I think we are seeing the consequences of the resist and question authority mindset; it is hard to find people who want to work. You see, working for someone requires that we allow them to have authority over us. Having a job means the boss tells you what to do. Being an employee means doing what the boss wants you to do. When you resist or question that the boss has the option to release you. 

The decision to question authority results in substandard service. People have decided that what they want is more important than what the customer wants and the resulting actions have frustrated us. Many times, the retail experience leaves us lacking. We then turn to online shopping and that is great until we have to talk with someone in another country to resolve an issue. But that is a column for another time.

The breakdown goes something like this; Authority, establishes what is allowed and to what extent. Those parameters determine right and wrong. When there is a violation the Authority enacts justice, usually some sort of punitive action that the result is a loss of something for the offending party.

You all know what I’m talking about; Tech Inspection. We first decide where we will compete and build a car to race “according to the rules” established by the track and/or sanctioning body. We show up to race and pay our inspection fee. They proceed to determine if you followed the rules and decide if you can compete. 

Now this is where it gets interesting, if they don’t find it, is it still cheating?  Of course, it is. We are not free to do as we please and they will use whatever tactic they can think of to catch you in an attempt to level the playing field. 

It is not cheating if they don’t catch us is a common phrase, but what do we lose when we win because we didn’t follow the rules? We get a hollow victory void of satisfaction and fulfilment. We celebrate and win trophies and championships but they are hollow. We will realize one day that true satisfaction and fulfilment was never really ours.

How does this transfer to life? Very much the same way. We can choose what authority we let guide us through. I remember Joshua called the nation of Israel together and told them they must choose.

Joshua 24:14-15; NLT; “So fear the Lord and serve him wholeheartedly. Put away forever the idols your ancestors worshiped when they lived beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt. Serve the Lord alone. But if you refuse to serve the Lord, then choose today whom you will serve. Would you prefer the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates? Or will it be the gods of the Amorites in whose land you now live? But as for me and my family, we will serve the Lord.”

Respect the Lord and serve Him with your whole heart. That is something that would straighten out a lot of things. Many folks chose to consider God, they know of Him, but stop short of allowing Him to have authority in their lives. Some decide to follow, but only make a half-hearted attempt and never see the benefits of His presence in their lives.

We do that with many things in our life, we only give it a half-hearted effort and wonder why things aren’t as good as we would want them to be. Think about life and the things we do; how many times do we put forth the effort necessary to achieve the best result?

Oh, we want the prize, the blessing, the promotion, and all the things that money can buy, but at what cost? Many times, we lack the effort and commitment necessary to achieve them. True satisfaction and fulfilment are not what we think they are. We want to take the shortcut. We want to get there the easy way. We want someone else to do the heavy lifting and we reap the benefits. 

There are things that we desire as human beings; all of us desire hope and a glorious future. I have never met anyone who desired to be hopeless. And I have also not met anyone who didn’t want to dwell in heaven when they leave this Earth. Those things are what we desire but we are confused as to how to attain them. We try to do it in our own strength, power and understanding. That isn’t the answer.

Romans 1:28-32; NLT; Since they thought it foolish to acknowledge God, he abandoned them to their foolish thinking and let them do things that should never be done. Their lives became full of every kind of wickedness, sin, greed, hate, envy, murder, quarreling, deception, malicious behavior, and gossip. They are backstabbers, haters of God, insolent, proud, and boastful. They invent new ways of sinning, and they disobey their parents. They refuse to understand, break their promises, are heartless, and have no mercy. They know God’s justice requires that those who do these things deserve to die, yet they do them anyway. Worse yet, they encourage others to do them, too.

God has provided an opportunity for us to find Him. Even when we have decided to turn from Him and follow our own path. He will welcome us home like the prodigal son and forgive our shortcomings. He will restore us and provide the opportunity for us to find Him, if we seek Him with our whole-heart.

Romans 3:10; “None is righteous, no, not one; Romans 3:23; For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; Romans 5:8; But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 6:23; For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 10:9-11; Because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. For the Scripture says, “Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.”

I encourage you to take a different road, take the one that will fill you with hope and secure your final destination. God will welcome you home. The writer of Proverbs leaves us with these words of wisdom.

Proverbs 3:5-8; NLT; Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding.

Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.

Don’t be impressed with your own wisdom. Instead, fear the Lord and turn away from evil.

Then you will have healing for your body and strength for your bones.

Until next time, remember God loves you and Jesus is Lord over Auto Racing! God Bless. Remember, that your prayerful support and donations helps us continue this ministry. Thank You.

