Randy Alcorn

Randy Alcorn (born June 23, 1954) is an American Evangelical Christian author and the founder & director of Eternal Perspective Ministries, a non-profit Christian organization, founded in 1990. He is a New York Times bestselling author, who has written more than 60 books including the novels Deadline (1994), Dominion (1996), Deception (2007) and Courageous (2011). He was awarded the Gold Medallion Book Award in 2002 for his novel Safely Home (2001). Alcorn has also authored many non-fiction books, including Giving Is the Good Life (2019), Face to Face with Jesus (2018), Seeing The Unseen (2017), Happiness (2016), Hand in Hand (2014), Eternity (2013), Managing God's Money (2011), If God Is Good (2009), Heaven for Kids (2006), Heaven (2004), The Purity Principle (2003), and The Treasure Principle (2001). His works have been translated into 70 languages and have sold 10 million copies.

Early life

He completed his B.A. in Theology from Multnomah Bible College and an M.A. in Biblical Studies from Western Seminary in Portland, Oregon. He also holds an honorary doctorate of Divinity from Western Seminary.

He served as one of the founding pastors of Good Shepherd Community Church in Boring, Oregon from 1977-90.

Career

Alcorn published his first book Christians in the Wake of the Sexual Revolution in 1985. His first book with Tyndale House Publishers, Money, Possessions, and Eternity, was published in 1989, revised in 2002. His first fiction book, Deadline, was published in 1994, and is the initial book in a three-part series. In 2001, he partnered with his daughters Karina and Angela to write The Ishbane Conspiracy.

His novel Safely Home published in 2001, was a story about the friendship between American Ben Fielding and a former fellow student, Li Quan, who is persecuted as a Christian in his home country of China.

He has contributed to several newspapers and magazines including Christian Today, Discipleship Journal, Moody, Leadership, New Man, The Christian Reader, Patheos. He has also served as adjunct faculty at Multnomah Bible College and Western Seminary.

In 1990, he founded Eternal Perspective Ministries (EPM), a non-profit organization that focuses on Biblical education. The royalties from his books all go to EPM, which gives away 90% of them to people-helping projects around the world.

Activism

In 1989, Alcorn was involved in nonviolent civil disobedience in Portland, Oregon, advocating for anti-abortion causes.

A court judgement brought against him made his wages subject to garnishment by an abortion clinic. Because he did not want to make a financial contribution to the activities of the abortion clinic, he decided to resign as a pastor and found Eternal Perspective Ministries. Until the judgement expired in 2012, at his request, Eternal Perspective Ministries paid him minimum wage, which was not subject to legal garnishment.

Awards and recognition

• His novel Safely Home (2001) was named a Gold Medallion Book Award winner by the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA) in 2002.
• His book Heaven (2004) was the New York Times Best Seller.
• In 2005, his book, The Treasure Principle (2001) was awarded the "Gold Book Award" for sales of over 500,000 copies and also received the "Platinum Book Award" in 2008 after sales of one million copies by the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association.
• He received the 2012 Audie Award for his novel Courageous (2011).
• One of his books, Heaven was awarded the "Golden Book Award" in 2008. In 2014, It received the "Platinum Book Award" for sales of one million copies by the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association.

Personal life

He is married to Nanci and has two daughters, named Angela and Karina. He currently lives in Gresham, Oregon.