A little over 200 years ago we declared our independence from England. I
wonder if we realize that we also declared our dependence. We succeeded as a
nation because of our ability to join together and depend on one another.
That is what secured our freedom. Greetings in the name of our Lord and
Savior Jesus Christ.
Happy Fourth of July! I hope your picnic went well. I also hope you
took some time to remember what it took for us to break away and become an
independent nation. It took our willingness to work together, agree on one
common purpose and sacrifice everything we had to make it work. Sound like a
race team?
Racing, in many ways, reflects the same character it took our great
nation to break free from England. We first and foremost need to have a
common goal. In most cases that is winning. When everyone is committed to
making that happen the team starts to gel and become a cohesive unit. The
chemistry is right. We all do our part for the good of the team.
What separates the best teams from the rest? The ability to work
together, do what needs to be done and not pick apart the work of others on
the team. Look at the teams that are successful and the attributes they
display. They are prepared to race; everyone has a job and does it. They can
depend on each member to pull their weight. The end result is a
championship, or two.
When we develop the trust in one another, learn what our task is
and focus on doing that we will succeed. When we are more concerned about
nit picking and finger pointing we do not succeed. Let me ask a question,
are we dependable? Can people depend on us to do what we are supposed to do?
Are we doing what we were created by God to do?
That last question may seem a little out of place on a race team.
You may be asking the question, was I created to be a tire specialist? Yes,
God created each one of us unique and equipped each one of us with special
talents. What would happen if the tire guy wanted to drive or tune the
engine? The members of the team would be out of place. If you are the tire
guy, be the best tire guy possible. Let me explain.
Paul wrote about the topic, one body, many parts, let’s read what
he says;
1Corinthians
12:12-26: The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and
though all its parts are many,
they form one body. So it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one
Spirit into one body--whether Jews or Greeks,
slave or free--and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.
Now the body is not made up of
one part but of many. If the foot should say, "Because I am not a hand, I do
not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of
the body. And if the ear should say, "Because I am not an eye, I do not
belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the
body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If
the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? But in fact
God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted
them to be. If they were all one part, where would the body be? As it is,
there are many parts, but one body.
The eye cannot say to the hand, "I don't need you!" And the head
cannot say to the feet, "I don't need you!" On the contrary, those parts of
the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and the parts that we
think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are
unpresentable are treated with special modesty, while our presentable parts
need no special treatment. But God has combined the members of the body and
has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be
no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for
each other. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is
honored, every part rejoices with it.
God created us to be different and unique. He gave each of us a
task to do and put in each of us the necessary abilities to accomplish those
tasks. If we seek God out and ask Him to show us the tasks He wants us to
accomplish He will. This is called being in God’s will. The blessings we
receive from being in God’s will are tremendous. They include inner peace,
joy, satisfaction, fulfillment and hope. Take a look inside your heart. Do
you have those blessings there?
We were created to depend on one another. God didn’t create us as
Lone Rangers. We will never experience the fullness of God’s blessing if we
live life alone. Yes, there are times to be alone, but God created life to
be lived together, depending on each other and helping one another.
The United States of America exists today because we learned and
practiced that. Race teams win championships because they practice that. You
too can have that in your life. First, seek God out and ask for His presence
in your life. He will come and show you the way. The writer of Ecclesiastes
reminds us;
Ecclesiastes 4:9-10,
12; Two are better than one,
because they have a good return for their work:
If one falls down,
his friend can help him up.
But pity the man who falls
and has no one to help him up!
Though one may be overpowered,
two can defend themselves.
A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.
I encourage you to find your
place in God’s Kingdom and seek His will for your life.
THOUGHTS FROM THE ROAD
EXTREME TUESDAY AT STAFFORD MOTOR SPEEDWAY
- What a great way to get the summer started, a beautiful night to do some
awesome racing. The NEMA Midgets were in the house along with the ISMA
Supers, man those cars are fast and the Pro 4’s. But I think the event I
liked the most was the go-cart race among a who’s who of local and national
champions, Champions for Charities. The premise for the event was to see who
could raise the most money for their charity, basically this is the only
event where you could buy your way to the pole and help others at the same
time. Over $40,000.00 was raised for the various charities involved.
