Rick Warren - World-Renowned Industry Leader

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Rick Warren Quick Facts

Main Areas: A Purpose Driven Life; Strong Christian Values
Best Sellers: “The Purpose-Driven Life”
Career Focus: Author; Pastor; Church Leader
Affiliation: Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California; Pastors.com

Rick Warren is the pioneer of the Purpose-Driven paradigm for church health. He is the founding pastor of Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California, which he and his wife began in their home with one family in 1980. Saddleback is now one of America’s largest and best-known churches with 16,000 in attendance each weekend.

Warren is the best-selling author of The New York Times bestseller, The Purpose-Driven Life, which sold 7.5 million copies in its first year of print. His classic book, The Purpose-Driven Church, has sold over one million copies in 20 languages. It is used as a textbook in most seminaries and was named as one of the 100 Christian books that changed the 20th century. More than 300,000 pastors and church leaders from over 125 countries have attended Purpose-Driven Church seminars.

Born in San Jose, California, Warren earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from California Baptist College, a Master of Divinity from Southwestern Theological Seminary, and a Doctor of Ministry degree from Fuller Theological Seminary. He has been honored with the Biblical Preaching Award and several honorary doctorates.

Other Programs & Highlights

Rick Warren is the founder of Pastors.com, a global Internet community that serves and mentors those in ministry worldwide. Over 110,000 pastors subscribe to Rick Warren’s Ministry Toolbox, a free weekly email newsletter.

Churches across America are using “40 Days of Purpose” to revitalize their congregations. “40 Days” allows an entire congregation to go through “The Purpose-Driven Life” together, helping people discover why God placed them on Earth. More information about this life-transforming even can be found at www.purposedriven.com.

Favorite Quotes & Thoughts from Rick Warren

• The moment you stop learning, you stop leading.

• To make the best use of your life, you must never forget two truths: first, compared with eternity, life is extremely brief; second, Earth is only a temporary residence.

• In our final moments, we all realize that relationships are what life is all about. Wisdom is learning that truth sooner rather than later.

• God, whether I get anything else done today, I want to make sure that I spend time loving you and loving other people—because that’s what life is all about.

• If you don’t release those who hurt you, you will begin to resemble them.

• Don’t be afraid to repeat yourself. Nobody gets it the first time.

Getting Started With Rick Warren

The New York Times bestseller, The Purpose-Driven Life, is clearly the book to get started with. To get a quick sense of what Rick Warren is about, all you need to do is start with Chapter 1, entitled “It All Starts with God”:

For everything, absolutely everything, above and below, visible and invisible…everything got started with him, and finds its purpose in him.

-- Colossians 1:16 (Msg)

Unless you assume a God, the question of life’s purpose is meaningless.

-- Bertrand Russell, atheist.

It’s not about you.

The purpose of your life is far greater than your own personal fulfillment, your peace of mind, or even your happiness. It’s far greater than your family, your career, or even your wildest dreams or ambitions. If you want to know why you were placed on this planet, you must begin with God.

According to Warren, Self Help books often suggest that you try to discover the meaning and purpose of your life by looking within yourself. He says that is the wrong place to start. You must begin with God, your Creator, and his reasons for creating you. You were made by God and for God, and until you understand that, life will never make sense. Warren believes that discerning and living five God-ordained purposes—worship, community, discipleship, ministry, and evangelism—is key to effective living.

The Purpose-Driven Life has been described as a “blueprint for Christian living in the 21st century.” It has 40 short chapters that are intended to be read over 40 days, taking you on a personal spiritual journey. The purpose of the book is to enable you to answer life’s most important question, “What on Earth am I here for?”