RIck Warren

Rick Warren is an American Evangelical minister and author of religious books. He was born in San Jose in California to Jimmy Warren and Dot Warren. His father was also a minister and his mother a librarian. He went to Ukiah High School from where he graduated in 1972. It was then when he founded a Christian club at his school called ‘The Fishers of Men Club’. Warren is highly educated in religion having received a Bachelor of Art degree from the California Baptist University, a Master of Divinity degree from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in 1979 and then a Doctor of Ministry degree from Fuller Theological Seminary. He and his wife Kay founded Saddleback Church when he was just 26 years old and he continues to serve as the senior pastor.

Since founding Saddleback Valley Community Church in 1980, Pastor Rick has become one of the nation’s leading pastors. He mentors young leaders, and many of today’s leading pastors credit him and his book The Purpose Driven Church for inspiring them to pursue their own callings to ministry. He built the Purpose Driven Network, a global alliance of pastors from more than 160 countries and hundreds of denominations who have been trained to be purpose-driven churches. Pastor Rick also founded Pastors.com—an online interactive community that provides sermons, forums, and other practice resources for pastors. Ten years ago, a trip to Rwanda literally changed the trajectory of Pastor Rick’s life and mission. God gave him a vision for The PEACE Plan, a mission to fight the five giants of spiritual emptiness, self-serving leadership, poverty, pandemic disease, and illiteracy that devastate the lives of men, women, and children around the world. Warren delivered the Invocation at President Barack Obama’s First Inauguration. Warren was featured on the cover of TIME Magazine as the “Purpose Driven Pastor.”

Warren married Elizabeth K. Warren in 1979 and has three children and four grandchildren. Warren became a practicing minister when he was just nineteen years old. Warren started writing during the time he was working for the Texas Ranch for Christ. He started co-writing books with Billi Hanks Junior and Wayne Watts. The books were called ‘The Victory Scripture Memory Series’ and ‘Twelve Dynamic Bible Study Methods for Laity’.