Wrestling legends Lex Luger, Nikita Koloff to speak at Williamsburg church Monday

“The Total Package,” Lex Luger and “The Russian Nightmare” Nikita Koloff were two of the most feared men in wrestling in the 1980s and into the 1990s.

Though they were on opposite sides of the ring on several occasions, the two have joined forces to share their faith in Jesus Christ and will be bringing that message to Grace Christian Fellowship in Williamsburg Monday night.

The duo founded the World Wrestling Outreach (WWO), a non-profit organization based in Charlotte, NC, with the goal of sharing the Gospel as part of a family-friendly wrestling event.

“We want it to be kind of like a mini WWE event,” Luger said.

Luger said he and Koloff will each share their stories about their respective wrestling careers and how they each came to find Jesus.

Luger described his road to Jesus as similar to the Apostle Paul.

“I did not grow up in church,” Luger said, adding during his time in the wrestling business, he began to believe his own hype as, “The Total Package.”

“I thought I had it all going on,” Luger said, noting that in 1998, his best friend in the wrestling business, Steve Borden, AKA “Sting,” tried to share his testimony with Luger.

“I told him to save it,” Luger said.

“I just stood up and walked out,” he added.

A series of drug-related charges left Luger on probation, facing five years in prison.

“I wasn’t making the best decisions in my life,” Luger said of that time, adding, like Paul, when it appeared he had hit rock bottom, someone was there to lift him up.

In 2006, a jail chaplain named Steve Baskin hunted Luger down at his gymnasium.

“That chaplain was the first man of God I sat down and talked to,” Luger said, noting the chaplain asked Luger, who was doing personal training at the time, to train him.

“I thought, ‘I will make him so sore he would never come back,’” Luger said, adding the chaplain did come back and in between the training sessions, they talked about God.

On April 16, Luger went to a Sunday night church service at Baskin’s invitation.

On April 23, 2006 Luger was saved.

“I got saved in a hotel room,” Luger said.

“If you asked anybody if you thought Lex Luger would be a born again believer coming to share his story, they would have thought you were crazy,” he said, noting just like Paul, there is hope for anybody.

Luger said he retired from wrestling in 2001 when WWE bought out WCW.

Today, a spinal cord injury precludes him from wrestling.

Aaron Bird, who is organizing the event, said they don’t have the licensing from the Kentucky Commission for Boxing and Wrestling to hold a wrestling match.

However, Koloff will be bringing copies of his book, “Breaking the Chains,” to sell and autograph.

While Luger will not have merchandise or memorabilia to sell, Bird said both will take time to meet and speak with the fans.

The event begins at 7 p.m. at the church located in the Williamsburg Mall.

It is free and open to the public.

“We will be taking up a love offering which will be given to Nikita and Lex,” Bird said.

“If the event goes over well, I think we will host some similar events in the future,” he said, noting there are other wrestlers who have testimony to share including Ted DiBiase and Road Warrior Animal.