Who is Rick Warren

Richard Duane "Rick" Warren (born January 28, 1954 in San Jose, California) is an American evangelical Christian minister and author.Date of birth found on the California Birth Index 1905-1995, under Warren, Richard Duane, on 28 January 1954 in Santa Clara County.The 2005 TIME 100: Rick WarrenTIME: 25 Most Influential Evangelicals Photo Essay: Rick Warren He is the founder and senior pastor of Saddleback Church, an evangelical megachurch located in Lake Forest, California, currently the eighth-largest church in the United States (this ranking includes multi-site churches). The Outreach Magazine Top 100 Largest Churches He is also a bestselling author of many Christian books, including his guide to church ministry and evangelism, The Purpose Driven Church, which has spawned a series of conferences on Christian ministry and evangelism. He is perhaps best known for the subsequent devotional, The Purpose Driven Life, which has sold over 30 million copies, making Warren a New York Times bestselling author.http://abcnews.go.com/print?id=2914953

Warren holds conservative theological views.http://www.dallasvoice.com/artman/publish/article_10314.php While holding traditional evangelical views on social issues such as abortion, same-sex marriage, and stem-cell research, Warren has called on churches worldwide to also focus their efforts on fighting poverty and disease, expanding educational opportunities for the marginalized, and caring for the environment. During the 2008 United States presidential election, Warren hosted the Civil Forum on The Presidency at his church with both presidential candidates, John McCain and Barack Obama. Obama later sparked controversy when he asked Warren to give the invocation at the presidential inauguration in January 2009.

The book is targeted to pastors and church leaders and advises them to base their ministry on God's purposes, not their own ideas of ministry, hence the term "Purpose Driven". Warren suggests that these purposes are Worship, Fellowship, Discipleship, Ministry and Mission and that they are derived from the Great Commandment (Matthew 22:37-40) and the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19-20).

Warren writes that every church is driven by something. Tradition, finances, programs, personalities, events, seekers and even buildings can each be the controlling force in a church. But he believes that in order for a church to be healthy it must built around the five New Testament purposes given to the church by Jesus. "The issue is church health, not church growth!" declares Warren. "If your church is healthy, growth will occur naturally. Healthy, consistent growth is the result of balancing the five biblical purposes of the church."

He proposes that church leaders ask of themselves, "What is our purpose?", "Why do we do what we do?", "What should we be doing?", and "How will you do that?". In this book Warren provides a guide to answer these questions on how to do church. He further suggests that following the principles he outlines in the book will enable a church to grow?

:* Warmer through fellowship

:* Deeper through discipleship

:* Stronger through worship

:* Broader through ministry, and

:* Larger through evangelism.

The author emphasizes an intentional people-building process. He says, ?If you will concentrate on building people, God will build the church.?

The teaching of The Purpose Driven Church was derived from Warren's own experience in leading Saddleback Church from its founding in 1980 to over 10,000 in worship attendance in its first fifteen years, becoming one of the fastest growing churches in America during this time.The Saddleback Story

The Purpose Driven Church has been translated into over 30 languages, including Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German. It is listed in 100 Christian Books That Changed the Century"100 Christian Books That Changed the Century" by William and Randy Peterson (ISBN 0800757351) and has been given many awards. For example, in 1996 and 1997, the book was the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA) Christian Book Award Winner for the US. In 2002, the ECPA awarded it the Gold Medallion Award.ECPA The book and its author has received numerous reviews in the mainstream press and has been the subject of much support and criticism in Christian blogs and newsletters.Book Review - The Purpose Driven Church :: Challies Dot ComAmazon.com: The Purpose-Driven Church: Growth Without Compromising Your Message & Mission: Rick Warren: BooksWillow Creek Association - WILLOW Magazine - Book Review: "The Purpose Driven Church" - January/February 1996 In 2005, Time magazine called Rick Warren "America's pastor."The 2005 TIME 100: Rick WarrenTIME: 25 Most Influential Evangelicals Photo Essay: Rick Warren

Saddleback Church is an evangelical Christian megachurch located in Lake Forest, California, situated in southern Orange County, affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention. The church was founded in 1980 by pastor Rick Warren. Weekly church attendance averages nearly 20,000, currently making it the eighth-largest church in the United States (this ranking includes multi-site churches).http://www.sermoncentral.com/articleb.asp?article=Top-100-Largest-Churches