In 2005, Francis was the featured speaker in a now international video called Just Stop And Think which went viral, landing in every state and 30+ countries. As of 2009, the college graduated 47 graduates serving in various parts of the world. In 2008, Eternity launched an abroad program in Ecuador. ![]() “It was there that I fell in love with orphans.Ĭhan started Eternity Bible College in 2004 as a ministry of Cornerstone Community Church with 100 students. Just a few years later, Chan took a trip to Uganda that further altered his thinking and living. Before becoming a senior pastor, Francis worked for a variety of employers including Taco Bell, Mic Pizza, Kirby Company, Ralphs Market, Broadway Men’s Clothing, hardwood flooring contractors, and the Acapulco restaurant.Īfter five years of church as usual at Cornerstone, a missionary from Papua New Guinea challenged Chan’s self-centered theology. Within ten years, the church had grown to over 3,000 regular attendees. Eventually, he and his wife Lisa decided to start their own church, Cornerstone Church in Simi Valley, Ca. In 1992, he worked as a youth pastor for another church. He earned a BA in youth ministry from The Master’s College and a Master’s of Divinity from The Master’s Seminary. It was during that time that Chan chose to become a pastor. Chan joined his youth pastor in ministry to reach his friends who were still in school. By God’s grace and mercy, Francis came to know the Lord in high school in Stockton, Ca.Ĭhan was active in Christian youth groups which helped develop his faith in Christianity and his interest in ministry. ![]() And by junior high school he began to understand what it meant to have a personal relationship with God. He recalls a childhood filled with church and belief in God. He also stated he didn’t understand the love of God well until he became a father himself.ĭespite a childhood filled with death, Francis Chan did not doubt the love of God. He did not get along well with his father growing up, but says that his fear of his father has helped him understand a level of fear of God. He had family support from his father’s younger sister and her husband, Marion and William Wong, along with a large extended family and church family. His only memory of affection from his dad came when Chan and his father were on the way to his stepmother’s funeral, and his father put his arm around him for about 30 seconds.įrancis Chan has an older sister Grace, older brother Paul and much younger half-sister, Gloria. Chan says physical and verbal affection in his family, particularly from his father, was rare. But when he was in high school, his aunt and uncle got in a fight, and his uncle shot his wife then killed himself. The only close relatives he had were his aunt and uncle. Then his father died of cancer when he was 12 years old. His father remarried, and then his step mother died in a car accident when Francis was 9. After being raised by his Buddhist grandmother in Hong Kong, Francis came to America at the age of 5. He is not afraid of confronting lukewarmness. Chan frequently talks about ‘What the Bible is really saying’ and really living our lives that way. He is also currently active with Children’s Hunger Fund, African Renewal Ministries and World Impact. His other works include Erasing Hell, Multiply: Disciples Making Disciples in 2012, and the Basic Series by Francis Chan, a DVD series.Ĭhan is a highly sought after speaker at many Christian colleges, major national and international events and conferences. He is also the Founder and Chancellor of Eternity Bible College and author of the best-selling book, Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a Relentless God, and Forgotten God: Reversing Our Tragic Neglect of the Holy Spirit. He is the former teaching pastor of Cornerstone Community Church in Simi Valley, CA. ![]() Francis Chan is an amazing American preacher.
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