1. Provide transportation and related expenses for travel to ministry locations. Dr. Marsh is eager to travel to cities where raceway ministry groups need to be started, or to locations where existing groups need rganizational consultation or hands-on mentoring to do ministry at local speedways. Occasionally, he travels to places where local church leaders need to meet with speedway management to discuss raceway ministry and how it can work to benefit the local raceway. Travel for meetings such as this usually takes place 6 - 8 times per year, and each trip--including plane fare (if required), car rental, motel and meals generally costs around $500 per trip. The ideal objective here is to provide for these expenses without passing the cost along to the local group where the meeting takes place.
2. Provide or cover the cost for literature, Bibles, books and other materials needed by groups to minister to fans and competitors at their local speedways. Tracts, New Testaments, brochures, videos, children's activities materials--all these things are needed by local groups to share the Lord with race fans and race participants. And, these things often place a tremendous financial burden upon groups, especially those just getting started. RMR would like to be able to offer these materials to ministry groups with little or no cost.
3. Provide grant money for costly ministry activities or events. There are some ministry activities that are quite expensive, but very effective for ministry at the speedways. Typically, these activities involve bringing in someone to a race event--someone with special expertise in a specific area of activity. It may be a traveling production company that provides staging and music for concerts to large crowds on a race weekend. It may be Christian comedy or drama groups or individuals who have to travel and pay for their expenses, but whose talents and abilities might be well worth the cost involved. It may be someone to come in and conduct a weekend of children's activities through pinewood derby or "Hot Wheels" racing, but they may have to come from out of state and it may cost several hundred dollars. RMR would like to be able to offer grants to local raceway ministry groups to cover such costs.
4. Provide personal income and living expenses. Currently, Dr. Marsh is part-time pastor at First Baptist Church in Tioga. God has blessed in this endeavor, because the church not only provides part-time income and great fellowship for Roger and Marsha, but they also are very supportive of the work of Raceway Ministry Resources. However, after moving away from full-time pastoral ministry, Dr. Marsh has had to supplement the family income with substitute teaching at local schools and teaching Driver Safety courses. This, too, is a blessing--both financially and in terms of opportunity to minister to people in the community. However, it is very time-consuming and Dr. Marsh would rather follow God's call to give full time and attention to raceway ministry work.
1. Your Prayers. Pray with us for the ministry that RMR already is providing. New ministries have been organized and begun; the work of Texas Alliance Raceway Ministries has been effective again, so far, during the current race season; the work of the National Fellowship of Raceway Ministries continues to grow; and numerous other ideas are being carried out as ministry to race fans and participants grows. Your prayers for wisddom, decision-making, resources, spiritual strength and power, etc. are necessary for the success of the work.
2. Your Communication. Communicate and correspond with Dr. Marsh regarding issues and ideas related to raceway ministry. If you are with a raceway ministry group, let Dr. Marsh know what kinds of literature, supplies and help your group might need. If you know someone who desires to begin a raceway ministry group based in a church or created by several churches or denominational groups of churches, call or email Dr. Marsh and he will be excited to offer his assistance. If you know of an existing group that needs assistance, pass along to them some information about RMR.