Something Better: JRM


Many of you may know that I am a HUGE NASCAR fan! My favorite driver since I started watching has always been Dale Earnhardt Jr. Although he might not be as successful as his dad, he is always a fan favorite. He’s won the most popular driver award 14 times in a row and has won 8 Cup races since I became  a fan in 2007. I was fortunate enough to be at Talladega Superspeedway when he won in 2015.

In April 2017, Dale Jr. announced that the 2017 season would be his last; his career would end after the Miami race on November 19, 2017. It had always been a dream of mine to meet Dale in person!
Wait. You might be thinking, “Isn’t this a blog about Noe and what God has taught him?” The answer is “yes!” God actually taught me something related to Dale Jr. in late March of 2017.
During Spring Break 2017, my family went to spend the week with some family in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Charlotte area is known as the capitol of NASCAR. I had planned to take a day to visit the racing attractions. I planned on visiting JR Motorsports, the home of Dale’s Xfinity Series team (one-step down from the Cup series). Dale does a radio show every Tuesday morning, and fans can show up to hear the recording of it and maybe even meet him. I had a diecast car in my backpack just in case. The night before, I was scrolling through Twitter and saw his PR person post that Dale would be doing the podcast, but JRM would be closed to the public because the show was being recorded earlier than usual. I was sad. My opportunity to meet Dale was gone! Early Tuesday morning, I decided to go on to JR Motorsports and wait until the gift shop opened so I could buy some 88 gear. As I walked in, I was shocked. DALE EARNHARDT JR. was THERE! I quickly asked the lady there, who happened to be his aunt, if I had time to get my diecast to get signed. She said, “hurry!” I ran to the car and back inside the gift shop! Because of the Twitter post, basically no one had showed up. Only about 3 fans were there. Dale finished his radio show and came out and interacted with us for about 5 minutes. I not only got my diecast car autographed, but also got to take a selfie with him! My dream had come true!

So what was the lesson? As I was driving back from JRM, I felt God speaking to me. He told me, “You thought there was no hope. No possible way to meet Dale. But you decided to persevere and go to his shop. You had planned to get his autograph, but instead you got something better. You got a lifetime memory. You got to interact with him and get some pictures with him. Wasn’t that better than you expected? I know you’re going through some time of indecision right now. I know you have doubts. Surrender it all to me. Put your hope in me! You have plans that you think will make you happy, but follow me with everything you have and trust me. I have better plans for you. You will experience things that you thought were never possible. You will see incredible things! Put your hope in me. My plans for you are better than you could ever imagine!”

I thought much about what God had told me and how He had used that example in my life to prove His point. I finally decided to surrender everything to Him a few months later. Since I surrendered my hopes and my dreams, God has surprised me with so many blessings and opportunities. Stuff I never would have imagined! God is involved in every aspect of our lives and wants to teach us through everyday events. He wants us to include Him in our everyday lives!


*Note: I am writing this on the day before the final race for Dale Earnhardt Jr. I want to congratulate Dale on an excellent career. You have impacted the NASCAR both on and off the track. I pray for you as you begin your next chapter in your life. It’s been an honor to be your fan for 11 years! Thanks for the memories!

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