Can I tell you about Fast and Faith Ministries?

I have had the great privilege of pastoring a local church for over 25 years.   I am also a drag racer.  More honestly, I am a weekly "buy back" contributor and parts breaker (if you know, you know).  My dad got me into the sport in my mid-twenties and I have been hooked ever since. I love the sport, I love the racers, I love the atmosphere... all of it.  

My happy place is my lawn chair positioned as close to the starting line as I can get.  I want  the loudest, hottest, gas smelliest spot the track officials will let me have.  Fortunately, I get to spend a lot of time there... depending on the number of buybacks allowed. 

After dad passed, I got out of racing for a few years mainly because he was the mechanic and I was just the driver.  With no one to fix the broken parts, I focused on my young family and local church ministry.  But I missed the track.  

On a whim, I started going to our local track (lawn chair in hand) and once again found the sights, sounds, and smells just as I had left them.  I also found a ministry opportunity.  Every now and then I would leave my happy place to stroll around the pits, look at the cars and meet new people.  Without fail, God would lead me to someone to whom I could offer to pray.   Sit, Stroll, Pray, Repeat.  No real effort, no uncomfortable dramatic presentations, no distracting from their race day, just meet and let God lead.  Sometimes I got to pray, sometimes make a new friend, sometimes nothing.  

This continued until I decided I would try it beyond my local track.  Lawn chair in hand, find happy place, stroll, pray, repeat.  Some friends have helped me get back on track so now its race, buyback,  get the lawn chair, you get the idea.   As I began to share some of my stories, others expressed interest in giving it a try.  And here we are, hopefully coming to a track near you (we are located in Tennessee and are three hours or less from a number of tracks).   So if you see a strange looking middle aged guy with lawn chair and sun screen near the starting line, strike up a conversation.  We would love to meet you.  

Dean Patton