Early Thursday morning, a would-be burglar learned a lesson he probably wasn’t expecting when he broke into a church in Antioch. What he didn’t know was that the church’s pastor, Nick Neves, isn’t just a spiritual leader—he’s also a martial arts enthusiast.
Pastor Nick woke up to the sound of trouble and wasted no time springing into action. “I yelled at him to stop and told him the police were on their way,” he shared. “But instead of stopping, he bolted. That’s when I grabbed him, and we ended up wrestling outside in the church parking lot.”
What the intruder hadn’t counted on was that Pastor Nick has spent years training in jujitsu, kickboxing, and mixed martial arts. “I like staying active, and those skills came in handy,” he said. “It allowed me to handle the situation without hurting him.”
The struggle lasted for about 12 to 15 minutes, with Pastor Nick carefully holding his ground. “He tried to get away a few times, but I just kept wearing him out,” he explained. Eventually, the burglar ran out of energy, and by the time the police arrived, he was subdued.
Longtime church member Jeff Strawther couldn’t be more grateful for how things turned out. “It could’ve gone so wrong,” he said. “We’re just thankful our pastor is okay. He’s tough, and we’re so glad he’s on our side.”
Family First Church is well-known for its generosity, recently providing groceries to 130 families in need. Pastor Nick couldn’t help but reflect on the irony of the situation. “If he’d come to us just a few days earlier, we could’ve helped him out—no questions asked,” he said. “Instead, he broke windows, damaged property, and disrupted our ministry.”
Even after the chaos, Pastor Nick’s hope for the intruder was simple: that he turns his life around. “I hope he chooses good over bad,” he said, his words reflecting the grace and compassion that fuel his work.
In the end, the church community is thankful for Pastor Nick’s quick thinking, his martial arts skills, and most importantly, his unwavering faith in the power of change.
