Pastor Bjorn Pedersen
Pastor Bjorn Pedersen will be here beginning Wednesday, January 16, to lead us in a Prayer Seminar. The prayer seminar is comprised of three major sections based on levels of prayer background and experience:
Part A: Discover The Exciting World of Prayer (Beginners or starting over again)
Part B: Lord, Teach Us To Pray For Others (Some experience in prayer)
Part C: Power in Prayer (More experience in prayer)
The prayer seminar will start at 11:00 AM on Wednesday, January 16, 2019 and conclude at 12:00 PM. This prayer seminar will be presented every week until Wednesday, April 10, 2019.
Pastor Pedersen was born in London, England during World War II and raised in Norway where he received most of his early education. He came to the United States in 1963 on a scholarship under the International Christian Youth Exchange Program. After graduation from high school in Minnesota, he returned to Norway and graduated from Oslo Sprogskole (Norwegian high school).
In 1965, he returned to the USA to attend and graduate from Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota. He then attended and graduated from Luther Northwestern Theological Seminary with a Master of Divinity Degree in 1971 and attended the William Mitchell College of Law in St. Paul, MN. He later attended the University of Minnesota’s MBA program in preparation for a business career, and entered into a 16-year banking career. While working in the bank, he served several churches in the area as interim pastor.
Sensing God’s call to full-time Christian church ministry, he accepted the position of Administrative Pastor at Community Church of Joy in Glendale, Arizona in 1987. Two years later, God called him to full-time prayer ministry at Joy. The Prayer Ministry at Community Church of Joy grew significantly from humble beginnings to a worldwide prayer ministry. Augsburg-Fortress Publishers released Bjorn’s first book in March 1995, Face To Face With God In Your Church – Establishing A Prayer Ministry. It describes how to develop a powerful prayer ministry in the church.
On August 15, 1997, Bjorn resigned as Pastor of Prayer at Community Church of Joy, sensing God’s call to full-time involvement with Prayer Watch International (PWI). He had been developing PWI for nearly two years before making the change from Joy. The mission of PWI is to pray, share God’s plan and vision of prayer, encourage Christians to pray intentionally, develop and distribute prayer resources, and provide prayer growth and restoration opportunities, inspired and empowered by the Holy Spirit.
This is an excellent opportunity to invite believers from other congregations to attend a prayer seminar. Let us begin the New Year calling on GOD, praising Him and seeking His guidance.