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DiBiase Still Wrestling -- But Now It's For The Hearts Of Men

Posted: Jan 7th 2010 By: CMBurnham

World Wrestling Entertainment star Ted DiBiase, known in the ring as, ?The Million Dollar Man,? took the stage during the Men's Power Lunch on Monday at the First Baptist Church and challenged those in the audience to have a personal, daily, on-going relationship with Christ.

?As an Evangelist, I?m still a wrestler. I wrestle with the hearts of men,? DiBiase said. He told the local crowd that he wanted to wrestle with them a little bit, in a spiritual sense.

First Baptist Church Pastor Mark Denison introduced him to the local crowd, telling them DiBiase is about to be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame and is already in the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame.

When DiBiase took the stage he reflected back to a day many years ago when his step-father, his mentor and champion was laid to an early rest.

?My dad, my hero and inspiration of life was dead and gone,? he said. ?That day my whole life changed.? He said he watched his mom fall into full-blown alcoholism virtually overnight and his new peers in the small town he moved to soon after the funeral could not fathom his big, bright goals and dreams.

Nevertheless, he moved ahead with the plans he had, working out in the gym and constructively preparing himself to be an athlete in football and wrestling.

He said even when he was young he had a strong faith in God. Sometimes he visited the cemetery where his father was buried and talked to God, asking God to bring him through his life to his dreams. That got him through hardships.

DiBiase recalled that when he got to college, everything changed and spiritually, two things got in his way for the next 20 years: his male pride and his ego. He said he took his eyes off of God and started to go down that slippery slope thinking, ?I'll go to church next week.?

Time marched on and DiBiase made it into professional wrestling.

In the WWE ring, his contemporaries in the industry during his 1980 and 1990s fame were Hulk Hogan and Andre the Giant.

?The ?Million Dollar Man? was a character I played,? DiBiase said. Along with the character came limousines, leer jets and action figures. ?I wrestled in front of 80,000 people,? he said. He spoke of the rush that comes with a crowd and stardom.

When WWE owner Vince McMahon told DiBiase they wanted to create a villain character in him for the ring, market him as someone rich and better than everyone else. It was the opportunity of a lifetime.

?He?d just offered me the world ... I took it and ran,? DuBias added.

?What I worshipped was my career,? he continued. ?What was God in my life was wrestling. I was not willing to surrender my will to God?s?

But, he said his life was still missing something. ?My life wasn't bearing fruit. I was playing church, I was a pretend Christian,? he continued. He said that intellectually he knew and understood about God, but it took awhile for that knowledge to travel the 18 inches from his brain to his heart.

What I did was the same thing I did out of high school, say ?thank you Lord,? but see you later, he said.

He said he had it all, as far as worldly success and all the perks that fame brings, but he forgot, or rather put something aside along the way, his relationship with Christ. He became mired in the bling, bright lights and appetites that come with being a huge celebrity.

But, he said, his wife, Melanie, was not so impressed with the lifestyle he?s taken on. In fact when he was kind enough to call home after a big night out on the town, she confronted him about his waywardness and ?drew the line.?

He pushed his next-day celebrity event aside and took a plane home to rectify his life, starting with convincing Melanie, a very Christian woman, that he was serious enough to cast off the wrong and take his walk with God through life. They recently celebrated 28 years together.

DiBiase said his purpose and career now are to serve the Lord.

DiBiase said a lot of ridicule and criticism was thrown his way when he professed being Christian and moved his life in a spiritual direction. He continued on his path with God, believing he was better and more productive by surrendering his will to His will.

?I don't care what denomination you happen to be,? he said. ?What I care about is this, do you have a personal daily, on-going relationship with Jesus Christ? If you go to any church and you don't have that, you're just religious, and you're just practicing religion. I'm here to tell you, the grace of God is unbelievable.?

Tags: WWE, Ted DiBiase, Andre the Giant