Biker Church Revs Up Lives

Michael “Turnaround” Yant was in need of a life turnaround after decades of hard living when he found himself at an Assemblies of God biker church in Fort Worth, Texas.

“I had not been sober since I was 17 years old,” Yant, 62, explains. “At 57 years old on Easter Sunday, April 1, 2018, I attended the House of NAM Biker Church for the first time and came to Christ that Sunday. The Lord has delivered me from alcohol, marijuana, tobacco and an immoral lifestyle. By the grace of Jesus Christ, I have six years of sobriety and am tobacco free. Around the House of NAM, I’m known as 'Turnaround’ because the Lord’s kindness turned me to Jesus.”

Yant, now a member of the Assemblies of God's HonorBound Motorcycle Ministry (HBMM), is not the only one who has experienced a turnaround at the House of NAM.

The church, which encourages visitors on its website to “Ride in, Cage in, Walk in or Crawl in, Just Come,” had an atypical start.

Lens Walker Jr. retired from the Federal Aviation Agency (FAA) in 2010 when a friend asked him to lead a Bible study for bikers in his house for 12 weeks.

From there, the Bible study moved to the counseling house of Bethesda Community Church in Haltom City, Texas, and later became a parent-affiliated church while at Bethesda in 2015.

“In my quiet time one morning, I sensed the direction to start a church,” recalls Walker, 73, who spent about 35 years with the FAA, including installing radars and electronics in air traffic control towers.

“I told the Lord I could not do that because I didn’t preach that well or sing that well. He spoke clearly to my heart with these words: 'It is not about you, it is about my Holy Spirit.' I drew a football in my prayer journal and filled in the letters 'NAM: Not About Me.' Several years later, it became the name for our church.”

Walker, who rides a Harley Davidson Vrod. and has been married to his wife, Joanne, for 52 years, also sensed the Lord’s leading him to host an Easter Sunrise Service in 2016 for bikers.

“Several Harley-Davidson dealerships did not respond, and the Lord directed me to a biker compound on a lake for the service,” recounts Walker, who received a master's degree in Bible and Theology in 2015 from Nelson University, formerly Southwestern Assemblies of God University.

“We started having church that next week. In the fall, we built an awning over the concrete pad and enclosed it with clear plastic. We ran large swamp coolers in the summer and stand-up propane heaters for the winter for the next almost six years,” he adds. “We poured more concrete and extended the awning. The Bandidos sponsored two large biker rallies there every year. While at the biker compound, we officially became a General Council church on Dec. 5, 2017.”

The church, though, eventually purchased a 27.5-acre property, which had a fire sale price. House of NAM had its first service there in April 2022.

“We have 10,000 square feet on the ground floor and 4,000 on the second floor,” says Walker, who is HBMM's District Team Leader in the area. “We plan to have the church completed in late fall. Most of the work is being completed by the craftsmen in the church.

“I had a desire to build a church where bikers could ride their bikes into the church, sit on them or in chairs for service,” he adds. “We bought 12-foot tall, roll-up glass doors that are 44 feet on both sides of the sanctuary. The bikers think it is really cool to ride their bikes into church. It is pretty noisy on Sunday morning, but no one seems to mind. It is an extra draw to the biker community.”

The church's theme song is "Amazing Grace," sung to the tune of The Animals' "The house of the Rising Sun" and "The Old Rugged Cross" is played to the tune of Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven."

Frank McIlhaney, lead pastor of Shield of Faith Assembly of God in Pflugerville, Texas, notes that Walker has “earned widespread love and respect, both statewide and nationally, among bikers.”

“House of NAM further solidified its place in the biker community during a challenging period when many bikers were arrested in Waco several years ago,” he says. “The church became a crucial support hub, providing food and funds to the families of those incarcerated. This act of compassion greatly enhanced the church's acceptance and trust within the community.

“A hallmark of House of NAM is its dedication to personal growth and discipleship,” McIlhaney adds. “Over the years, numerous individuals have embraced Christ through the church's ministry and have pursued further studies. Many have even become credentialed ministers of the Assemblies of God.”

Amber Acuna, 36, was in and out of jail many times from a life of drugs and ended up living on the streets. By God’s divine intervention, she met Walker on her birthday in 2021.

“He introduced me to Teen Challenge, came and picked me up, and took me to Teen Challenge,” she says. “I completed the program on Feb. 9, 2023.”

Walker encouraged Acuna to come to House of NAM and give her testimony.

“I finally came to NAM in February 2024,” she says. “I have become a member and now I have enrolled in the North Texas District School of Ministry at the NAM campus to become an Assemblies of God minister.

“My daughters once wrote me in jail and told me how much they hated me, and would not call me mom, but called me Amber,” Acuna adds. “Now three years later, we have a relationship and they call me mom.”

Walker, whose father, Lens Walker Sr., was an AG church planter, evangelist and pastor, notes that the church draws about 80 people weekly.

“Additionally, we have a NAM Freedom program of about 20 people on Sunday afternoons,” he says. “Two Friday nights per month, we host Teen Challenge men and others of about 30 people. We also hang out in the biker bars, biker events and gas stations witnessing to bikers or whoever will listen.”

Douglas Martin, presbyter of the Northwest Fort Worth Section of the North Texas District of the Assemblies of God, says House of NAM is “an excellent example of outreach and ministry built from the ground up, and among people who are typically estranged from church life.”

“After retiring from work with the FAA, Lens let his hair grow, sprouted a beard, received ministry credentials, and turned his attention to riding his motorcycle and reaching out to others who loved riding motorcycles like he did,” he adds. “Fellowship among bikers at a church became a church of bikers reaching other bikers and others estranged from the church and society.”

Eric Tiansay

Eric Tiansay has been a full-time journalist since 1993, writing articles for Christian media since 2000. He lives in central Florida, where he is an active member of an Assemblies of God church.