Thank you for taking the time to visit the most important part of my web site. In case you haven't figured it out by now, I am a Christian. Some of you may be here for that very reason while others may be here to learn more about the Herbie fanatic that created this site. Rest assured, you are in the right place.

Let me first address those who are not Christians. This is not a site to force you into joining a church or a particular denomination. In early 2001 I was not a church goer and I did not have a relationship with Jesus Christ. I have always believed in God but he was never an important aspect of my life. My goal here is to let everyone know how I found this relationship and how the Lord changed my life for the better. This is a message about hope, understanding, forgiveness, and most of all ,inner peace. It is something that can benefit anyone who reads it.   What you are about to read is a very personal chapter in my life and most of you know that by revealing personal facts opens a person up to further persecution. Such is the life of a Christian. God asks us to witness to others. It changed my life. I hope it will change yours.

When I was a teenager I felt all alone in the world and it made me very depressed. Nothing in the world could make me happy. One day I was in a severely depressed state of mind and I was laying in my room. With no hope for a future I really had no will to go on with life. Why should I? What did I have to offer the world? I thought about this over and over. Suddenly I was struck with a message that started to change my life. I honestly believe God spoke to me. No, not in a literal sense, but to my very soul. What came into my head was a message that all of us are here for a reason. God has plans for each and every one of us. We may never know when but one day God will use our bodies for his purposes. Maybe it is to inspire another human being or to save someone's life. Who knows? Who am I to put an end to God's grand plan? I didn't think much about it at the time. This was no great revelation to me at the time. Looking back now, I know just how great it truly was. Satan was tearing me down. He was winning. The Lord inspired me to get back on track with my life.

In the late 1980's I finally met a wonderful woman. At the time I didn't know that the Lord had set fate in motion. Ironically, this woman  came into my life a few years later. We became involved and later married. It was a match made in Heaven. My wife is truly a gift from God.

Fast forward to 1997 when I started the first Herbie page on the web. I met a lot of great people and made some new friends. The site was started with children in mind.  I was hoping to shed some light on my beloved childhood "hero" named Herbie. It proved quite successful and I was very proud.  Was this some great achievement? Not really, but it did inspire and touch many peoples' lives. Looking back, I have always approached things from a Christian perspective without really knowing it. Have I been perfect? No way. Who is?

In 2000, I had a falling out with a person I once considered a close friend. It started me thinking about just how much we really know about what it means to truly be friends with another person. It seems that my definitions were more detailed than others. This deeply troubled me. But this wasn't the only trouble brewing. there was trouble with the job field and it was causing additional stress. I finally made the decision to leave my current career path and start fresh. I landed a new job an a fresh perspective on people. The attitudes of the people I was working with were different than any people I had ever worked with before. What was going on? What kind of world was I living in for the last 15 years? My new co-workers were sincere, supportive, and very generous. On my first day I was presented with a photocopied piece of paper with a message that began, "Everything happens for a reason." Yes it does, I thought."  I have always believed that. I noticed something else about my co-workers, many of them had Bibles on their desks.  I thought to myself, "oh brother, these people are those Jesus freaks."  I didn't want to hear it. Unfortunately, I had always thought that God didn't care what happened to me. Where was God when I prayed for help for so many years?  But my co-workers never once spoke to me about their religion. Maybe they weren't "freaks."  In fact, they were really great people.

My job had me speaking to customers on the phone. Through many conversations I was able to speak to people of all walks of life.. Time after time people would proclaim to me their Christian beliefs and relay their stories. Some were truly amazing. My eyes were beginning to open. Then one day I received a call from a woman who was very distraught. She had been diagnosed with multiple serious illnesses and she had no hope left. She too felt that God had abandoned her in her time of need. I am a sensitive person by nature and I truly care about other's lives so I began to talk and encourage her.  I felt for this poor woman. I had soaked in all those other customer's stories. What came out of my mouth next was truly unique. I told this woman that God is with us in sickness and in health. The devil is the one who brings illness and pain into our lives. We all are set to die some day. If you have faith in God, no matter what happens to you he will save you. You will be victorious. We talked for probably 45 minutes and before I hung up the customer started crying and told me that I had changed her life forever. I was confused by her statement. She told me that my words have given her back hope and faith in God.  Then it hit me. The message I had received so many years ago came rushing back. "Everyone is here for a reason." God's plan! The events were set into motion! The Lord allowed Satan to beat me down so that he could lift me back up. Everything I had been going through was shaping up to a new realization.

