Biography of Pastor Charles Swindoll

Pastor Charles Rozell Swindoll, who was born on October 18th, 1934, is an evangelical Christian pastor, author, educator, and radio preacher. He founded Insight for Living, headquartered in Frisco, Texas, which airs a radio program of the same name on more than 2,000 stations around the world in 15 languages. He is currently senior pastor at Stonebriar Community Church, in Frisco, Texas.

Swindoll was born on October 18, 1934, in El Campo in Wharton County, Texas, the third of three children born to Earl and Lovell Swindoll. He attended Charles H. Milby High School in Houston. He credits his drama teacher, Dick Nieme, for helping him manage his stutter. As a member of the school marching band and orchestra, he learned to play all of the instruments in the woodwind section, although the clarinet remained his primary instrument. After graduating from high school, he studied mechanical engineering while working for Reed Roller Bit Company in Houston, Texas. Swindoll then fulfilled his military service obligation with the United States Marine Corps, first in San Francisco, then on the Japanese island of Okinawa. Part of his duty included playing in the Marine Corps Marching Band.

After his honorable discharge in 1959, he attended Dallas Theological Seminary, where he graduated magna cum laude four years later.

Charles R. Swindoll has devoted his life to the accurate, practical teaching and application of God’s Word and His grace. A pastor at heart, Chuck has served as senior pastor to congregations in Texas, Massachusetts, and California. Since 1998, he has served as the founder and senior pastor-teacher of Stonebriar Community Church in Frisco, Texas, but Chuck’s listening audience extends far beyond a local church body. As a leading program in Christian broadcasting since 1979, Insight for Living airs in major Christian radio markets around the world, reaching people groups in languages they can understand. Chuck’s extensive writing ministry has also served the body of Christ worldwide and his leadership as president and now chancellor of Dallas Theological Seminary has helped prepare and equip a new generation for ministry. Chuck and Cynthia, his partner in life and ministry, have four grown children, ten grandchildren, and seven great-grandchildren.

While on the island of Okinawa during his tour of duty in the United States Marine Corps, Chuck recognized that the Lord was calling him to devote his life to the gospel ministry. With Cynthia, his partner in life since 1955, Chuck has devoted himself to the challenge of communicating practical, biblical truth and its application in the context of God’s grace.

After being honorably discharged from the Marine Corps, Chuck enrolled in Dallas Theological Seminary [DTS]. Chuck’s course of study at DTS and the lifelong mentors he met there have permanently marked his life and the course of his ministry.

Chuck graduated magna cum laude from Dallas Theological Seminary in 1963 with three major honors:

• Harry A. Ironside Award for Expository Preaching
• Christian Education Award for the greatest achievement in the field of his academic major
• Faculty Award for the most outstanding graduate in the opinion of the faculty

Chuck has also received four honorary doctorate degrees in recognition of his outstanding contributions to ministry:

• Doctor of Divinity, Talbot Theological Seminary, 1977
• Doctor of Humane Letters, Taylor University, 1986
• Doctor of Laws, Pepperdine University, 1990
• Doctor of Literature, Dallas Baptist University, 1997

For more than 50 years, Chuck’s pulpit ministry has emphasized the grace of God alongside an uncompromising commitment to practical, biblical truth and its application. He has served the following congregations in his pastoral ministry:

• Grace Bible Church, Dallas, Texas, Assistant Pastor, 1963–1965
• Waltham Evangelical Free Church, Waltham, Massachusetts, 1965–1967
• Irving Bible Church, Irving, Texas, 1967–1971
• First Evangelical Free Church, Fullerton, California, 1971–1994
• Stonebriar Community Church, Frisco, Texas. In October of 1998, Chuck founded Stonebriar Community Church, where he continues to serve as senior pastor.

As a pastor, Chuck has received the following awards:

• Clergyman of the Year, Religious Heritage of America, 1988
• Named one of the top twelve preachers in the nation by the Effective Preachers Program of Baylor University and George W. Truett Theological Seminary, 1997, 2018
• Ranked second to Rev. Billy Graham in a 2009 survey which asked 800 Protestant pastors to name the living Christian preachers who most influenced them (survey conducted by LifeWay Research).

Chuck’s congregation extends far beyond the local church body. Through the Insight for Living broadcast, Chuck’s teaching is on the air in every major Christian radio market in all 50 states and through more than 2,100 outlets worldwide in numerous foreign languages, and it is also available to an exploding online and podcast audience. While Chuck serves as chairman of the board, his wife, Cynthia, serves as president and chief executive officer of Insight for Living Ministries. They have directed its expansion to become one of the leading radio programs in Christian broadcasting. Headquartered in Frisco, Texas, Insight for Living Ministries now has a staff of over 90 employees. We also maintain offices in Boronia Victoria for our Australian listeners, in Brasilia for our Brazilian listeners, in Vancouver for our Canadian listeners, and in London for our listeners in the United Kingdom.

As teacher on Insight for Living, Chuck has received the following awards:

• Program of the Year, National Religious Broadcasters, 1994
• Religious Broadcaster of the Year, National Religious Broadcasters, 1999
• Hall of Fame Award, National Religious Broadcasters, 2000
• Radio Impact Award, National Religious Broadcasters, 2021

Chuck’s prolific writing ministry has blessed the body of Christ for decades. Beginning with You and Your Child in 1977, Chuck has contributed more than 70 titles to a worldwide reading audience. His most popular books in the Christian Bookseller’s Association include:

• Strengthening Your Grip
• Improving Your Serve
• Dropping Your Guard
• Living on the Ragged Edge
• Living Above the Level of Mediocrity
• The Grace Awakening
• Simple Faith
• Laugh Again
• The Finishing Touch
• Intimacy with the Almighty
• Suddenly One Morning
• The Mystery of God’s Will
• Wisdom for the Way
• The Darkness and the Dawn
• A Life Well Lived
• Great Lives from God’s Word series, which includes Joseph, David, Esther, Moses, Elijah, Paul, Job, and Jesus: The Greatest Life of All

After serving as Dallas Theological Seminary’s fourth president for seven years (1994–2001), Chuck became the seminary’s chancellor in 2001. As the sixth-largest seminary in the world, DTS’s primary goal is to equip godly servant-leaders for the proclamation of God’s Word and the building up of the body of Christ worldwide, a mission Chuck wholeheartedly supports in his life and teaching. He continues to uphold the school’s motto, “Preach the Word,” as he serves in leadership at Dallas Theological Seminary, at Insight for Living Ministries, and at Stonebriar Community Church.