Dead Sea Scrolls
Published July 6, 2013
There is a reasonable amount of recorded history in drag boat
racing. Without a doubt more than fifty years worth of racing,
reflection, recreation, records, ripples, rollers, rudders,
recovery, resuscitation, and runabouts replay racing’s
restless rebels and recruits.
When I think back over the years of my involvement with drag
boat racing, it’s been an incredible journey of watching
the best…put their racing machines to the test…while
having to wear a life vest… often leaving their nest…searching
for a life-long quest…while participating out west… perhaps
feeling like a guest…some carrying the persona of a pest… continually
riding on top of the crest…with unmistakable valor and
unmatched zest.
Many of drag boat racing’s veterans are still hanging
around trying to catch up on old times, while imagining themselves
in a modern day monster of a mechanical machine. Racing is
really a young person’s sport, but there’s always
room for yester-years hero’s to bench race and lend some
wise and wonderful wisdom to the sports current contenders.
Drag boat racing is not a dead sport. It is alive and well
deep in the hearts of many amazing people who simply love to
go fast on the water. At times it may be a death-defying sport,
but there’s nothing better than two boats side-by-side
at 250 mph!
There is also a lot of history when you broach a subject like
the Dead Sea Scrolls that were found in Israel in 1948—at
a time before sanctioned drag boat racing was born. If you’ve
been to Israel, you may have visited Qumran where the Dead
Sea Scrolls were discovered—in clay jars—in a cave
near the Dead Sea. These parchment paper-like books of the
Bible date back thousands of years, and help authenticate the
sacred Scriptures as the inspired Word of God.
Racing scholars have chronicled drag boat racing from its primitive
beginnings up to today’s state-of-the-art boats that
are sleeker, stronger, and safer than their earlier counterparts,
capable of speeds that boggle the mind of the sports pioneers.
Writers have the task of placing information into the minds
of the readers so they can enjoy and learn what they read.
Readers need to visualize how it was in the past, compare it
to how it is today, and try to apply what we have learned for
tomorrow.
My brain is wired with information about drag racing, that’s
why I’m so passionate to write about it, hoping to enlighten
readers to facts about drag boat racing, while also writing
about the spiritual side of life—which we’ll all
face one day whether we like it or not.
Simply studying the Scriptures won’t make you a giant
in the faith, just like knowing the history of drag racing
won’t make you a world champion. Study without service,
or without putting your knowledge into action, may only produce
people with hypercritical attitudes.
If racing, or Christianity, was mere philosophy, then our prime
activity might only be studying. But since racing is about
actually competing, the last thing we need is more books on
how to become a successful racer. Reading may tell you what
to do, but you must get your hands dirty, your feet wet, and
dig deep down into the daily demands of racing to become a
successful racer.
Show me an honest-to-goodness racer with sparkling clean hands
and finger nails, and you’ll probably see someone who
rarely gets to the finish line first. Dirty hands don’t
guarantee being a champion, but silky smooth hands may be a
sign of someone who’s afraid of some hard work—and
hard work is what it takes to be a champion in any field.
Life experiences are what really groom us to not be deceived
by [only] thinking we can do anything we learn. I love learning
about our solar system (the vastness is mind boggling), but
becoming an astronaut and going into space is improbable for
the average person.
Back to the Dead Sea: The probable reason nothing lives in
the Dead Sea is because it takes water in but doesn’t
give any out. Likewise if you have boating information input,
but no outflow of actually racing—you’re not a
racer. And the same is true with Christianity, if you have
biblical input but no outflow of service—you may stagnate
spiritually.
Unfortunately, churches can do a disservice to their people
by keeping them too busy with [only] going to church. Without
demonstrating and training practical ways to apply what they
learned, more than likely, these pew-potatoes will mentally
file away what they learned, but forget it before it can be
externalized and put into practice, thinking they’re
growing because their notebooks are getting fatter, just like
their rumps from basically [only] sitting on a pew for years.
In other words, we must do something for God!
Since we’re referring to the Dead Sea Scrolls, have you
been to the Holy Land? In Israel there is a wonderful lake
called the Sea of Galilee. This pear shaped lake fed by the
Jordan River is six miles wide by fifteen miles long, with
a maximum depth of 150 feet. Of special note, this lake is
the lowest fresh water lake in the world. It sits 650 feet
below sea level, which translates into the best air for drag
boat racing on earth, if of course you were to race there.
The surrounding areas of this historical lake are beautiful
rolling hills (unlike the Dead Sea’s arid desolate desert
surroundings), with many steep hills skirting the shoreline.
The Arbel cliffs above Magdala offer a panoramic view of the
northern region of Israel. Lovely lush fertile valleys, thanks
to streams by Bethsaida, Gennesaret, and Sennabris, made this
an ideal place for the Israelites to cultivate the land, build
villages on the hills and mountains, and do lots of fishing
in this picturesque lake.
The Bible describes many familiar New Testament events during
Christ’s life that took place in and around this place
called Galilee. Peter, Andrew, James and John, were called
by Jesus to become His disciples. Jesus calmed a violent storm
while in a fishing boat with His disciples—rebuking the
wind. One night the disciples witnessed Jesus walking on the
water in the middle of this lake as they were trying to row
their boat across it.
On one of the hills near the lake, more than five thousand
people were fed with just a few loaves and a few fish. Jesus
taught, performed miracles, and set out on a preaching mission
from the local city of Capernaum. With this magnificent backdrop,
the many miracles performed by the Master more than make this
majestic place come alive.
Even though the economy has diminished the number of racers
and the number of attending fans, racing will always be a part
of the throngs of people who love the combination of boats
and water. Remember, as long as there is water on this planet,
people will be racing something on it.
As far as the human race goes, our own personal history is
a very important part of who we are and where we came from,
whether it’s our racing endeavors or our family tree.
Biblical history is also important to all of us, as we are
all spiritual people—whether we like it or not—and
our spiritual roots describe what our forefathers believed
in
If you are reading this column, you are very much alive, and
you know this magazine is not a Dead Sea Scroll comparison.
Please listen to what you hear from God’s Word…it
will never become absurd…loving it will not make you
a nerd…it will make you feel like a free bird…life
isn’t an accident that simply occurred…and by all
means the Word must be heard.
Therefore it’s important for you to learn the high calling
of being good living examples [even] while racing. Think about
it? You get to race on nice tracks with picturesque surroundings
with faithful followers watching. The fans are not looking
for rewards or miracles like those who followed Jesus. They
simply come out to watch you as racers compete in something
they only dream about. People observe everything you do and
say, so your attitude and behavior—right or wrong—can
unknowingly affect many.
Take time to contemplate the privilege of your racing, what
it means to others around you, and what your legacy may eventually
mean down the road?
Even though we have the Dead Sea Scrolls to look at, knowing
they are a huge part of biblical history, but as humans, “We
cannot return to our dead, unforgiven state!” We must
surge on as we look to the future with our Creator as He’s
truly alive…so don’t endorse a spiritual nose dive…let’s
all willingly strive…to spiritually revive…while
joyfully doing the heavenly jive.
Jim Jack