All wasn't well. I was being slandered on the internet by some individuals who believed that my destruction was their main goal in life. It was indeed a time of great stress. I was doing my best to deal with it. The problem with most gossip is that if you say it often and early enough it becomes fact even if it is fabrication. I had little hope of stopping the vicious cycle. Even worse, people whom I had considered good friends refused to come to my aid because they didn't want to get involved in the conflict. I cannot understand any person, especially a friend ,not wanting to do what is considered the right thing to do. This compounded my frustration and tested my faith. Something had to change. I was looking for answers. The sad part was they were right before my eyes and I didn't know it.

I was collecting items to give away at the Herbie Days at Disney car show (AKA Herbie-Con 2000). NEW MAN Magazine had done a feature on Dean Jones. I asked them if they would be willing to donate some issues for me to give away to the participants of the event. NEW MAN really came through. They provided their entire stock of back issues for no charge! Everyone who attended the Herbie Days car show received a copy. Where Am I going with this?   NEW MAN is a Christian magazine. The article talked about Dean Jones' life as a Christian.  It was very fascinating. When I had met Mr. Jones in 1998 (for the interview on this site) I had no idea of his Christian background. I began searching the web for more information and found that Mr. Jones had writing a book called "Under Running Laughter."  Unfortunately, the book was long out of print. However, I called a major used book store and was able to locate a copy. This book covers various aspects of Mr. Jones' life and explained how his life turned around thanks to God. I was glued to the book. It was unbelievable! Both Dean and his wife experienced their own personal miracles that cemented their faith.  I was inspired. But I still had the heartache with the internet trouble. However, that was all about to change.

A good friend of my wife invited us to attend her church. I was reluctant at first but decided to go. The Pastor began teaching Psalm 55.  My eyes had been fully opened. This spoke to my heart directly! PSALM 55 Deals with the very same subject that I was going through! I was amazed that the Bible had answers that dealt with my problems! I began to read the Bible and learned that every aspect of our lives is covered in that book. The Lord had finally been revealed to me.  Both my wife and I gave our lives to Jesus and began a new life living by his will. Oh, how sweet that decision was. I cannot begin to tell you what feelings flowed into my soul. I was at peace and truly fulfilled for the first time in my life.  

The skeptics out there will immediately ask if every dream has come true in my life? They will ask if I have enough money and will wonder if all the stress  is gone from work? They will also want to know if the Lord has given me perfect health. The answer is no. My gift is of eternal peace and knowing that I am living my life the way our God wants us to live. I am still not perfect and never will be. My life may never be perfect. I may never be wealthy or famous, live in a fancy home or own a new car. None of this matters anyway. One of the most difficult things to realize for a "collector" like myself is the fact that a person's drive for the material objects in life can never fill a void. I lived for the thrill of hunting for an item. Finding a new collectible or something hard to find (cars, toys, etc) gave me a temporary rush.  But nothing can compare to the ongoing rush of knowing our Lord Jesus.  My life has changed for the better but not all is perfect. I have yet another thing to be persecuted for in my life. I am a Christian. The Bible tells us that to become a Christian invites persecution.  God knows this.

Why am I telling this story to the entire world? Because I think that everyone has the right to know this inner peace that I know. I can't explain it to you, nor can I make you to run out and join a church. Nobody could have made me go to church in the past. In fact, I didn't want to hear anything about Church. I know how some of you feel. I've been in your shoes. But if my story is at all inspiring wouldn't it be worth taking your own chance? What do you have to lose? I know what you will qain. Open your heart and hear my words. Pick up a Bible and read it. You will be amazed. If my writings can inspire one person to walk with Jesus Christ then they will have been worth it. It is my duty to spread the good word.

May God Bless you all.

Dave

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