Really powerful lyrics and a catchy tune.
Christians are commanded to share the Good News (Gospel) which is that something that will save lives.
As followers of Jesus Christ, the mission and purpose of our racing activities is to serve and encourage others by setting an "example" and providing Pastoral Care as a Chaplain for Racers For Christ, as well as Wayne Strout and others competing online worldwide in IRACING---for God's Glory alone---bringing God’s Word to life in ourselves and in others.
The Power of Peace Beyond All Understanding
Team RFC @ iRacing "Racers for Christ" has a special rule:
"In the event of an on-track collision, other than being hit from behind by another driver, Members agree to send a PM (Private Message) to the other driver/s saying he/she is “Sorry for their part in the incident”. This applies no matter who is more “at fault”. We believe that almost all collisions with cars that are beside or in front of us are “avoidable”."
http://teamrfc-at-iracing.blogspot.com/
Team Member Terry Hallick of Canada recently sent this PM:
"Hi Donald,
Just a quick note about apologizing for contact in a race. I am having lots of fun with this. In each race where I have been involved in some form of contact I review the replay after, get the fellow competitors name and send them a message.
I think I have sent 6 so far and 5/6 have responded all positive and the 1/6 did not respond at all. In the 5 reply's they have all been surprised by the message and the fact that I reached out to say I was sorry.
For myself I know it has changed me and thinking of what Jesus would do it makes sense that regardless of who was at fault we forgive them and show compassion. It is really an empowering feeling to let that stuff go and show our fellow racers we can do that.
I have to be honest I was a little concerned with that when I joined RFC, but it has been the one area I find really cool to do and I actually look forward to sending the message and getting the reply."
Here is my reply:
"Thank you for sharing your experience. Being an Ambassador and Representative of Christ has many rewards in this world and the next. A peace beyond understanding is one of the rewards in this world. People will see that in you and some will come to Christ because of your actions. Being an example is being salt and light. Great job and God Bless. Here is a link to an article that expands on this message.
http://www.gotquestions.org/peace-that-passes-all-understanding.html
Blessings,
Donald "
And, Terry's awesome response:
"I believe it is God working through you, RFC, myself, and sim racing as a means to pass along his message. I'm honored he used me! "
I encourage you to read the entire article from gotquestions link above. There is one part I think is really special:
"The believer who places his or her full confidence in a loving God and is thankful in every circumstance will possess a supernatural peace. An inner calm will dominate the heart. The faithful believer will know peace—his heart and mind are “guarded” by it—despite the tempest raging without. No one, especially those outside of Christ, will be able to fathom that peace. To most, it will remain a mystery how someone can be so serene in the midst of turmoil."
To me, this Peace Beyond All Understanding is one of the many great rewards for being a "follower of Christ" while here on earth. It provides a power and strength to deal with about anything that life throws at you. It is also a characteristic that will attract others to the Gospel. I have never met a man or woman who did not seek this peace and power--even though many will not admit to or even recognize they are seeking it.
Don't underestimate the positive effects of reaching out to those who you come in contact with (literally) while racing and taking at least some responsibility. My experience is similar to Terry's. I have sent out many "sorry" messages. Most responses I have gotten indicate surprise and gratitude for my message. Only one was sour enough to tell me I was still an idiot and that he intended to protest me. (He never did.)
____________________________________________________________
Since we are on the subject of releasing anger, not seeking retribution, forgiveness, humility and reaching out to others in love that our simple rule represents, it is also useful to emphasize that this obligation does not need to subject us to abuse or false accusations.
I personally was accused of causing an accident on the Las Vegas oval. I had just passed second place car and was in P2 on the inside of the leader going into the turn. The leader was high on the track and I could see him coming down to the apex and we were running almost the same speed. At first I thought he would stay high and we would run thru the corner side by side, but it became apparent he was going for the inside lane. I lifted to avoid hitting him and the P3 car slammed into the back of my car. The P3 guy (a long term IndyCar oval driver) had a temper tantrum, sent me a PM, essentially accusing me of being an idiot for lifting and that he could have never predicted that I would lift and slow in the corner. After carefully reviewing the replay, I responded calmly that I was quite sure that I had no responsibility for him running into the back of my car and that I would not apologize for maintaining "reasonable" racing room to the guy who pulled in front of me. (I did not say it, but the P3 guy very easily could have driven around my right side without contact.)
In another instance, on the Team RFC @ iRacing webpage, an unidentified driver posted a message accusing a Team Member of ruining his race and not sending an apology.
Here is my response:
So please remember that setting a good example is important. It gives you PEACE and POWER. It also helps others in that it makes them wonder if they should get some of what you have--that is the message of the Gospel. A message that Christians are commanded to share. And finally, be aware that being "MEEK" does not mean "WEAK" but rather "HUMBLE". When you are falsely accused, it is OK to stand up for yourself with facts and a Peace Beyond All Understanding.
"In the event of an on-track collision, other than being hit from behind by another driver, Members agree to send a PM (Private Message) to the other driver/s saying he/she is “Sorry for their part in the incident”. This applies no matter who is more “at fault”. We believe that almost all collisions with cars that are beside or in front of us are “avoidable”."
http://teamrfc-at-iracing.blogspot.com/
Team Member Terry Hallick of Canada recently sent this PM:
"Hi Donald,
Just a quick note about apologizing for contact in a race. I am having lots of fun with this. In each race where I have been involved in some form of contact I review the replay after, get the fellow competitors name and send them a message.