A few weeks back we said goodbye to Zach at New York International Raceway Park. A nine-year-old that had a love for racing. He had a challenging life, one filled with medical issues, but he loved being at the track. You could see the excitement and joy in his eyes. Today Zach is home in heaven with His Heavenly Father, fully healed and hurting no more. God reveals in His word the special place children hold in His heart.

Mark 11:13-16; NLT; One day some parents brought their children to Jesus so he could touch and bless them. But the disciples scolded the parents for bothering him.

When Jesus saw what was happening, he was angry with his disciples. He said to them, “Let the children come to me. Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of God belongs to those who are like these children. I tell you the truth, anyone who doesn’t receive the Kingdom of God like a child will never enter it.” Then he took the children in his arms and placed his hands on their heads and blessed them.

This same encounter is recorded in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke. God indicates to us that even children have value in His eyes. So much so he says unless you receive the Kingdom of God like a child you will never enter it. Through the eyes of a child. Think of the excitement, the joy, the wonder and amazement we get when we see things through the eyes of a child. Think of the cynicism and negativity that children do not possess. Yes, there is always hope and wonder in the eyes of a child.

We are all children of God. We head out to the racetracks to try and help people find that wonder and amazement that God offers them. The intrinsic value he placed in each of us. We seek to walk alongside and guide the discovery of what our Father in Heaven has for each of us. Let’s take a little journey with some of our chaplains.

Todd Heft shares; “Often we, our family, plan camping around Racing with Jesus Ministries races.  It usually means a shorter drive to and from the track and less time away from the family.  Win-win! 

When the schedule for 2021 was first forming in February and March I saw there were two events in Maine this past weekend. There was no question in my mind we should go up there.  After talking with Don Rivers, we made a plan on camping together. Even up until a week or two ago we both were planning on attending the Whelen Modified Tour event. Well, there was a pair of NEMA races without a chaplain so we decided to divide and conquer; Instead of being at one track I’d head up to Wiscasset and bring my oldest son with me.  

There was a slight detour.  On the horizon loomed a hurricane.  So instead of a few extra days away we rolled back home after the race arriving at 2am this morning.  It gave me a rare chance to attend church and truly worship and not serve as a techy. 

None of it sounds especially remarkable until you see the details behind what God is doing.  Don was exactly where he needed to be last night at the track and I was exactly where I needed to be both yesterday and today. 

Detours aren’t fun, they’re many times the long way around.  They’re not convenient.  God doesn’t ask us to lead a life of convenience, he asks us to live a life of obedience.  When we do we see the amazing things He does and we see lives touched and transformed.  Our own lives begin to greater reflect Christ to the others around us.  

Back in the time when Jesus lived, Jews used to take the road around Samaria because they despised the Samaritans so much.  Jesus didn’t and when he met the women at the well, He transformed her life. Not only that but he transformed the entire town into believers.  He knew the detour was the right way for that time. 

If God is calling you to do something, if you’re feeling a nudge, it’s probably the Holy Spirit prompting you to take action.  Take the detour from what you planned and follow God’s route.  It’s significantly more rewarding than the road you would have chosen.”

Our Chaplain at Stafford Motor Speedway Tim Garrison shares how he sees God’s presence at Stafford. “I am seeing God moving and working at Stafford in a couple of different ways. I am seeing people that previously would not spend much time talking with me, initiate conversations and ask for prayer before the race. I am seeing relationships build and develop with drivers and crew members where they share their prayer requests with me and engage in deeper and more meaningful life conversations.

Another exciting way that I am seeing God working is in the logistics of how I serve at the track. There seems to be more of an openness to what I do and a growing appreciation and acceptance to the message of what “the chaplain” is there to do.” 

Scott Frazier, our Northern Chaplain, visits many different places throughout Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont. Scotty shared this about his journey. This year has been an important year to get back to normal after a trying 2020.

“With my travels to many different tracks, I have made a lot of friends over the years. I have found a special connection with the Storace family at Star Speedway. Kelly and Jim are a very special couple that are very dedicated to racing for many years.  

I first met them years ago, as I became a Chaplain, they wanted to have me stop and pray with them at their trailer on race day. I always make sure I stop and catch up and chat with them.

 Within the past 2 years Kelly has been fighting brain cancer. We pray together during her fight over the racing season. Keeping God in their life to guide them. 

I am happy to say she is now in remission. God has given her life back. I can see how much they love each other and knowing that we have that connection with them on a personal level with God has made our presence well worth it. Serving him well one team at a time.”

