Who is pastor of saddleback church

B2B Publishing. Business Visionaries. Hot Property. Times Events. Times Store. Facebook Twitter Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options. The Rev. By Randall Balmer. California Rick Warren to retire as lead pastor of Saddleback Church. Opinion California Op-Ed. Turn on your cookies for the best browsing experience. This site uses cookies to store information on your computer. Sign In Sign in for a personalized experience.

Every saint has a past, every sinner has a future. He was serving double year-to-life sentences at Sierra Conservation Center in Northern California for killing two men when, with the help of a letter Warren penned to the parole board guaranteeing him a job at Saddleback, he was released Dec.

Duchene wanted to be part of that, so he contacted Saddleback leaders and told them 20 inmates wanted to participate. Saddleback staff sent videos and workbooks to the prison. People joined up to be part of something that broke up their routine. And Warren came to the prison and led a service in the yard, yellow caution tape separating him from the prisoners. A few months later, Saddleback Pastor John Baker returned to the prison and trained Duchene and others to lead Celebrate Recovery programs, aimed at helping them get their lives in order.

He was doing everything he could to be a man of God. Within a year, prison officials dedicated an entire man cellblock to prisoners participating in Celebrate Recovery. They have guilt and shame of their crimes. By hoping for a changed life and not coming back, they find support of other men who want the same thing compared to the normal environment of prison peer pressure to do the wrong thing — to become part of a gang, or take a racist or an anti-authority perspective.

A task group of members from diverse backgrounds, ethnicities and ages will work with the elders. With its main campus in Lake Forest, Saddleback Church has grown to 14 locations in Southern California, with an average weekly attendance of 30, and more than 7, small groups meeting in homes.

His megachurch model became a paradigm for other church leaders. More than 20, other churches globally used his purpose-driven model to inspire their own congregations.

Warren held his first public service on Easter and people attended. On Sept. C, where he lauded then-President George W.