Now you might expect that the race was secondary but you know what
happens when you put a driver in anything and tell him to beat the next guy,
right? They might have been a little slower that what they are used to
driving, but that didn’t stop them from going four wide, riding on two
wheels up the wall, passing in the dirt, you name it they tried it. I think
Frank Ruocco might have faired better if he kept all four wheels on the
ground. He led the fund raising effort with $18,785 for Pancreatic Cancer
Research, but he had to settle for third place. Keith Rocco won followed by
Jon McKennedy, Ruocco, Szegedy and Pitkat. You can get all the fund raising
totals on the SMS website.
THURSDAY NIGHT THUNDER - The Whelen Modified Tour made its
summer visit to Thompson a little early this year. Instead of the
traditional August time slot the Bud 150 moved to Independence Day Weekend
and kicked off the start of the holiday with some fireworks. Now if you look
at the stat sheet it indicates that the pole winner also won the race,
another wire to wire yawner, but you couldn't be further from the truth. TC
secured the pole but missed the driver's meeting, along with Matt Hirschman
and they had to start from the rear of the field. I spoke with TC before the
race and he was upset with himself but that wasn't going to stop him from
winning. With twenty five to go TC made his move into the top ten and didn't
stop until he secured first place with three to go. Almost reminded me of
the days I used to watch Richie Evans charge through the field late and run
away with the victory. It was a fast paced show with only a couple of
cautions, what a great way to kick off the weekend. Ronnie Silk came home
second followed Rowan Pennink, as he continues to maintain his position at
the top of the standings.
REV IT UP - After Thompson it was off to Pennsylvania, South
Canaan to be exact, to speak to some young folks about racing. We had a
wonderful day sharing with the kids at Canaan Bible Chapel and joining them
and their parents for a cookout. In between we were well cared for by the
Grimm family, many thanks to Rob and his wife Carla for their hospitality.
Well I think that covers it for now, off to the left coast for some R&R and
a little business, have a great week and if I missed something I'll catch it
up when I get back. .
Be a witness for our Lord with the ministry decals and apparel. See
them at the Show Your Faith Apparel Store at
www.rwjm.com. Send us
your prayer and counseling needs no matter what part of our racing family
you are in, or give us a call. Until next time, remember that God loves you,
we love you and
Jesus is Lord over Auto Racing. GOD BLESS.
 Mail reaches us at Racing with Jesus Ministries, PO Box 586,
Tolland, CT 06084.
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We invite you to input your thoughts as you sign our Guest Book.
Please remember, we can only do what we do because of your prayerful
financial support.
Numbers 6:24-26 "The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord
make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face
toward you and give you peace."
May God always Bless you, everyday in everyway. Rev. Don
CHECKERED CHEERS
***WEDDING ANNIVERSARIES***
July 6
JERRY & JEANNE MARTEL- These Lee/Star Speedways Late Model team onwers turn
their 42nd lap together.
PHIL AND JOANNE KURZE- Phil wants to say thank you to his lovely wife JoAnne
for sticking with him through all the long hours and crazy travel schedule
for 37 years. Phil is the face behind the Whelen sponsorship for the
Modifies and the All-American Racing Series. Our prayer is that you two
would have many more wonderful years together.
July 8
JOHN & LAURIE UDES- This asphalt Modified driver from white Plains, NJ and
wife celebrate their anniversary.
July 9
GARY & KARIANN HARTSON- The proprietor of Clinton, CT G&H Trailer/ Waterford
LM driver and wife have their 15th anniversary.
LEW & JOANN PARKS- This Glen Aubrey, NY Indy 500 tire specialist and wife
make it 50! years together.
July 11
BILL & PHYLLIS BALSER- The Norton, MA photographer and wife have their 60th
anniversary.
