A Family Shaped by Signs and Sacrifice

In the hollows of the Appalachian mountains, faith is often lived out with intense conviction. For Preacher Chris, his journey into the serpent-handling tradition began as a child watching his father undergo a dramatic transformation. After years of struggling with severe alcoholism and rage, his father attended a local house meeting where he experienced a powerful spiritual deliverance. Overnight, he turned into a loving family man and joined a holiness congregation where taking up venomous snakes was practiced as a sign of scripture. Tragedy struck when Chris was eleven years old and his father was bitten by a yellow timber rattlesnake during a service, refusing hospital treatment and passing away hours later. Years later, Chris’s older brother Randy, who served as pastor of the church, died under almost identical circumstances on the exact same day of the month.

“I saw a change in a man’s life that only God could do. He found something that he loved more than the alcohol, and he loved more than his own life.”

From Rock Bottom to An Altar Deliverance

Despite growing up around the church, Chris spent years battling his own heavy struggles, sinking deep into a severe cocaine addiction during the 1990s. At his lowest point, after spending thousands of dollars on a weekend binge, he sat alone in a bedroom with a loaded shotgun under his chin before his partner unexpectedly opened the door. His turning point arrived after a brutal physical fight left his face severely broken, requiring an eight-hour surgery with his jaw wired shut. Following his mother’s plea to attend church that evening, Chris knelt at the altar in brokenness, surrendered his life to God, and found his addiction completely lifted from that day forward.

“When I got to that altar, I fell down on my knees and all I could do was cry. When I raised up from that altar, that addiction was gone.”

Standing on Faith in the Face of Fear

Today, Chris pastors a small congregation in West Virginia, one of the few places where the practice of snake handling remains legally protected. Grounded in Mark 16, he views taking up serpents not as a show of bravado or a way to test God, but as a direct act of biblical obedience and a manifestation of spiritual power. He emphasizes that he remains naturally afraid of venomous snakes and only handles them when he feels the spirit of God move upon him, removing all fear in that moment. Even after surviving five bites himself and losing two close family members to the practice, Chris remains steadfast in his conviction that living out the gospel is worth any sacrifice.

“When the anointing of God moves on you to do it, the fear leaves. I would rather stand before God and say I was being obedient than stand before Him and say I didn’t believe.”

Ready for the Full Story?

Experience the powerful conversation firsthand and hear Preacher Chris tell his story in his own words. Catch the complete interview in the original video to discover the deep history, live music, and raw testimonies behind this rare Appalachian tradition.