Miles Gregory McPherson (March 30, 1960) is the
pastor
A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...
of the
Rock Church
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
in
San Diego
San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...
, a
motivational speaker
A motivational speaker is a speaker who makes speeches intended to motivate or inspire an audience. Such speakers may attempt to challenge or transform their audiences. The speech itself is popularly known as a pep talk.
Motivational speakers ca ...
, and a former
NFL
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the major ...
football player
A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...
.
History
McPherson grew up on
Long Island
Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United Sta ...
. He attended the
University of New Haven, where he majored in engineering. McPherson was the university's first player to achieve All-American honors in football and be drafted into the
NFL
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the major ...
. He was originally drafted by the
Los Angeles Rams
The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division. The Rams play ...
; he was cut and went on to play defensive back for the
San Diego Chargers
The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team that played in San Diego from 1961 until the end of the 2016 season, before relocating to Los Angeles, where the franchise had played its inaugural 1960 season. The team is now ...
.
After battling a drug problem, McPherson became a
born again
Born again, or to experience the new birth, is a phrase, particularly in evangelicalism, that refers to a "spiritual rebirth", or a regeneration of the human spirit. In contrast to one's physical birth, being "born again" is distinctly and sepa ...
Christian in 1984, and began participating in religious outreach programs.
In September 1986, he retired from football; the next week, he enrolled in
Azusa Pacific University
Azusa Pacific University (APU) is a private, evangelical Christian university in Azusa, California. The university was founded in 1899, with classes opening on March 3, 1900, in Whittier, California, and began offering degrees in 1939. The uni ...
's School of Theology.
[
He received his ]Master of Divinity
For graduate-level theological institutions, the Master of Divinity (MDiv, ''magister divinitatis'' in Latin) is the first professional degree of the pastoral profession in North America. It is the most common academic degree in seminaries and divi ...
degree in 1991.[
In 1992, McPherson founded "Miles Ahead", a non-profit international evangelical organization.][
In 2000, McPherson founded the ]Rock Church
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
. As of 2009, more than 12,000 attend one of the Rock's five weekend services.
McPherson spoke at the 2008 Republican National Convention
The 2008 Republican National Convention took place at the Xcel Energy Center in Saint Paul, Minnesota, from September 1, through September 4, 2008. The first day of the Republican Party's convention fell on Labor Day, the last day of the popul ...
. McPherson has appeared on Good Morning America, Larry King Live
''Larry King Live'' was an American television talk show hosted by Larry King on CNN from 1985 to 2010. It was the channel's most watched and longest-running program, with over one million viewers nightly.
Mainly aired from CNN's Los Angeles s ...
, The O'Reilly Factor
''The O'Reilly Factor'' (originally titled ''The O'Reilly Report'' and also known as ''The Factor'') is an American cable television news and talk show. ''The O'Reilly Factor'' first aired in the United States on Fox News Channel on October 7 ...
, and other national news networks.
Bibliography
McPherson is the author of several books, including ''Do Something! Make Your Life Count''. and ''God In The Mirror: Discovering Who You Were Created to Be''. He earned an Emmy Award
The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...
in 2007 as the producer of ''Master Meth'', a documentary on methamphetamine.
Family
McPherson and his wife Debbie have three children. His younger brother Don McPherson
Donald G. McPherson (born April 2, 1965) is a former National Football League and Canadian Football League quarterback. He spent seven seasons in the NFL and CFL with the Philadelphia Eagles, Houston Oilers, Hamilton Tiger-Cats, and Ottawa Ro ...
is also a former NFL player.[
]
References
External links
Official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:McPherson, Miles
1960 births
Living people
American football defensive backs
San Diego Chargers players
New Haven Chargers football players
Azusa Pacific University alumni
American Christian clergy
American evangelicals
California Republicans
Sportspeople from Queens, New York
Players of American football from New York City