Todd Heft adds; “God is working in the NEMA series in a way I have not seen with any other division in my short time as a chaplain.  The officials, the drivers and the families are specifically seeking out our presence at the track.  God has put together connections and those connections are allowing the Gospel to be shared and heard by people who would otherwise not have heard. It has not only touched lives in the series but given me a tremendous amount of encouragement.”

God wants to be with His people, He wants them to know the value they have in His eyes. We go to deliver the message, to walk alongside, lifting each of you up. We are blessed to be a partner with God in ministering to you. Until next time, remember God loves you and Jesus is Lord over Auto Racing! God Bless. Remember, that your prayerful support and donations helps us continue this ministry. Thank You.

Success in a race season is different for each team. Some will judge the season a failure if they don’t end up with the championship. Some are looking just to improve over last year’s performance. Some are looking for seat time and finishing the race in one piece is judged a success. Whatever our standard, having success is different for each one of us. 

Being judged successful however is a different thing altogether. We know there are two different ways of looking at things, our way and God’s way. When we judge being successful in earthly terms we focus on accomplishments and status. We look at awards and recognition. When we look at being successful from a Biblical viewpoint, we look at character, we focus on those who have submitted themselves to God and have chosen to do His will.

Will you be successful? That depends on the standard you use. Many thought Jesus a failure as he hung on the cross. They challenged Him to save Himself. They hurled insults at Him and questioned His claim to be the Son of God. In the end Jesus accomplished what He came to do, He followed His Father’s will. He gave His life so that we might have life. 

Being successful isn’t about what we attain; it is more about how we do what we do, character. In a passage of Scripture from the Gospel of Luke we can find some help in our quest to be successful. 

Luke 5:1-11; One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret, with the people crowding around him and listening to the word of God, he saw at the water’s edge two boats, left there by the fishermen, who were washing their nets. He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from shore. Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat. When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.” Simon answered, “Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.” When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink. When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!” For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, and so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon’s partners. Then Jesus said to Simon, “Don’t be afraid; from now on you will catch men.” So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him. 

In this passage Luke tells us of the calling of the first disciples. We read about Simon Peter and his friends. He had just finished a night of fishing with no success and he was cleaning up his nets. Think of it like the end of a race. You had trouble and didn’t finish, a DNF. You and your crew are cleaning up and along comes this guy who wants to use your hauler as a pulpit. After he is done speaking, he starts to tell you how to set up your car and how to win the next race. He challenges you to make the adjustments and go run a lap. You look at him as if to say, “What do you know about racing?” He says trust me and do what I tell you. Reluctantly you agree. You set the car up and sure enough you run the fastest lap you have ever run. Maybe there is something to this guy? Maybe I should follow him?

Let’s examine what has taken place. First, we have to let Jesus in. Whether it’s our boat, our hauler or our life, we cannot be successful without Jesus being a part of it. Once he is a part of our life, we have to let him have control. He will guide and direct us to what is right and just. He will guide us to places we would not go on our own. 

Peter was a fisherman and he knew the best time to fish was at night and in shallow water. Jesus instructed Simon Peter to put out to deep water in the middle of the day. Peter, like us, questioned if Jesus knew what he was talking about. Jesus did and proved it with a large catch of fish.

The first step to being successful is including Jesus. He must be a part of our life. Second, we must allow Jesus to have control of the direction and decisions in our life. Third, we must expect Jesus to guide us to people, places and things that we wouldn’t have met, gone or done if we didn’t follow Him. Fishing in deep water in the middle of the day.

Remember being successful has more to do with character and less to do with performance. Peter had a choice; he could have remained a fisherman or he could become a fisher of men. To show Peter the He knew the way, Jesus demonstrated His ability to catch fish. After seeing this demonstration, Peter left his nets and boats and followed Jesus. That must have been one awesome catch of fish to impress a fisherman so much. Can you imagine what it would take for us to leave everything behind and follow Christ? 

I find it amazing that Peter walked away from everything he had accomplished, everything he had built, his entire business and followed Jesus. What would it take for us to leave everything at the track and follow Jesus? Can we even imagine? To just leave everything and follow Jesus? That’s exactly what Peter did. Peter came to the realization that with Jesus failure was not an option. 

Peter and the other fishermen had been out fishing all night. They caught nothing. They went back out during the day and caught so many fish their boats were sinking. They had never seen so many fish. You can imagine the questions that ran through their minds, “Who is this man that knows where all these fish were?” Then Peter decided he was worth following and his partners, James and John, followed along.

In addition to the steps we discussed previously, let’s add these; first we must realize failure is not an option when we follow Jesus, He will not fail. We need to have an expectation that Jesus can do great things. He will amaze us with His blessings. We must accept our new direction in life and follow Jesus with all we have.

