Oil Pump For the Harley

I have this old Harley. It isn't anything very valuable. It is really just a bunch of parts with a frame and wheels. Most of the time when people read 'Harley' they think big roaring bike with lots of chrome that costs more than a small house. When I talk about 'Harley' in this blog, picture a big cardboard box with parts, gaskets, old pencils, and grease stains. The cool part of my old Harley is that it was made the same year I was born. That might be the only cool thing about it.

The oil pump (a very necessary part) was broken off, and in need of replacement, so I have been looking for 3 months now for a 'together' oil pump. I have bought two that were the wrong ones. I counted the holes and studied the pictures, but I just hadn't been able to get it right. Finally, on the third try, I think I got it. I still need to swap some parts from the old pump to make the new one work, but it's close. I have all the gaskets and "O" rings and gears - and I think I can finally put the thing together and on the motorcycle.

You are probably reading this and thinking to yourself "Who really cares - I'm not into motorcycles- and what the heck is an oil pump?" I understand. One of my boys is REALLY into trains, and he can bore me to tears within seconds as he goes on and on and on about trains. It isn't my intention to bore you to tears with my dumb Harley. I wanted to make a point.

I have been into bikes for years. I have had well over 60 bikes in my lifetime. Usually I really get engrossed in rebuilding or discovering how they work. I have enjoyed it as a hobby since I was 20 something. And the same thing happens every time - a process I want to pass on to you.

When that box of greasy parts gets dumped on the floor of my garage, I know nothing about it. It is actually overwhelming and a little scary. Then many months later (and after being completely covered in grease) it roars to life and actually has wheels, and somewhere between box and wheels, it becomes a motorcycle. What's more - it becomes MY motorcycle. I know every bolt, every nut , every cable and gear - I can even tell you where the oil pump is, what model it is, and where to get the right one if you need one. I KNOW the bike - it is mine.

Sometimes I get lost in my relationship with God. How am I supposed to have 'relationship' with someone that mystical and unknowable? I guess by taking all the pieces I have and combining them with the pieces I gather, and trusting that in the process of discovery, I will know Him intimately in the process of putting together my faith. It is something you have to get dirty doing.

I see a lot of people who want to just go out and spend $20,000 on a new Harley, getting it just the way they like it, and they can't even tell you where the oil pump is. I want a relationship with a living God that I have to wrestle with to know - that teaches me 'hands on', and I don't mind that I might get really dirty in the process. Because as my faith and relationship with Him roar to life, there is a 'knowing' that goes beyond simply 'buying'.