By Jeff Finley
Then came the COVID-19 pandemic followed by what he described in a Light + Life interview as “a crazy chain of events” that included a housing search, which led him and his family to “a beautiful house,” which “we just fell in love with,” in a rural area near Flint, Michigan.
“My mom passed. We were blessed with getting this home,” he said. “I was going through personal effects, and I found that I was baptized Methodist, and I never knew that.”
His family moved into their new home a week before Easter in 2023, and Dolich decided to search for a church. Despite a dozen churches within a couple miles of their home, Google searches repeatedly led him to one church — Cornerstone Community Church, a Free Methodist congregation in Flushing, Michigan.
After driving to the church on Sunday morning, “I was petrified. I sat in the parking lot, and I was going to change my mind,” he said. “I wasn’t sure I was going to get out of my truck and come into church.”
He ultimately exited the truck and entered the church building. He immediately felt welcomed and sensed God saying, “This is your home.” An associate pastor greeted him and took him to meet Lead Pastor Kurtis Koffkey.
“It was one of the greatest days of my life. It was like a second chance for me,” Dolich said.
Koffkey and Dolich set up an appointment and met, and Dolich returned for the next service. A transformation began taking place in his life, and he chose to be baptized again.
“I was a whole different person,” said Dolich, who added that previously “it didn’t take much to set me off. I walked around with a lot on my shoulders. … It felt like I had bags of concrete on my shoulders.”
_
“It was one of the greatest days of my life. It was like a second chance for me.”
_
Before attending Cornerstone, “I wasn’t truly happy. I was lost. I was searching for something. I couldn’t put my finger on it, but I just existed,” Dolich said. “I felt like I didn’t have any direction. I didn’t know where to go. I just was going through the motions.”
Full of Light
As he became more involved in church, people around him noticed a difference in his life.
“People tell me that I shine more, that I’m full of light now. It’s crazy how God worked in my life — the way he mended broken relationships,” Dolich said. “He got rid of relationships that weren’t good for me.”
Dolich explained that several negative people “showed themselves out. I didn’t have to say anything. They just disappeared.”
His wife, Danielle, told him that she had always loved him but previously had to “walk on eggshells” and choose her words carefully.
_
“People tell me that I shine more, that I’m full of light now.”
_
Church attendance and growing faith “really helped our marriage. Before we would have big arguments … screaming matches,” said Dolich, who added that he and his wife still occasionally have “disagreements, but we calmly talk things out.”
He decided to visit his father who lives in Georgia.
“Right after I got baptized, I went down there,” said Dolich, who noted that the room grew quiet at one point and then his father said, “Something changed about you. You found God; didn’t you?”
Dolich confirmed he had, and his father responded, “You’re a gentle giant now.”
“That was the most humbling thing to hear from my dad,” Dolich said.
Cycle Chaplain
Ten years ago, Dolich’s in-laws’ interest in motorcycles led him to get his endorsement to ride. He soon connected with other motorcycle enthusiasts.
“I ride in a riding club. We do professional maneuvers. We do big rides, and I’m a road captain,” said Dolich who added that for a big ride, “we have hundreds of riders. We shut down intersections, and we’re called blockers. We have police escorts.”
The club hosts approximately five big rides each year. At one big ride early in his faith, a request went out for someone to say a prayer or a blessing for the ride.
“It broke my heart that it was just crickets,” Dolich recalled. “It felt like the Holy Spirit just told me that I needed to step up. …. I just took the initiative, and I got over my fears of public speaking, and I got up there.”
For subsequent rides, people asked him to share a prayer or a blessing.
“Whatever I said the first time touched their heart,” said Dolich who added that Koffkey advised him, “The best prayers are always derived off of Scriptures.”
_
“It felt like the Holy Spirit just told me that I needed to step up.”
_
Dolich began using the Bible to help him prepare the prayers and blessings for each ride along with charitable events.
“They made me honorary chaplain,” Dolich said. “I pray with and over members, riders, veterans, and children who are sick in hospice.”
Dolich said the big rides include “raising funds and awareness” along with “bringing love, hope and faith with the thunder of our bikes.”
Some motorcyclists have told him that they are atheists, followers of New Age religions, or uncertain of their beliefs. Then they have added, “But your words touched my heart. Thank you.”
Dolich said he is humbled by the people he has been able to reach with the gospel, but even when his words don’t seem to connect, “I hopefully planted some kind of seed” that “gave them some sense of peace and comfort and did something for their hearts.”
Some club members have come to him seeking guidance for situations in their lives.
“That was one of my daily prayers: ‘Father, prepare me. Just help me. Grant me opportunities that I can love, help, and serve others,’” he said.
Sometimes while sharing with a person, he hears what seems like a whisper: “Just slow down and listen, and let the Holy Spirit convict them.”
A video of Dolich appeared on the Free Methodist Church USA’s Facebook page as part of the “Be the Light” series.
“My wife shared it with a bunch of her friends, and some of them come from all walks of life and different faiths,” said Dolich, who added that the friends suggested he should start a podcast.
While considering new ways for God to use him, Dolich said, “every day I pray that I just want to be a better version of what I was yesterday.”
+
Great Writing + Discipleship Materials
