Restoring Ministry Passion: My Journey from Burnout to Revival

I didn’t know it until recently. I’ve been on a ministry sabbatical for the last couple of years.?

Ministry has been a part of my professional and personal life for nearly 20 years. Most of that time was spent teaching. In fact, for a long time, I didn’t think I would ever do anything else. I was neck-deep in apologetics, writing books, blogging regularly, and traveling to preach the gospel. It was the height of my career.?

Then it crashed. Hard.?

I decided it was time to put ourselves into full-time church ministry. We got burned. After only a few frustrating years, I convinced myself it was time to move on to a different career. I sincerely believed that ministry was a dead end, and I was staring at the end of the road.?

But that’s what I love about Jesus so much. He is gracious enough to, on the one hand, never leave your side, but on the other hand, let you discover some critical life lessons on your own. He gifted me the break and allowed me to find the rest I needed and the time necessary to restore the ministry fire I once had.?

So here we sit, my family and I, on the cusp of stepping off into something only God could do.?

On-track ministry within the world of youth racing.?

OK, let me give you a bit of the back story.?

A couple of years ago, my son (now 9) wanted to race cars. I said no. It’s too expensive. We didn’t make enough money, we didn’t have enough resources, and frankly, I didn’t have enough knowledge. A year later, he asked again. And then again. And then…again. It was, quite literally, all he talked about for more than a year.?

For his 8th birthday, we broke down and made the purchase. It was a leap. I didn’t have it all figured out, but hey, I figured I would learn along the way. I started freelance writing to pay for it. A few months in, we were doing OK.?

That first year, we only raced a dozen or so races, which seemed like a lot. However, leading into 2024, he wanted to join the NASCAR Youth Series. That meant a different car, more races, and more travel.?

At this point, my wife started asking me how we might use our time at the track for ministry. After all, we spent a ton of Sundays at the track and not at church, so why not bring the church to the track? It was a novel idea. But that was it—just a thought.?

Then, the proverbial poop hit the fan. Two things hit us in the same instant. We realized our son not only loves racing, he’s pretty good at it. But second (and more critical), we became connected, through a total Jesus-centered moment, with Motor Racing Outreach—the central ministry organization that serves all of NASCAR. We learned how possible it would be to blend our love for racing and our heart for families into one crazy ministry opportunity.?

So what happens next??

We did what any good follower of Jesus would do. We prayed like crazy and spent the better part of six months outwardly denying what we thought God was doing. We just kept praying. He kept telling us what to do, and we kept ignoring him and praying—honestly, hoping for a different answer.?

Eventually, we listened.?

Job 1: Resolve that we don’t need a 3,000-square-foot house. This one took me a hot minute. Only a few years before, during the pandemic, I cried on the driveway, convinced we were going to lose the house.?

It was a great investment, but one that we simply don’t need.?

Job 2: Perform some more Gideon, golden fleece moments to make sure.?

Job 3: Finish all those house projects and start selling stuff you don’t need. This one was easy. I sold stuff and used the money to finish projects I started two years ago. I finished projects, my wife was happy, and my house was worth more. Win, win, win.?

Job 4: Get the house on the market. This is where things start to get real. See, we aren’t just selling our house, downsizing, or moving to a new city. We are moving into an RV. For at least a year. This allows us to travel from track to track for racing and ministry easily. The only way we can afford an RV is to sell the house.?

Job 5: Have at least two or three more Gideon moments. “God, are you sure this is right??? Can you give me just one more sign that this is you and not my imagination or delusion?”

We are taking our biggest leap of faith yet.?

We trust God to provide the support, trusting Him with so many details and unknowns. We continue to work like it depends on us, but we pray and trust because it is all Him.?

The world of Quarter-Midget racing continues to grow nationwide, expanding to multiple sanctioning bodies, including the Nascar Youth Series, which features 52 clubs in 25 states. Thousands of kids compete at local, regional, and national level events every year for points and a national title.?

These families often spend the entire weekend at the track racing, building relationships, and finding community—creating incredible ministry opportunities.?

While we believe Eli is a talented driver, we deeply believe that God has called us to minister where we feel most at home—the track. Racing within the community makes us part of it and, therefore, allows us to minister to that community.?

On-Track Ministry Plan

Our focus here is families. We will establish ourselves as a ministry presence in the community in three ways.?

We would set ourselves up for each race in the most visible spot available and ask race directors to remind families that we are here to support them.?

1. Direct ministry support - prayer before events, support for parents, trackside support and prayer when wrecks happen, etc.?
2. Indirect ministry support - driver care packs, activities and crafts for kids and families during downtimes and rain delays, raffles, and other fun ways to be engaged.?
3. Trackside support—We know that repair and tech support can be daunting for some families; therefore, at each race, we will maintain a crash cart on pit road that, if needed, can be used free of charge by any race team that needs immediate trackside support.?

We will launch this ministry first at our local track in Kokomo and throughout our regional race events. This would primarily put our ministry in front of hundreds of families from Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio. Once things are established and a rhythm is developed, we will expand our ministry efforts to include the national race events hosted by Nascar Youth.?

Now that you have made it to the end of this goofy article, here is what we are asking. Don’t worry—it’s not money. Well, not yet, at least. We still have so many details before that happens.?

We are looking for commitments. We are looking for people to get excited with us and help us reach people for Jesus every week at the race track. This is full-time missionary work, and we cannot do it without you.?

How You Can Help Support Our On-Track Youth Racing Ministry

First, a quick chart on the varying levels of support.?

Second is a link to let us know your potential level of interest and commitment.?

Click Here: https://forms.gle/WFU2AFwyzj1uiv488

Even if you’re not interested, please click on the link and let us know. However, if you’re in, I’ll add you to our email list, and you’ll be notified when the donation system is set up through Motor Racing Outreach.

Thanks so much for reading. And if you have just one more minute, pray for us. We have a big job ahead of us and need all the prayers and support we can get.?