Max Lucado

Max Lucado, born January 11, 1955, is an American author and minister at Oak Hills Church in San Antonio, Texas. He was born in San Angelo, Texas, the youngest of four children of Jack and Thelma Lucado, and grew up in Andrews. His father, of Italian ancestry, worked in the oil fields, and his mother was a nurse. Lucado came of age in Texas church and college life, then built a public ministry that joined preaching, pastoral work, and writing for a wide Christian readership.

Lucado attended Abilene Christian University, where he earned an undergraduate degree in Mass Communication in 1977 and later a master’s degree in Bible and Biblical Studies. As a student, he sold books door-to-door through the Southwestern Advantage entrepreneurial program to help pay for college. He first wanted to become a lawyer, but a required Bible course and a mission trip changed his plans. He decided instead to become a missionary, a choice that led him into graduate study and church ministry.

After graduation, Lucado served as an associate minister at Central Church of Christ in Miami, Florida. His early duties included overseeing a singles’ group and writing a column for the church newsletter. After two years in Miami, he and his wife, Denalyn Lucado, moved to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, as full-time missionaries. In 1987, after his father died from Lou Gehrig’s disease, Lucado brought his family back to the United States to be closer to his mother.

In 1988, Lucado was hired as a minister at Oak Hills Church of Christ in San Antonio. He stopped taking a salary from the congregation in 1990 because he was already a successful author. During his time there, Oak Hills began using musical instruments in worship services and held that baptism is not required for salvation, positions not in accord with two key doctrines of the Churches of Christ. In 2003, the church dropped that affiliation and became Oak Hills Church. Lucado served as senior minister for 20 years, then announced in early 2007 that he was stepping down because of health concerns related to atrial fibrillation. He later continued in a more limited role as writing and preaching minister alongside lead minister Travis Eades.

Lucado is best known for his many books and his steady presence in American Christian publishing. He has written almost 100 books, with more than 150 million copies in print. His works include On the Anvil, No Wonder They Call Him the Savior, God Came Near, Six Hours One Friday, Just Like Jesus, In the Grip of Grace, and When God Whispers Your Name. He received the Charles “Kip” Jordon Gold Medallion Christian Book of the Year award three times, for Just Like Jesus, In the Grip of Grace, and When God Whispers Your Name, and has appeared on bestseller lists including the New York Times Best Seller List.

Lucado’s views have been shaped by his belief that the Bible is infallible, by his credobaptist convictions, and by his trinitarian view of God. Christianity Today called him “America’s Pastor,” and Reader’s Digest named him “The Best Preacher in America” in 2005. He has been featured by major news outlets and has spoken at the National Prayer Breakfast. Following the resignation of Pastor Robert Morris from Gateway Church near Fort Worth, Lucado agreed to serve as interim teaching pastor there while continuing at Oak Hills. His words continue to reach readers because they come from the same place as his ministry: church work, family life, mission service, and a long habit of turning Christian belief into direct, readable language.