Roger Moyers: “I’d been a surfer all my life and he looked like he was, too. He spoke to my heart and to my life.”

Membership: 260

Pastor: Roger Moyers

Age: 55

Born: Redlands, California

Formation: Calvary Chapel School of Ministry, Sierra Vista

Years Ordained: 17

San Diego Reader: What is your main concern as a member of the clergy?

Pastor Roger Moyer: One of the things that weighs heavy on my mind are the youth. Not at all churches, but at some churches you just don’t see the youth attending like they used to. You don’t see the large youth groups. Especially among the young college-aged, you see a falling away. We try to have a high school pastor on [a] high school campus every week, at different clubs like the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. We also do outreaches to reach the youth. We also have the Sunday night service geared toward young adults, college-aged. This service has a little edgier, louder music, but the gospel message is the same.

SDR: What is the most prevalent sin you observe or hear about from your congregants?

PR: Looking at the economy and the world situation, a lot of questions come up. But these things are also bringing a lot of new people to the church. I think people are concerned when you see earthquakes, wars, and rumors of wars. The political questions bring a lot of people to ask, “Doesn’t the Bible say something about earthquakes and wars?” So people want to know. We’ve probably added in the last four months about 80 people.

SDR: Why did you become a minister?

PR: Somebody invited me to a concert one night. I was living a pretty wild life. It was a Christian concert at Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa, and this guy in long hair and a beard got up and he gave the message. I’d been a surfer all my life and he looked like he was, too. He spoke to my heart and to my life. I accepted the Lord — that was 30 years ago.

SDR: What is the mission of your church?

PR: The mission is to win people to Jesus Christ, to make them disciples in the name of the Lord, and to send them out into the world and encourage people. I’m always reminding the people that love never fails.

SDR: What is the greatest strength of your church in carrying out this mission?

PR: Every time there’s a disaster, whether it was 9/11 or the tsunami in Thailand or Hurricane Katrina, there are always teams going to those places from our church. When the San Diego wildfires happened, the church was an evacuation center. I was a chaplain for the San Diego Sheriff’s Department and the Carlsbad Fire Department. I was on the front lines, and we were able to minister to the people.

SDR: Where do you go when you die?

PR: You go to Heaven, if you’re born again — and if not, the Bible says you go to Hell. But no one has to go to Hell because the choice is ours. “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life…” [John 3:16-17]. We all remember that the God of the Bible loves us. And He loves us so much that He sent His Son to lay down His life for us. Boy, talk about a love story — this is it.