***HAPPY BIRTHDAYS***
July 6
PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH- Former President of the Untied States of America.
EDDIE MacDONALD- From Rawley, MA, this KNPSE driving son of LEE USA Speedway
owner Red and Judy MacDonald.
BOB POTTER- Still winning, Occum, CT multi-time Waterford Speedbowl,
Thompson Speedway and Stafford Speedway Modified champion and Waterford's
all-time winner.
GARY SMITH- Malahat, British Columbia NASCAR West driver.
RICK JOHNSON- Encinitas, CA LM driver.
MELISSA ROWE- The lovely wife of driver Ben.
SANDY URBINA- Wife of Riverhead Raceway driver Tony.
MEGHAN DILLNER- A daughter of racing TV Reporter Bobby and wife Meredith.
TYLER EDMONDS- The son of WMT crewman Tommy Edmonds and wife Sue.
CARITA TWINEM- Brookfield, Wisconsin fan.
July 7
WOODY "SKIP" PITKAT- WMT driver and SK/Late model regular at Stafford and
Thompson.
RICK FORD- BRS Modified driver at Wall township Speedway.
TOM TWINEM- Brookfield, WI fan; Carita's husband.
July 8
CHRIS INGO JR- driver in the Sport Truck Division at Seekonk Speedway
celebrates another lap.
TOM ROSATI- Agawam, MA former KNPSE/ProStock driver and husband of Kristy
Bennett Rosati, KNPSE driver Brad's sister.
SPIKE MATTATALL- Beech Ridge Speedway driver.
JENNIFER & PAULA ZUIDEMA- The wife and mom of Brookfield, MA ProStock driver
Jeff.
NICOLE STEFANIK- Daughter of NASCAR WMT/KNPSE multi-time champion Mike and
wife Julie, head of Koszela Speed.
LORI CANNEY- Wife of Meriden, CT AARN photographer Frank.
BEV MAVLOUGANES- Mom of Springfield, MA photographer Dave and ProStock
driving Jim.
KEVIN MORGAN- Son of Maryland fan Forrest.
JACOB MILLER- Son of Camp Hill, PA fans Ron and Arleen.
JAKE MILLER- A son of Ron and Arleen in Camp Hill, PA.
July 9
CARLTON ROBIE- Candia, NH dad of KNPSE/Al Pro driver Jarod Robie.
July 10
STEVE LOMBARDO- CT Modified driver.
CHUCK WELCH- Vacaville, CA NASCAR West driver.
TED PARKER- President of Praker Trucking in Avon, MA. Legends driver.
GEORGE MARTIN, JR- Wernersville, PA writer.
BRIAN SACKS- Son of NSC driver Greg.
SAL MAGLIO- Scranton, PA fan.
INGRID D'ALESSANDRO- Race fan from Agawam, MA
July 11
BOBBY DOTTER- Chicago, IL NCTS driver.
JOE BEAN- San Diego, CA NASCAR West driver.
DONNA LITTLE- Wife of former NSC driver now WMT director Chad.
KYLE BELMONT- Langhorne, PA ARCA driver Andy and wife Jennifer's youngest.
July 12
TOM CAREY- Former New Salem, MA NASCAR KNPSE driver/crew cheif.
KRISTA ROEHRIG- The lady is the best friend and wife of former Big Diamond
Speedway owner/promoter Fritz.
ED SPENCER II- Berwick, PA former Crew Chief for Jim Spencer in his Modified
days.
BILLY STEBBINS- Former Jim Broderick Modified Crew Chief, now living in NH.
TOM BALDWIN III- Grandson of the late NASCAR WMT driver Tom and son of NNC
Car owner Tom II.
MENA FELTENBERGER- Wife of Grandview/Big Diamond flgamn/photographer Mike..
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SEND THEM TO:
RACING WITH JESUS MINISTRIES
PO Box 586
Tolland, CT, 06084
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Racing With Jesus Ministries Website
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