Ronald D. Mehl

Infobox Person
name = Pastor Ron Mehl


caption = Ron Mehl
birth_name = Ronald Duane Mehl
birth_date = birth date|1944|4|22
birth_place = Breckenridge, Minnesota
death_date = death date and age|2003|5|30|1944|4|22
death_cause = Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia
death_place =
known_for = Largest congregation in Oregon, award winning author, radio broadcast "Heart of the Word"
education = LIFE Bible College (now Life Pacific College)
occupation = Former Senior Pastor, Beaverton Foursquare Church; founder Compassion Ministries

Ronald Duane Mehl (April 22, 1944 – May 30, 2003) was the Senior Pastor of the Beaverton Foursquare Church in Beaverton, Oregon, United States from 1973 until his death in 2003.

Commonly known as Pastor Ron, Ron Mehl graduated from LIFE Bible College (now Life Pacific College) in 1966. That same year he married Joyce Hamrick, also a LIFE Bible college graduate. Pastor Ron and Joyce have two sons, Ron Jr. and Mark. Joyce, Ron Jr., and Mark still reside in the Portland, Oregon, area, with Mark now serving as the senior Pastor of Westside Chapel in Lake Oswego, Oregon.

Ron Mehl began his ministry service in June 1966 as a representative of LIFE Bible College, and became the Youth Pastor at the Portland Foursquare Church in September 1966. By 1969, he was serving as the Youth Director for the Great Lakes District in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Pastor Ron left Kenosha in 1973 to become the senior pastor of the Beaverton Foursquare Church in Beaverton, Oregon. [Herzog, Boaz. "Pastor leaves mark well beyond growth, love of his church", "The Oregonian", June 1, 2003] That first Sunday, only a dozen people attended service. Over the next 30 years, however, attendance on Sundays grew to over 6,000 people, resulting in the largest church congregation in Oregon in 1999. [O'Keefe, Mark. "Pastor offers lesson in living with leukemia", "The Oregonian", March 15, 1999.]

Pastor Ron held a variety of leadership positions within the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel, including serving for 25 years on the Executive Council, and for more than 20 years as Superintendent of the Columbia West Division. While still senior Pastor at Beaverton, the Board of Regents of LIFE Bible College called upon Pastor Ron to serve as interim president, a position which he held from July 1992 until August 1994. [ [http://www.lifepacific.edu/about/index.html About Life Pacific College] ] He was also recognized as one of a handful of pastors helping the Foursquare church experience large growth in the 1970s. [ [http://www.foursquare.org/landing_pages/10,3.html Foursquare History: 1944-Present] , "History of the Foursquare Church", excerpted in part from The Vine and the Branches: A History of the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel, by Nathaniel M. Van Cleave, 1992.]

It was in 1980 that Ron Mehl was first diagnosed with Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia. Though told he would probably live for only 5 to 6 more years, he continued his ministry efforts for more than 22 years, reaching tens of thousands of people with his weekly sermons, radio broadcast, books, missions trips, and numerous speaking engagements.

Awards and Acknowledgements

*Conferred the Doctor of Divinity degree in 1985 by the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel
*At the request of Senator Mark Hatfield, delivered the Benediction prayer for the 104^th Congress, Second Session to the Senate on May 21, 1996 [ [http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/getpage.cgi?dbname=1996_record&page=S5397&position=all Congressional Record] , Proceedings and Debates of the 104th Congress, Second Session]
*Two Gold Medallion awards [Evangelical Christian Publishers Association, [http://www.ecpa.org/christianbookawards/gm1995.php 1995 Awards] and [http://www.ecpa.org/christianbookawards/gm2000.php 2000 Awards] ] in Christian Literature for "God Works the Night Shift" and "Just in Case I Can’t Be There"
*The Mehl Court Gymnasium, Life Pacific College (dedicated 2003) [ [http://www.lifepacific.edu/admissions/Flash/QuickFacts/QFacts.swf Life Pacific College "Campus Life"] ]

Published Works

*"Surprise Endings: Ten Good Things About Bad Things" (Multnomah Publishers, 1993)
*"God Works the Night Shift" (Multnomah Publishers, 1994) – Gold Medallion Award, 1995
*"Meeting God at a Dead End" (Multnomah Publishers, 1996)
*"What God Whispers in the Night" (Multnomah Publishers, 1996, 2000)
*"The Cure for a Troubled Heart: Meditations on Psalm 37" (Multnomah Publishers, 1996)
*"The Ten(der) Commandments: Reflections on the Father’s Love" (Multnomah Publishers, 1998)
*"Love Found a Way: Stories of Christmas" (Waterbrook Press, 1999)
*"Just in Case I Can’t Be There" (Multnomah Publishers, 1999) – Gold Medallion Award, 2000
*"A Prayer That Moves Heaven" (Multnomah Publishers, 2002)
*"Right With God" (Multnomah Publishers, 2003) – Chosen as the official 2003 National Day of Prayer theme book
*"How God Decorates Heaven" (Multnomah Publishers, 2003)
*"Who Did It" (Kregel Publications, 2004)
*"The Greatest Gift: A Collection Devoted to Prayer" (Multnomah Publishers, 2006, contributing author)
*"After Words" (Multnomah Publishers, 2006)

Heart of the Word

Heart of the Word is a radio broadcast which airs sermons from Pastor Ron’s tenure as senior pastor of Beaverton Foursquare Church. Heart of the Word was founded in 1979 and has broadcast over 6000 messages, continuing to air nationwide in the United States, including on the Calvary Satellite Network.

Compassion Ministries

Compassion Ministries is a non-profit organization founded by Pastor Ron in Portland, Oregon in 1994. Pastor Ron’s vision for Compassion Ministries was to be a resource for struggling young pastors and missionaries, to provide assistance for various worldwide missions projects, and to help spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Footnotes

References

* [http://www.compassion-ministries.org/ Compassion Ministries]
* [http://www.cnnw.com/articles/articles07-03-2.html "Christian News Northwest" article]

External links

* [http://www.compassion-ministries.org/ Compassion Ministries website]
* [http://www.beavertonfoursquare.org/ Beaverton Foursquare Church website]
* [http://www.familylife.com/articles/article_detail.asp?id=899 Choosing a Life Partner article]
* [http://www.lifeway.com/lwc/article_main_page/0%2C1703%2CA%253D161599%2526M%253D200272%2C00.html Article by Andy Cook]
* [http://www.chuckhawks.com/pastor_jim_mehl.htm Tribute note by Pastor Jim Jenkins]
* [http://www.foursquare.org/articles/chi_resources_list.sd?catid=25 Presentations on Church Health]