can make a difference and make history together. The Life Ride journey across America is a prophetic picture to remind the body of Christ who we are called to be.”
Justin Reeder, the founder of Love Life added, “Our prayer for Life Ride is that we are able to raise funds for the kingdom work of Love Life and also grow our network of House of Refuge churches that provide care and support for women who find themselves facing a crisis pregnancy. We’re not waiting on politicians to take action; we believe the Church is uniquely positioned to transform the culture towards love and life.”
Life Ride will officially kick off in Corona del Mar, CA May 4, 2023 on the National Day of Prayer and will finish in Charleston, SC in late June. In addition to Pastor Jay, there will be 100+ teams across the country who will join him by riding their bikes to raise awareness in their cities.
To learn more about Life Ride and join the movement, go HERE.
To learn more about Love Life, go HERE.
