Comments for Dangerous Calling: Part 2 "The Unique Temptations of Ministry":

Biography

Paul was born in Toledo, Ohio to Bob and Fae Tripp on November 12, 1950. Bob and Fae had recently come to faith in Christ and were very excited about parenting as believers. The Tripp family was committed to having daily family worship, being at church every time the doors were open - even family vacations were spent at the local church conference grounds! Although sounding ideal, Paul’s family was not without significant struggles, which God used to build in him a desire to see the Gospel applied to the realities of life in a fallen world. God used this early and frequent exposure to his truth to bring Paul to Christ at the age of nine. Paul spent all of his growing years in Toledo until his college years when his parents moved to Southern California.

At Columbia Bible College from 1968-1972, (now Columbia International University) Paul majored in Bible and Christian Education. Although he had planned to be there for only two years and then to study journalism, Paul more and more felt like there was so much of the theology of Scripture that he did not understand, so he decided to go to seminary. Paul met Luella Jackson at College and they married in 1971. In 1971, Paul took his first pastoral position and has had a heart for the local church ever since.

After college, Paul completed his Master of Divinity degree at the Reformed Episcopal Seminary (now known as Philadelphia Theological Seminary) in Philadelphia (1972-1975). It was during these days that Paul’s commitment to ministry solidified.

After seminary, Paul was involved in planting a church in Scranton, Pennsylvania (1977-1987) where he also founded a Christian School. During the years in Scranton, Paul became involved in music, traveling with a band and writing worship songs. In Scranton, Paul became interested in biblical counseling and decided to enroll in the D.Min program in Biblical Counseling at Westminster Theological Seminary, Philadelphia. Paul then became a faculty member of the Christian Counseling and Educational Foundation (CCEF) and a lecturer in biblical counseling at Westminster Theological Seminary, Philadelphia. Paul has also served as Visiting Professor at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, KY.

Beginning In June, 2006, Paul became the President of Paul Tripp Ministries, a non profit organization, whose mission statement is "Connecting the transforming power of Jesus Christ to everyday life." In addition to his current role as President of Paul Tripp Ministries, on January 1, 2007, Paul also became part of the pastoral staff at Tenth Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia, PA where he preaches every Sunday evening and leads the Ministry to Center City.

In 2009, along with Paul's responsibilities with his speaking schedule for Paul Tripp Ministries and his role as Teaching Pastor on Sunday evenings at Tenth Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia, Paul is also Professor of Pastoral Life and Care at the Redeemer Seminary in Dallas, Texas.
.
Paul, Luella, and their four children moved to Philadelphia in 1987 and have lived there ever since. Luella manages a large commercial art gallery in the city and Paul is very dedicated to painting as an avocation. Paul’s driving passion is to help people understand how the gospel of the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ really does speak with practical hope into all the things they will face in this broken world. Paul is a pastor with a pastor’s heart, a gifted speaker, his journey taking him all over the world, an author of numerous books on practical Christian living, and a man who is hopelessly in love with Luella.

A Quote from Paul

Many years of ministry has fueled my passion for people to understand, in an intensely practical way, the simple, yet life-altering themes of the Biblical story of redemption in Jesus Christ. I am also driven to help people grasp the present benefits of the work of Christ in their marriages, parenting, careers, and all of life. As a pastor, my heart is in and for the local church, God’s primary instrument of change on earth; I love doing anything I can to assist our church leaders to function, in the places God has positioned them, as instruments of redemption.