For many years, G.L. Woods toured all over the country to talk about his journey of walking again after being paralyzed from a motorcycle accident nearly 20 years ago. He was even featured on the television program, “The 700 Club.”

“More than seven million people heard my story,” the Montgomery County native said. “How’s that happening? We serve an amazing God.”

On the morning of Oct. 1, Woods returned to the Montgomery County area to talk about his journey to recovery. First, he went to Jonesburg Christian Church, where he was a Sunday School student, got baptized and married his wife, Tina. Then, he went to St. John’s United Church of Christ in High Hill.

Woods also sold copies of his book, “Faith 911.” Published on New Year’s Day 2012, the book chronicled his experiences of going from an avid motocross rider to a person fighting for his life. He worked on his book for two years.

“If you haven’t read it, don’t expect that you’re going to read a book that’s going to describe a perfect spot for your life,” Woods said.

On Oct. 15, 2004, Woods was on a three-day riding trip in West Virginia, while his wife and children were in Jonesburg. Woods rode motorcycles for about 30 years.

“When I woke up on the morning of October 15, 2004, that was the day God was going to show me exactly who’s in charge,” Woods said.

After being ejected headfirst over the handlebars of his motorcycle, Woods was paralyzed from the neck down, similar to what happened to actor Christopher Reeve, who played the lead role on the motion picture, “Superman.” Reeve, who was paralyzed from a horse riding accident in 1995, died five days before Woods’ accident.

“From the time I crashed until the time I actually showed at a real hospital, it was almost 12 hours,” Woods said. “My crash happened about 2 p.m. in the afternoon on Friday, October 15. I didn’t arrive at a real hospital until almost 2 a.m. in the morning. I was nervous and scared.”

Woods found out from doctors that his spinal cord was severely damaged, making a full recovery impossible.

“As human beings, if we needed help medically, we count on medical people,” Woods said. “All of the sudden, the medical community is saying, ‘We’re sorry.’ At that point, I believed with all of my heart that God was throwing me in the trash. At that very moment, I prayed harder to God than I ever prayed in my life.”

Calling his wife to tell her what happened was a tough task for Woods.

“I was 39 years old,” Woods said. “By that time, Tina and I were married about 18 years. We just built a new home. We hadn’t been in the house for a year. Our twins were getting ready to turn 4 years old. I couldn’t bring myself to tell her that I just destroyed our family.”

Woods later received therapy at Rehab Hospital of Indiana. During his stay, he shared a room with another patient who was paralyzed for many years after being intentionally shot in the neck by his girlfriend.

“That young man laid flat on his back for seven years,” Woods said. “I wanted to cry. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. I felt so bad for him.”

Six months after the accident, Woods took his first step. He now walks with a cane.

“Walking with a cane is not fun,” Woods said. “It’s not perfect. Life doesn’t have to be perfect or even wonderful. People struggle with everything we think of nowadays. People struggle with heartaches, struggle with the loss of their loved ones and struggle with addiction. God didn’t promise life would be easy.”

Woods made his presentations in Jonesburg and High Hill just 12 hours after going to his Montgomery County High School Class of 1983 Reunion in Bellflower. In a span of two hours, he spoke to over 100 people.

When Woods began talking at Jonesburg Christian Church in front of 60 people, he got emotional.

“Today is very special,” Woods said. “This is home.”

The 58-year-old Woods lived in Montgomery County until 1989. He now lives in Morgantown, Ind., just south of Indianapolis. He also has twin children, Bailey and Bryce.