Dog the Bounty Hunter Says Mom’s Prayers Saved His Life: ‘Don’t Quit Praying’
By Movieguide® Contributor
Duane Chapman, also known as Dog the Bounty Hunter, is thankful that his Christian mother never gave up on him.
The reality TV star recently spoke with Crosswalk Headlines about how his mom’s prayers saved his life.
“That goes to a lot of mothers out there. Don’t quit praying for your backward kids,” he said. “The Bible says if you raise a child up in the ways of the Lord, they will never depart. It doesn’t mean they won’t stray. My mother was the fourth generation on the women’s side of her family as teachers and preachers. She just pumped God into me. I got saved I think when I was four or five. I received the Holy Ghost at church camp when I was seven or nine. My mom taught me what was right and wrong and was there every step of the way even when I was making the wrong steps. My mom was one of the greatest mothers that I could have.”
Chapman explained how even when he was living a sinful lifestyle, he still remembered God’s truth that his mother instilled in him.
“I was a motorcycle gang member,” he explained. “You are nicknamed when you’re in a motorcycle club. I rode with the Devil’s Disciples which was a one percenter. Now that means they were very evil. They were the Sister Club to the Hell’s Angels. I wouldn’t flip the bird to God in the rain. I would back off the guys that did that. Although I was in the group, I would always mention the word God. So, that’s how I got the name DOG, which is spelled God backward.”
Chapman now works as a bounty hunter and even uses that to share the Gospel. He explained that when he arrests people, God uses him to minister to them in a powerful way.
“And then suddenly, the Holy Ghost, the Lord, the Spirit gives me the words to tell them. It’s amazing once they get out of prison, how much they thank me for the ministry that I did,” he said. “So, I like for them to call me and say, ‘Dog, you helped change my life.’ That makes me feel so proud in knowing that God used me. I’m not going after the body. I’m going after their souls.”
Chapman recently released a new book, titled “Nine Lives and Counting,” which dives into his life and testimony.
He recently announced the arrival of his new book on Instagram. “From being in a motorcycle gang, to being incarcerated, and then becoming a widely-know TV personality, Duane’s life has been anything but ordinary. But, through every success and failure, the one constant has been his faith in God,” a description of the book reads.
“My journey has built faith,” he told the Christian Post previously. “I’ve been through some terrible stuff, but it builds faith when you can look back and tell other people ‘Look, I’ve been there done that. Here’s what you do.’ And then they do it. I love sharing my testimony…so others don’t have to go through it.”
Movieguide® previously reported on Chapman:
Dog the Bounty Hunter (a.k.a. Duane Chapman) wants to help others discover the gospel through his new book, “Nine Lives And Counting: A Bounty Hunter’s Journey to Faith, Hope, and Redemption.”
“I know God is absolutely real,” Chapman told CBN News. “I know that God told me years ago…‘I’m going to show you miracles beyond [anything] that you could imagine, think, or want.”
He grew up in a Christian home, explaining, “I knew more than most people did, right from wrong, miracles of God — I knew all that.”
However, he strayed from his faith in later years and ended up going to prison after he and a group of accomplices broke into a man’s home. During the break-in, one of the accomplices shot and killed the homeowner. Chapman was sentenced to five years and served 18 months. After he was released, he launched a career as a bounty hunter.
The reality TV star shared that his “faith has grown” in the years since his wife Beth passed away. He has since remarried and now walks “hand-in-hand” in faith with his wife Francie.