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Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow went deep Saturday night, inspiring thousands of church worshipers who came to hear him tell football stories and how his experiences have made him an inspirational Christian man in the National Football League.

Tebow spent about 45 minutes talking with Kevin Odor, senior pastor of Canyon Ridge Christian Church, in an interview that tied in to several Bible verses.

In the first of two Saturday services, more than 4,000 people -- hundreds of them wearing Tebow's No. 15 Broncos jersey -- crammed into Canyon Ridge's cavernous auditorium. Odor said before the interview that 1,000 more were logged on to the church's website, watching a live streamed broadcast of the service.

Tebow will appear at the church at Lone Mountain Road and Jones Boulevard Sunday at 9 and 11:30 a.m. It's the only church appearance of seven Tebow is making during the football off-season in which he's addressing more than one service.

Tebow talked about the trend of printing Bible chapters and verses on the eye paint players use to minimize glare, ministering to death row inmates, his mother's controversial television advertisement during last year's Super Bowl broadcast and the phenomenon of people "Tebowing" -- dropping to a knee in prayer -- in his presentation.

"I'm pretty sure I'm not the first athlete to get on a knee and pray," said Tebow, who was as casually dressed as the congregation in jeans and a sweater over a striped shirt. "It's funny, I've been doing this same exact routine for the last seven years and for some reason this was the first year that people started talking about it."

Tebow said in warm-ups before a game, he would do a few final stretches before finding a corner of the end zone, drop to a knee in prayer and do several jumps before sprinting up the sideline. Sometimes, he does the same thing after scoring a touchdown, but other times he'll look and point skyward or "jump into my linemen's arms."

Why does he do it?

"There's all this excitement in a game, whether it's playing the NFL or college, with all the hype. You're going to do good, you're going to do bad and all the eyes are watching you and for me, it's to be able to take a moment to block out everything else and just get on a knee and thank the Lord.

"One of the reasons I get on a knee is because that's a form of humbling yourself. I want to humble myself before the Lord and say thank you for this opportunity. Thank you for letting me play the game I love. Whether I'm good or bad, whether I'm the hero or the goat, whether I score four touchdowns or throw four interceptions, that will still be the same person, honoring the Lord."