Von Hot Rod’s Testimony

I was asked to write down my testimony. Well, that’s kind of hard for me because sometimes when you ask someone to do that, it turns into a brag-a-mony. You know you’ve heard it all before: how bad life was and how great their life is now and how God has brought them through it. I was once a slave to sin now I’m a slave to serve The Master.

I was never addicted to drugs or alcohol or in a gang.  I haven’t healed the sick or raised the dead, never had a brush with death, and I have never spoken to thousands of people in a big stadium. I was born in a loving Christian home and raised in the church; it was a good life. All I know is that Jesus loves me this I know for the Bible tells me so. 

At the age of 18 I decided it was time to stop playing games and decided to follow Christ. You might ask yourself: Who is this Von Hot Rod and why him?

Before my time in the Hotrod Industry, I was a youth pastor at a local church in Colton, California. I gave it all up to begin a career in the Hotrod Industry and opened up my own business. For 20 years I was the owner of Hot Rod’s, a successful and one of the Koolest Hotrod shops in Southern California. My hotrod retail store was the original-a “One of a kind” shop, I worked hard to make it the best. We sold a big selection of Hotrod and Streetrod stuff as well as many 50’s retro home decor items. As the owner of the business, I was able to travel throughout So Cal and be interviewed for radio and television commercials. “Hot Rod’s” became an icon in Norco and throughout So Cal. Owning a successful shop was a great way to make a living, I was happy and content making money and I loved what I did. But that all changed during the last 2 years of owning the shop. I felt a tug on my heart. I knew what it was. We in the ministry call it “The Call” where God was calling me back to the ministry to work with teens again.

I said “yes, ok” to the call. I answered “I will go, BUT you have to tell me what I will do and where I am going…”. I received no answer and became frustrated. I thought ok God I’ll make you a deal...You sell my shop and I’ll go; I want all my money up front 100%. One week later that is exactly what happened. I sold my business just like that. I remember walking to the front door turning around and overlooking the shop and saying “Thank you God for the last 20 years, I have no idea where I’m going or what I will be doing, but here I go and stepped out in faith.” That was 9 years ago.

I attend Harvest Christian Fellowship in Riverside, California. After volunteering there for many years, they decided to put me on staff as a paid employee. I thought “wow, how cool is this? Now I know God has me here for a reason”. I even stood behind the pulpit to an empty sanctuary and thought it’s just a matter of time before they introduce me as Pastor Von Hot Rod! Well, God had a different plan than the plan I thought he had for me.

My first day of work on staff at Harvest my boss was showing me around campus the different offices, rooms and closets. I was thinking to myself “where is my office?” My boss then said he had to go and that I should start by cleaning the woman’s restroom.  In my head I said “WHAT”? But I was there to serve, so off I went to clean the stalls of the women’s restroom. Let me just say I was mad (very mad) at God for bringing me from where I was a business owner and now having me clean a restroom. The first stall I complained to God. 2nd stall even more complaining. I said to God “this is not what I signed up for; do you know who I am? Do you even know what I’ve done; do you know where I’ve been?” After yelling at God and letting him know who I was, He spoke to me. He said “It is me, God, who opens the doors of opportunity for you…it is me, God, who has given you everything you have… it is me, God, that has given you the talents you have…it is me, God, that has given you the life you live. Do you understand that at anytime I could take it all away, do you understand that I could just break just one of your fingers and you will never paint again?”

Needless to say, by the last women’s restroom stall I cleaned, I was on my knees at the altar of God as I gave it all up to Him. You see I was on a ‘Me trip’...and God turned it into a God trip. For the next 3 years that I worked at Harvest, I learned so much about my Christian walk and why He had me work there. I never spoke on the pulpit as Pastor Von Hot Rod or had a big office but I am so glad I answered “The Call”.

Today I travel around the country and world making appearances as a World renowned Pinstriper for the Hotrod Industry and I am often recruited to speak at local churches and Hot Rod Shows. I was hand-picked by God to do what I do for a living.          So why Von Hot Rod you may ask yourself? I say because God asked me.

There is a lot more to my story, but I don’t want to give it all away. Sorry but that’s just how God and I work.

Von Hot Rod