Paul Ferguson was born in Kenmore, New York in 1954 to missionary parents. They moved to Brussels, Belgium for language study when Paul was 1 and then on to the Belgian Congo (now the Democratic Republic of Congo) where they lived and ministered for 4 years. It was there that Paul’s much prayed for sister, Sandy, was born in 1958. They returned to the United States for furlough in 1960 and the Belgian Congo was closed to missionaries during that year due to the first national civil war.
Paul’s parents were clearly called to Argentina to serve as church planting missionaries there in the northern part of the country close to Bolivia. There they ministered to descendants of the Incas and planted 17 churches over a 30 year ministry there. First, though, the family moved to Costa Rica for language study before going on to Argentina.
It was there that Paul received Jesus as his personal Savior and Lord. Paul lived in Argentina a total of 5 years, leaving his family to live with his aunt and uncle to go to high school in the United States.
During the time in Argentina, Paul and Sandy attended and lived in boarding school. Paul was there from 3rd through 6th grade, and then 8th grade. 7th grade was spent in the United States because the family was on furlough. Both 1st grade and 7th grade were split, with the fall semester in Kenmore, NY, and the spring semester in Tacoma, WA.
During their visit with his mother’s sister in Ventura, CA, Paul fell in love with the beach and asked his parents if he could go there when he had to leave for high school. During the year, Paul’s uncle had changed jobs and had moved to Huntington Beach, but it was still a beach, so Paul was content. In his senior year of high school, Paul’s uncle once again moved, this time back to Ventura where Paul concluded his high school education.
Paul knew that God wanted him to go to BIOLA College (now University) and he entered in 1972. Throughout his time in high school, Paul had taught children in VBS and Sunday School and then became the high school Sunday School teacher for his church during his senior year. It was during his time at BIOLA that Paul realized that God was calling him to minister to children and Junior High and High School youth. Throughout his time in College he worked with Junior Highers at his church as well as teaching his church college Sunday School. He graduated with a BA in Psychology and was a Greek class short of a double major in Bible.
When Paul accepted Jesus in Costa Rica at the age of 8, God immediately did two things in him. The first was to take control of Paul’s destructive, out of control temper. The second thing God did was to give Paul an insatiable hunger for His Word. There are only two Christmas/birthday gifts that Paul remembers from his childhood. One was a bicycle and the other was a Morocco leather bound Scofield Reference Bible. He wore that Bible out by the time he was 13 and has done the same with many Bibles since. Paul loved and loves the Bible and his desire was always to teach it in such a way that others would join him in his enthusiasm for the Word of God.
In 1980, God brought an amazing and beautiful woman into Paul’s life who would become his wife in 1981. Her name is Karen, and they have 2 wonderful children who are “walking in the truth” (3 John 4), and 5 grandchildren who are being taught how to walk in the truth by God-honoring parents.
In 1983 God led Paul to enroll again at BIOLA University’s Talbot School of Theology where he graduated with an MDiv in Practical Theology.
Details to much of his story will be revealed in messages you hear from his podcast, but here is a synopsis of the ministry God allowed him to enjoy over the years. He served as a Youth Pastor for over 25 years working in the barrios of Los Angeles, with the middle and upper middle class of Tacoma, Washington, underprivileged children from the Oakland Bay area, youth in La Puente and Monrovia, California, and gang bangers in the Los Angeles/Eagle Rock/Pasadena area. He served as a Lead Pastor in Palmdale, California for 10 years during which time he also began teaching Youth Pastors and then pastors in Eastern Europe. He served as an International Teacher full time to pastors in Moldova, Nepal, India, and Mexico for three years before answering God’s call to become a Hospice Chaplain in 2015. Now Paul has felt God’s call to begin this podcast and trust that God will grow it to be his next full-time ministry.
Paul and Karen live in Goodyear, Arizona and attend and are active in Compass Church AZ.