 Dr. Tim LaHaye is a noted author,
minister, counselor and nationally recognized speaker on Bible prophecy. Co-author of the
Left Behind Series, it was LaHaye’s idea to fictionalize an account of the Rapture
and the Tribulation.
LaHaye is the founder and president of Tim LaHaye Ministries and the founder of the
PreTrib Research Center. Currently, LaHaye speaks at many of the major Bible prophecy
conferences in the United States and Canada.
For 25 years, LaHaye pastored one of the nation’s outstanding churches in San Diego,
California, which grew to three locations. During this time, he also founded two
accredited Christian high schools, a school system of 10 Christian schools and Christian
Heritage College, and assisted Dr. Henry Morris in the founding of the Institute for
Creation Research, the nation’s foremost exponent of creationist materials.
LaHaye has written more than 45 books on a wide range of subjects, such as family life,
temperaments and Bible prophecy. One of his bestsellers from Tyndale House Publishers is
The Spirit-Controlled Temperament. His current novels, the Left Behind Series, co-authored
with Jerry B. Jenkins, are the all-time best-selling Christian fictions series. Three
books in the series —The Indwelling, The Mark and Desecration — debuted at
number one on the best-seller lists for The New York Times, USA Today, Publishers Weekly
and The Wall Street Journal, with Desecration attaining the status of top–selling
hardcover book for 2001. Series sales have exceeded 50 million copies, including Left
Behind: The Kids Series and audio products.
LaHaye originated the idea of a novel about the Second Coming. "Sitting on airplanes
and watching the pilots," he told People Magazine, "I’d think to myself,
‘What if the Rapture occurred on an airplane?" LaHaye looked for a co-writer for
several years and was then introduced to Jerry B. Jenkins through their mutual agent, Rick
Christian, president of the Colorado Springs literary agency, Alive Communications, who
also negotiated the book deal.
LaHaye holds a Doctor of Ministry degree from Western Theological Seminary and has been
awarded the Doctor of Literature degree from Liberty University.
LaHaye’s wife, Beverly, is founder and chairman of the board of Concerned Women for
America. The Atlanta Journal Constitution referred to the LaHayes as the "Evangelical
Power Couple."
 Jerry B. Jenkins used to
describe himself as the "most famous writer no one’s ever heard of." With
the success of the Left Behind Series, he has become the leading contemporary evangelical
novelist. More than 55 million copies have been sold in the product line thus far.
Jenkins is the novelist for the series, while co-author Tim LaHaye, a former pastor,
provides the outline of prophecy based on biblical text. The duo’s teamwork has
resulted in a series that has broken all precedents for Christian fiction. As the Dallas
Morning News writes, "It’s not your mama’s Christian fiction anymore."
A writer with a wide range of interests, Jenkins has experienced great success writing
biographies for sports heroes and Christian leaders. His other New York Times bestsellers
are Out of the Blue with Orel Hershiser and Miracle Man with Nolan Ryan. He also assisted
Billy Graham with his best-selling memoir, Just As I Am. Jenkins specializes in three
genres: biographies, marriage and family topics, and fiction for both children and adults.
A former vice president of publishing for the Moody Bible Institute of Chicago, Jenkins
served for many years as editor of Moody Magazine and now serves on the Institute’s
Board of Trustees. Jenkins recently acquired the Christian Writers Guild from the
organization’s founder Norman Rohrer. Jenkins’ plan is for the Guild to mentor
Christian writers and to advance quality Christian literature.
Jenkins and his wife Dianna live in Colorado. They have three grown sons and one grandson.
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