I think I have sent 6 so far and 5/6 have responded all positive and the 1/6 did not respond at all. In the 5 reply's they have all been surprised by the message and the fact that I reached out to say I was sorry.
For myself I know it has changed me and thinking of what Jesus would do it makes sense that regardless of who was at fault we forgive them and show compassion. It is really an empowering feeling to let that stuff go and show our fellow racers we can do that.
I have to be honest I was a little concerned with that when I joined RFC, but it has been the one area I find really cool to do and I actually look forward to sending the message and getting the reply."
Here is my reply:
"Thank you for sharing your experience. Being an Ambassador and Representative of Christ has many rewards in this world and the next. A peace beyond understanding is one of the rewards in this world. People will see that in you and some will come to Christ because of your actions. Being an example is being salt and light. Great job and God Bless. Here is a link to an article that expands on this message.
http://www.gotquestions.org/peace-that-passes-all-understanding.html
Blessings,
Donald "
And, Terry's awesome response:
"I believe it is God working through you, RFC, myself, and sim racing as a means to pass along his message. I'm honored he used me! "
I encourage you to read the entire article from gotquestions link above. There is one part I think is really special:
"The believer who places his or her full confidence in a loving God and is thankful in every circumstance will possess a supernatural peace. An inner calm will dominate the heart. The faithful believer will know peace—his heart and mind are “guarded” by it—despite the tempest raging without. No one, especially those outside of Christ, will be able to fathom that peace. To most, it will remain a mystery how someone can be so serene in the midst of turmoil."
To me, this Peace Beyond All Understanding is one of the many great rewards for being a "follower of Christ" while here on earth. It provides a power and strength to deal with about anything that life throws at you. It is also a characteristic that will attract others to the Gospel. I have never met a man or woman who did not seek this peace and power--even though many will not admit to or even recognize they are seeking it.
Don't underestimate the positive effects of reaching out to those who you come in contact with (literally) while racing and taking at least some responsibility. My experience is similar to Terry's. I have sent out many "sorry" messages. Most responses I have gotten indicate surprise and gratitude for my message. Only one was sour enough to tell me I was still an idiot and that he intended to protest me. (He never did.)
____________________________________________________________
Since we are on the subject of releasing anger, not seeking retribution, forgiveness, humility and reaching out to others in love that our simple rule represents, it is also useful to emphasize that this obligation does not need to subject us to abuse or false accusations.
I personally was accused of causing an accident on the Las Vegas oval. I had just passed second place car and was in P2 on the inside of the leader going into the turn. The leader was high on the track and I could see him coming down to the apex and we were running almost the same speed. At first I thought he would stay high and we would run thru the corner side by side, but it became apparent he was going for the inside lane. I lifted to avoid hitting him and the P3 car slammed into the back of my car. The P3 guy (a long term IndyCar oval driver) had a temper tantrum, sent me a PM, essentially accusing me of being an idiot for lifting and that he could have never predicted that I would lift and slow in the corner. After carefully reviewing the replay, I responded calmly that I was quite sure that I had no responsibility for him running into the back of my car and that I would not apologize for maintaining "reasonable" racing room to the guy who pulled in front of me. (I did not say it, but the P3 guy very easily could have driven around my right side without contact.)
In another instance, on the Team RFC @ iRacing webpage, an unidentified driver posted a message accusing a Team Member of ruining his race and not sending an apology.
Here is my response:
"We take our rules seriously. Since you did not identify yourself or the specific race on 9/24 at Michigan, we investigated Team members' activities and found one instance where there was considerable contact and assumed that is what you refer to as "I had my race ruined ". Generally Team members save replays and in this case we have carefully reviewed the replay from several perspectives and find no justification for an apology.
We have added the word "almost" to our comment: "We believe that almost all collisions with cars that are beside or in front of us are 'avoidable'."
There are some instances where a car beside or ahead of us loses control and that loss of control results in "unavoidable" contact. There are also instances where the car beside actually drives into us--this is again considered "unavoidable". (Unavoidable at least by us.)
We are aware that our "message" as conveyed by our Sponsor's logo subjects us to a special scrutiny in regards to being accused of hypocrisy and we are quite vigilant in guarding against any hint of that. We do our best but remind that Christianity is not a museum for perfectly righteous people, but rather a hospital for those who often fall short of the ideal. Christians are seldom perfect people, even though they try their best to be.
We regret that you became involved in this incident as a premature ending of anyone's race because of car contact is always disappointing. But, we find your accusations that a Team RFC member "ruined" your race, and/or that a Team Member failed to follow our rules, to be without merit"
So please remember that setting a good example is important. It gives you PEACE and POWER. It also helps others in that it makes them wonder if they should get some of what you have--that is the message of the Gospel. A message that Christians are commanded to share. And finally, be aware that being "MEEK" does not mean "WEAK" but rather "HUMBLE". When you are falsely accused, it is OK to stand up for yourself with facts and a Peace Beyond All Understanding.
"Unexpected Celebrities Sharing their Christian Faith
Maybe being a Christian is now "Cool"
Savannah Guthrie-Today Show
Justin Bieber-"I want to be like Jesus."
Justin Bieber
If they are sincere--this is a welcome trend!
Savannah Guthrie-Today Show
Justin Bieber-"I want to be like Jesus."
Justin Bieber
If they are sincere--this is a welcome trend!
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I had my race ruined by a 'team member' in the IndyCar winter series yesterday. Not so much as a hint of an apology."