Bike after bike rumbles and snarls into the parking lot. Riders rattle their engines for one good, last roar, then let them idle while stripping their helmets. Dressed in black leather, jeans, boots, and Harley-Davidson T-shirts, they mingle and greet one another with smiles and handshakes. The raucous, but casual, scene shifts gears when rock music reverberates out the door of the church—yes, church—where the bikers have parked. Bikers are not at a motorcycle rally, but a worship rally at their church—Freedom Biker Church in Garner.
In July 2006, Mike Beasley and his team launched the first biker worship rally. A long-time rider, Beasley noticed a disturbing trend—bikers getting saved but unable to plug into a local church. He wanted to create a place where they would feel accepted and could be discipled. As it turned out, bikers wanted the same thing.
About 100 bikers came to that first worship rally under an awning in front of a motorcycle shop. Today, the group totals more than 200. North Carolina Baptists and Johnston Baptist Association partner with Freedom Biker Church for training and startup funds, available from gifts to the North Carolina Missions Offering.
Kelton Hinton, director of missions for Johnston Association, said every new church start should be about one thing: expanding God’s kingdom. “A new church is all about getting the unchurched into the fold,” he said. “You do whatever it takes to get them hooked into Jesus.”
Pray for Freedom Biker Church: