Issue link: http://cp.revolio.com/i/774075
Something else that has been in his blood since childhood is his faith in God. He hasn't always been exactly what might be called "devout" but he has been a believer since he was 11 years old. "It was February 11, 1973 and a family invited my sister and I to church on Sunday night; my parents hardly ever went to church" Van Horn recalls now 54. "I didn't know what was going on, but I became overwhelmed by the Holy Spirit. I was crying and trembling, and I couldn't get up to that altar fast enough. God has had his hand on me since then. I sure didn't act much like a Chris an growing up – I was a just regular kid. I went to Bible studies, but for the wrong reasons. You know, there was a cute girl there or whatever. I wanted to become a chaplain in the Army, but I found out you can't go green to gold. I was a mechanic and working on Bradleys (armored combat vehicles) and I could have gone from green – being a striper, a sergeant – to being a lieutenant, but I wanted to be a chaplain. So that didn't work out." A er the spiritual experience in 2000, Van Horn began a second career as a "highways and bi-ways" preacher, riding with the Chris an Motorcyclists Associa on and delivering impromptu sermons here and there. Whether it was two people, 20, 30, or 200, it didn't ma er. "In 2006, the Lord moved me to start Van Horn Ministries. I didn't know why I was doing it; I had no clue. I le for Iraq, and on my last trip I was a contractor, suppor ng Fort Hood soldiers. So, I'm over there doing a Bible study twice a week. I've got guys asking me to give a message, but the chaplain told me he couldn't allow that because I wasn't a D.O.D. civilian, blah, blah, blah... Then, he came to me one night and said, 'Hey, I'm not going to be here Wednesday night. If nobody shows up, you need to have something ready to give a message.' I wasn't supposed to be able to preach over there, as I wasn't authorized. I said: 'Lord, I'm not supposed to be preaching, I know that. But, just in case I do tomorrow night, WheelsOfGrace.com Volume 8 Issue 6 17