Trickle Charge

I own a 500 Piaggio automatic motorcycle. I purchased it a few years ago to help with the ongoing gas crunch we were feeling as prices at the pump soared. I ride it from April well into November and occasionally have even ridden it on an unseasonably warm day in December or March.
Last Thursday on April 1st I went to ride and discovered that my battery was dead. It was my own fault. Being out of town and then country so much over the last two months, I had never thought of starting the bike and getting it charged.

No big deal (I thought). I'll simply give it a jumpstart and be off (right).

Challenge #1: I had no idea where the battery was. After opening every accessible compartment, looking through each service port on the fairing and fenders I still had no Idea where it was.

Challenge #2: I had to locate the owner's manual and seek the information I needed on how to get access to the battery. That would also necessitate locating my reading glasses. A quick read later (not hardly - the Italian owner's manual was not organized in what seemed like a logical way) I discovered the battery was under the tail light compartment.

Challenge #3: To get access to the tail light compartment and the battery, I had to remove the rear hard top stage carrier. Of course since this was an add-on accessory, the owner's manual didn't cover its removal. 20 bolts, four screws and 30 minutes later, I had access to the tail light cover.

There it was, the battery. Success was in sight. I took a 2 amp trickle charger and hooked it up to the terminals. Six hours later, I tested the battery. Fully charged. I tried the starter, and the engine turned over and started.

Success.

I recently spent a month in West Africa,
working with Teams from the US Alliance, the Canadian Alliance, HCJB Global, international workers and indigenous workers doing the same thing (sort of). In the midst of a country locked in darkness as team of individuals installed a radio satellite relay station to allow the Holy Spirit trickle charge access to the land.

To get it hooked up required facing numerous challenges, lost luggage, delayed tools, three cases of heat exhaustion, one broken arm, average weight loss per man was 12 pounds. But in the end, the switch was flipped and it worked.

For all those who went, who gave, who prayed, who stood in the gap, who picked up the ministry pieces at home, the labor was not in vain. In Paul's words, "We always thank God for all of you, mentioning you in our prayers. We continually remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ." 1 Thessalonians 1:2-3 NIV