My story starts not with God's rod, but Matt's rod, a 1974 Mustang II Ghia purchased for $100 five years ago. Now, everyone knows that a car purchased for parts should remain a car purchased for parts. But this parts car had a perfect interior and solid floorboards. With just a few such rationalizations it produced a complete loss of perspective in its "owner." Less than two years and several thousand dollars later, the car was sold for $500 at the insistence of my normally tolerant wife whose perspective on the car was somewhat at odds with my own. It was this event which eventually resulted in God's rod.

My next car was a boring but reliable 1985 Mercury Grand Marquis. While I had that car I began to reflect on how the Mustang had become far too important to me. I also noticed something else. Many people who own classic cars end up being owned by them. I cant' be too hard on them, though...even pastors can make that mistake. I became convicted that if I was ever blessed with another "hot rod," it would have to be God's rod, not my own.

The opportunity came within a year. Thanks to the blessing of three beautiful girls and all of their stuff it was apparent that we needed to move up to a Grand Caravan. Because our old Caravan was in better shape than the Grand Marquis it looked as if we would end up being a two minivan family. This prospect didn't excite me, since my preference is for smaller cars, not larger ones. As I was driving past my mechanic's garage I noticed a 1986 Laser XT Turbo for sale. It was bright red with a black leather interior, fancy wheels and T-tops. On a whim I turned around and offered to trade the van for the car. To my surprise he agreed. Just like that, God had His rod.

With a little money and a lot of help from my mechanic, Chris Yerdon, the Laser was transformed into a hot rod that would cover the quarter mile in 13.7 seconds at 102 miles per hour. The painting you see here is of Chris Yerdon's car and was given to him as a token of my appreciation for all of the hours he spent working on the Laser free of charge. His Lebaron GTS, by the way, is even faster than the Laser.

By the fall of 1999 it became clear that the Laser, although quick, was not a good candidate for a repaint. I had hoped to paint the car and take it to cruise nights so I could share the story of how God's rod came to be. So I decided to find a replacement but I was determined that it too would be God's rod, just like the Laser. So with my wife's blessing I sold the Laser at the first opportunity and set the money aside so as to find another one.

That car is the Mustang II you see here. It hails from Atlanta, so rust is not a problem. Right now it has a Carter AFB four barrel, an Edelbrock intake, headers, lots of chrome on the engine, a 9" axle and traction bars. But the plan is to restomod the car. I have an EFI 5.0 V8 from a 1990 Mustang LX which will replace the current 302 sometime next fall. A neighbor is helping with the bodywork and paint. Within a couple of years it should be ready to go and I'll be happy to share the pictures. Best of all, it will be God's rod.

-- Matt

Matt also does these cool paintings like the one shown here. If you would like a painting of your car, just get in touch with Matt and maybe you can work out a deal!
E-Mail Matt