We continue on in our discussion of having the right equipment and being
prepared for what tomorrow brings. With December comes the Christian
celebration of Advent. In expectation of the fulfillment of Scripture we
focus on being prepared for the coming of our Lord and Savior. Greetings in
the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
For us to be successful it not only takes the right equipment but
it requires us to prepare, it just doesn’t happen. In racing we must prepare
for the track, the weather conditions and the competition we will face. That
is essential. If you do not prepare properly our chances for success are
severely diminished.
Try it and see how much preparation plays a role in your racing
success. For your next race don't bother going to the shop. Don't load the
truck. Don't do anything ahead of time. On race day just go to the garage,
load the car and leave. How successful do you think you will be?
The same happens when we don't give any thought to what God has in
store for us. If we don't take the time to read about the promise of a
Savior in God's word. If we ignore the guidance and direction God gives. If
we fail to anticipate the blessings that God has for us then what? We are
not prepared for the birth of Jesus.
Having a relationship with God is the beginning but now we must
prepare for what He has in store for us. As we begin Advent, the preparation
time for us to reflect on the significance of the birth of Christ. Christmas
isn't about Santa Claus and reindeer. For Christians it is the celebration
of the best gift of all, a Savior. If you have watched "A Charlie Brown
Christmas" you have heard the story. Linus reads it from the Gospel of Luke.
Luke 2:8-1; And there
were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their
flocks at night.
An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone
around them, and they were terrified.
But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of
great joy that will be for all the people.
Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the
Lord.
The angels proclaimed the birth of
a Savior, but how did the shepards know? How come they didn't just ignore
them and reason it away as too much wine. They were expecting this night.
The prophets told them that this day was coming. They had received hope from
the prophet's words about a coming savior. They rested in that hope and when
the proclamation came they knew it was true. The prophet Isaiah proclaimed;
Isaiah 7:14;
Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with
child and will give birth to a son,
and will call him Immanuel.
The entire Old Testament points to
the coming of Christ. Isaiah said we would call him Immanuel, which means
God with us. The promise from God was a Savior; not only a Savior, but His
very presence with us; the one who would be born of a virgin; our hope and
salvation. Let us prepare to welcome Him.
Have you ever wanted something for Christmas that you couldn't live
without? We dropped every hint we could think of. We hoped that your parents
heard, saw and understood all of our hints. We waited anxiously, hoping that
you would receive that gift on Christmas morning.
Remember that movie "The Christmas Story"? Ralphy wanted a "Red
Ryder carbine-action, two hundred shot Range Model air rifle with a compass
and this thing which tells time built right in to the stock!". He couldn't
live without it. He dropped every hint he could and hoped it would be there
on Christmas morning. He cringed at the warning, “you'll shoot your eye
out.” He knew he could handle it. His father made sure he received what he
asked for.
Allow me to substitute Jesus as that present. We can't live without
Him. Our Father in Heaven knows we need Him. God being a good father
provides the gift we cannot live without; the gift of a Savior.
Prepare for his coming just as we would that gift we wanted as a
kid. We learned everything you could about it. We knew all the ins and outs
of it. There wasn't anything we didn't know.
How much do we know about Jesus? Do we know Him completely? Do we
know everything about Him? That's what the time of preparation is for.
Prepare to know Jesus. Prepare to receive God's gift and the hope, peace,
joy and love that comes with him. It is truly a gift we cannot live without.
Don't let this time of year pass you by without taking time to contemplate
the blessed event of Christmas.
Isaiah 9:6;
For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
THOUGHTS FROM THE ROAD
PRI PRESENTS A TIME TO TALK
- As the racing industry continues to struggle with having two premier shows
to showcase their wares there was a difference in the air in Orlando this
year. I am not sure if we are seeing the trough of the wave that the
recession has caused or folks are just being more cautious in their
purchases, but the foot traffic at this years show was noticeably down. One
of the benefits, although not financial, was that there was sufficient time
to talk and visit with friends and customers. The hope is that that extra
time would lead to further commitments and business down the road.
It was like a weather delay at the track, we are there to race but
conditions prevent us from doing that. So we stand around and talk about the
things we know best, racing. Something we never seem to have the time to do,
sit and talk about the state of things. We are always too busy to take the
time then wonder how we ended up here, things happen.
This was certainly an opportunity to take that time. We were there
anyway, why not take the time to get it off your chest. I had some great
discussions. Maybe those discussions will lead to changes that will benefit
the entire industry, but that is a discussion for tomorrow.
Also, the time available gave many the chance to stop and take
notice of what was available. We move so fast sometimes we don't see what is
right there in front of our face. I hope it will make a difference.
I enjoyed the time spent with the crew from Design 500/ Lady Eagle.
We seem to always find a way to have fun. I also want to send a note of
thanks to the Rosarius family for putting up with me for a few days. They
opened there home and made sure I had a great place to stay.
I would like to be headed to Indy for the IMIS show and see if the
atmosphere is different, but there are banquets to attend and friends to see
in Charlotte . I am looking forward to putting the finishing touches on our
lineup for Motorsports 2012 in January. We always like to have a top notch
lineup of cars for the fans to enjoy.
I am looking forward to a few weeks of time off during the
holidays, Next week will be our annual Christmas message and I'll return in
January to get the year stated with a winter Bible study passage. If you
have a Scripture passage your have questions about, drop me a line and we'll
see if we can address them during that time.
Until next time, 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. 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.
Check our weekly printed pages in "Area Auto Racing
News",
the East Coast’s largest weekly racing paper.
See our on-line Apparel
Store for subscription information.
Check our home page
www.rwjm.org for past
articles.
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***
December 7
ANDY & SUE SANTERRE- From Cherryfield, ME, now in Mooresville, NC, the 1998
KNPSE Rookie o the Year and 4 time KNPSE champion and lovely wife share
their 14th anniversary.
RICHIE & MELISSA RESNER- Riverhead Raceway LM Team owner and wife share
their anniversary.
RAY & SANDI PAVKOV- Ray, one of our traveling chaplains and his wife Sandi
celebrate their special day.
December 10
JIMMY & TRACY CHESTER This Lebanon Valley couple celebrate thier
anniversary.
December 12
ERNIE & MARILYN SAXTON- The legendary Grandview announcer, columnist,
Motorsports Marketing Founder/President and Eastern Motorsports Press
Association Pres. and the woman who has been by his side all the way have
their 36th anniversary.
BILL & CINDY ELLIOTT- Awesome Bill from Dawsonville, GA and wife have their
18th anniversary.
JIM & PATTY MAVLOUGANES- This Wethersfield, CT Latemodel driver and wife
share their 13th anniversary.
***HAPPY BIRTHDAYS***
December 7
BRETT BENDER- Son of Colden, NY NASCAR KNPSE/LM driver Tim, now in NC.
CHAD WARNER- Member of the Beers Motorsports team.
December 8
CHRIS MOORE- Vermont based Lebanon Valley Modified driver.
KEVIN HARVICK- NNS/NSC driver and team owner.
KERRY EARNHARDT- Dale's oldest son; former CWTS driver.
FRANK MUOIO- Westerly, RI fan.
RUSS SMITH- Former Riverside Park Speedway scorer.
TODD PARK- Another son of Bob and Dottie and Steve's brother.
December 9
JORDYN DICKERSON- Daughter of Greg and Debbie, a mod fan in the making.
BRAD TEAGUE- Johnson City, TN NSC/NNS driver.
MICHAEL PARES- NASCAR Modified Series "Area Auto Racing News" photographer.
SHARON HEWITT- Wife of former NY Mod driver, now NSC Crew Chief, Doug.
BRIAN TAGG- Son of Webster, MA Thompson/Stafford Modified driver Tom and
wife Linda.
December 10
JEFF KERTAINIS- NASCAR WMT team crewman.
ANDREA JIVANELLI- Wife of Riverhead Raceway driver Dan.
LYNN POZZUTTO- Office Manager and devoted employee of Frankland Racing
Supply Racing Rears and Clincher Gears; VP Dan's wife.
EDWARD SHELMERDINE- Son of ARCA driver/ Crew Chief Kirk.
December 11
JAROD ROBIE- Manchester, NH Robie Motorsports NASCAR KNPSE and All Pro
driver.
STEVE "WOODY" WOOD- Former Truex Crewman, now NSC crewman in Mooresville,
NC, also the son-in-law of Doris Bradley.
CHRISSY DIONNE- A daughter of RWJM West Coast Coordinator Gary and Counselor
wife Debbie.
RACIN RALPH PERKINS- A fan of Stafford, THompson, Waterford and Maddog has
his big day.
December 12
ED LILLY- Retired PA/NJ asphalt Mod driver.
AMANDA & CHRISTEN WAUGH- The twin daughters of RWJM Western PA/Ohio
Coordinator/ Challenger Raceway Chaplain Rev. Bill and wife Dawn.
BILL LADABOUCHE- Maine writer.
MARSHA MEANS- NSC Jimmy's wife.
December 13
GARY SHACKFORD- Center Conway, NH KNPSE driver/crew cheif.
TREY TOMAINO- Son of Howell, NJ NASCAR WMT driver/RWJM Rep. Jamie and wife
Cheryl.
CHERIE WIBBELSMAN- Wife of Dr. Chris, son of Dunwoody, GA RWJM advisor Dick
and wife Judy.
***IN THE SHOP***
CHRIS HAMILTON- Is recovering from a wrist break that
happened in his Turkey Derby feature. He is facing some challenges, please
keep his continued recovery in your thoughts and prayers.
SHARE YOUR SPECIAL OCCASIONS WITH YOUR RACING FAMILY.
SEND THEM TO:
RACING WITH JESUS MINISTRIES
PO Box 586
Tolland, CT, 06084
TheChromeHorn RWJM Archives
Racing With Jesus Ministries Website
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