If being successful is more important to us than having success than we need to follow Jesus. These steps that guide us only serve as reminders that we do not have control over what happens in life. We need to follow someone’s direction, someone’s example. Who we follow determines if we will be successful. 

Phil 4:13; I can do everything through him (Christ) who gives me strength. 

Luke 1:37; For nothing is impossible with God. 

When all is said and done by whose standard will we be judged, the standard of the world or the Biblical standard? With Jesus you cannot fail and nothing is too big to overcome. I encourage you to let Jesus into your life, give him control; follow him with everything you have. You cannot and will not fail. 

Until next time, remember God loves you and Jesus is Lord over Auto Racing! God Bless. Remember, that your prayerful support and donations helps us continue this ministry. Thank You.

I think back to the time of year when the new schedules come out. We anticipate what the new season will bring. What new tracks are on the horizon? We sort out how each will fit into our schedule. We fill the upcoming racing season with opportunities. Very rarely do we schedule down time.

I have followed along the journeys of many friends on social media as they share their vacation exploits. I see this place and that, here and there, but never nowhere. Somehow, somewhere, someway, unscheduled time is not in our plans. Most times we need a vacation from our vacation.

This subject is on my mind because I have struggled with leaving room in my schedule for God. I get so busy that there isn’t room for Him. Not that I am not serving Him and ministering in His name but that I have Him scheduled into a box of time. Here you go God, here is your time to speak to me, what’s up. Okay on to the next scheduled item.

I am afraid I have gotten so busy that I have squeezed God out. Not as a part of my life; I serve Him every day, but as a part of my scheduling. Maybe you are going through a similar time. God will not force His way in. He will wait until we realize that we haven’t seen His hand working in our lives lately.

The question of the day is, how are we allowing God to adjust our schedule for His glory? Are we even considering Him wanting to have input? Let me be candid; I have been going through a very difficult struggle for several months trying to figure out which direction God wants me to move.

This is not unlike a racer deciding which races to run. We try our best with the information we have to make decisions that will give us the best opportunity to move forward. Very rarely do we decide to do something that will take us backward or slow us down. We are a forward moving people. To the front!

This past weekend God got my attention. I had it all planned. I would head to Memphis to cover the K&N race. Lynda would join me as we planned on visiting some friends in Western Tennessee. We planned to bring our popup camper and stay on their farm. Sounds like a good plan, right? I thought so.

I put in place all the coverage needed to cover my usual responsibilities. Rev. Dan and Todd Heft would cover the Whelen Modified Tour at Seekonk. Rev. Jerry Jones would cover preaching for me at Mount Carmel Christian Church. Lynda shared with our Daughter that we would need to adjust our schedule in watching the grandkids. Looks like we have the bases covered, pack up the camper, let’s go!

We needed to take time and listen to God. You see as the trip approached there wasn’t a peace in our hearts about going. Not that we weren’t planning to do good things, but that God had other plans that would be more beneficial to us. This can be the most difficult part of walking with God, when he wants you to move in a different direction than the one you have plans in place to go.

Proverbs 3:5-6, (NLT), Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.

Most of the plan was good, God confirmed that. The part that had to change was our location. As Lynda and I became aware that God had a different plan for us we made adjustments. You know it is God when people are ready and waiting to step in and serve in your place.

I was ready to make the trip without Lynda as care for our grandchildren made her joining me difficult. God then started on me and helped me know He had a replacement available to cover Memphis. A chaplain friend who lived in Nashville and had over 12 years of experience working with NASCAR was available and willing to cover the race. In some way he needed to be there and I didn’t.

Okay I’m not going to Memphis, all my responsibilities are covered, what am I going to do? Unscheduled time, something I rarely have, let alone need. I was given the opportunity to step back and evaluate how important my presence really is. Sometimes we think we are more important than we really are.

God helped me see this past weekend that I need to be on His schedule. I need to follow His plan. If I am not I will miss His presence in my life. I am not the one who makes the world go round, He is. I must admit this past weekend wasn’t comfortable for me. I’m much more comfortable when I am on a mission. Taking a step back with some unscheduled time left my mind contemplating a few things. God got my attention!

Fight the urge to fill every moment of your life with something. Fight the urge to be accessible twenty four-seven. Instead let God help you learn how to follow Him. Let him make the adjustments in your life that will lead to a closer relationship with him. Let those lessons help you live life better.

John 10:10, (NLT), The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.

Until next time, remember God loves you and Jesus is Lord over Auto Racing! God Bless. Remember, that your prayerful support helps us continue this ministry. Thank You.