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Team Chaplain, Dale Earnhardt, Inc.
Founder and President of the Master's Men Ministry (non-profit corp. targeting and training men to excel in life)
Directed chaplains in a ministry for motor sport professionals known as Motor Racing Outreach
Corporate Chaplain for Interstate Battery Systems of America
CBN.com – Jim Coté is the Team Chaplain for Dale Earnhardt, Inc. (NASCAR) and he is calling men to be men of honor, which is to be the men God called them to be. These are men who live responsibly in their family and community. He says, "Heroes don't have to be celebrities. Heroes are simple people who do the heroic thing whether it's big or small." Jim also says, "True heroism and real manhood are always costly, because virtue never comes cheap."
In being a chaplain for NASCAR, Jim is a "mobile pastor." He gives the racing team encouragement, comforts them in traumatic times, provides counseling, and holds Bible studies. He also holds services for other professional sports teams, such as the Dallas Cowboys and the Detroit Tigers.
In ministering to men in professional sports and his non-profit men's ministry Master's Men Ministry, Jim has found that most men want to rise to the challenge of being men of honor. In professional sports there are stereotypes of what a man should be - athletic, rich, and loved and admired because of accomplishments. However, Jim says being a man of honor starts where a man is and develops by the man making a difference to those around him.
Jim uses the biblical book of Ruth to illustrate what godly men should and shouldn't be. God's roles for men are to be provider, pastor, protector, and patriarch. In the role of provider, a man needs to live responsibly. This means that men have to realize their identity in Christ and be wise stewards of what God has given them. As pastors, men should be looking out for the spiritual well-being of those around them. The role of protector means learning the needs of their wives, families, and community and helping meet these needs. The role of patriarch Jim defines as men who have "their act together." They have good relationships with their wives and children, are good stewards of what they have, and have a little bit above their means to be able to share with others. These men, Jim says, can have a great impact on the community for future generations. He cites the late Dale Earnhardt as being an example of a patriarch because he had exhibited these attributes to those around him and left a legacy for his family and the community.
From the book of Ruth, Jim shares how Elimelech was an example of what men shouldn't be. He provided for his family; however, as a pastor, protector, and patriarch for his family, he failed. He moved his family to Moab, which took them away from their godly community and placed them into a pagan one. This did not help them spiritually, and they could have been in danger, being one of the only Jewish families in Moab. Then he allowed his sons to marry Moabite women, not ensuring the future of his lineage or providing for the family if he or his sons died, which is what happened. His wife, Naomi, and daughter-in-law, Orpah, were left with nothing and forced to provide for themselves. Naomi then returned to Israel with Ruth, and Elimelech's relative Boaz ended up fulfilling the roles that Elimelech failed to fulfill.
Godly Influence
Jim knew Christ through his grandmother as a child, but quit going to church as he got older. In his mid-20s he went back to church and became more serious about God. In the 1980s he worked with his pastor as a layman. He noticed that men didn't go to church as much as women, but he continued in his pursuit of God.
He was ordained in Dallas, Texas, in 1989 and served for ten years as the Corporate Chaplain for Interstate Battery Systems of America. In 1992 Jim directed chaplains in a ministry called Motor Racing Outreach that ministered to motor sport professionals where he served until 2000.
In 1998 he was introduced to the late racecar driver Dale Earnhardt in a garage as Dale was fixing a car. It was during this meeting that they talked about and started having a chaplaincy for Dale's racing team.
In 2000 Jim launched Master's Men Ministries. This ministry focuses on building up men to be godly men of excellence by providing a place for men to discuss issues they face and to find biblical solutions.
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