Where did you grow up?
I was born in New York City, spent some early years on Long Island, then moved to Princeton, New Jersey, where I lived until I went off to college.
But now you live in California?
We moved there after I finished grad school. I don’t like cold weather and wanted to locate someplace where the weather was milder and the opportunities to grow were significant. So after my wife and I explored a few places, we settled on California.
Why California? That was a pretty radical change of scenery.
I love the beach. The ocean energizes me. Just watching it restores me. For me, the ocean is the greatest representation of the power, the magnitude and the beauty of God. The weather is very mild. We can experience the change of seasons with a relatively short drive to various parts of the state. And when we originally moved here we found the openness to new ideas quite stimulating.
Where did you go to school?
I got my undergraduate degree from in sociology from Boston College, and both Masters degrees from Rutgers University. I have an honorary doctorate from Dallas Baptist University.
What has your career path looked like?
After college I spent a few years managing political campaigns for people running for Congress, state assembly, and other offices. After that I was an independent pollster for a number of candidates and some government agencies. Then my wife and I moved to California and I worked as an account executive at one of the nation’s largest marketing research firms, specializing in media research. I left there to run the operations of a media and advertising agency working with Christian ministries before forming The Barna Research Group in 1984. Along the way I have also been a partner in a small advertising agency, a partner in a media development company, and spent a couple of years serving as the teaching pastor at a large multi-ethnic church. And I’ve had the opportunity to teach at the college level for a number of years at schools including Pepperdine University, Biola University and Azusa Pacific University.
You mentioned your wife. Describe your family.
Nancy and I started dating in high school and got married during graduate school. We dated for 7½ years and have been married for more than 30 years. She’s obviously a strong woman! We have three daughters, all of whom are adopted and whom we love dearly. My wife marvels at how much I love to be home with my family.
What is The Barna Research Group?
It has since been renamed The Barna Group, but the organization provides research services and resources to organizations in both the for-profit and non-profit arenas. Our primary focus has been trying to understand and explain the intersection of faith and culture, to help churches, parachurch ministries and individuals navigate the complex but rewarding dimension of faith. Over the years we have worked with a tremendous group of clients, more than 300 organizations and several thousand churches in total. That range of clients has made things quite interesting. We’ve worked with groups ranging from World Vision, Compassion International, and the American Bible Society to Bank of America, The Disney Channel and various presidential campaigns; from Focus on the Family, Campus Crusade and Youth for Christ to Prudential, VISA and Ford Motor Company. Add in numerous denominations and local churches from around the country and it makes for quite a mix. Our goal is to provide current, accurate and reliable information that enables our clients to make better strategic decisions.
You have written nearly four dozen books. Why?
I love writing! Since my earliest years, the written word has mesmerized me. I remember one summer, when I was 10, my family drove on vacation across the country from New Jersey to Colorado. Instead of looking out the window and observing this amazing country pass by, I sat quietly in the back seat of the car and spent the week writing my first “novel.” It was never published, of course, but I’d love to read it today and see what that effort was like. Throughout junior and senior high I received creative writing awards and was a reporter for a couple of regional newspapers (as a sports writer) while I was still in high school. In college I always tried to take courses in which the final grade was based on papers, rather than exams. While still in college I also worked as a speechwriter for several politicians. After graduate school I took on all kinds of writing jobs: advertising copy, direct marketing copy, magazine articles, monographs, and then eventually books. I’ve been honored to receive a bunch of national awards for my books, and to see various titles translated into more than a dozen languages.
Most of all, though, I feel privileged that God has supplied me with a huge body of information that I could analyze and share with people in the hope of advancing His kingdom, and to have the means of getting what I have written into the hands of literally millions of people. That’s pretty humbling. And besides the pure joy I get from the process of writing, it’s a thrill to hear from people who have been helped by what I’ve put on paper.
Do you attend a church?
Forgive me, but I kind of bristle at that expression. “Church” refers to a living organism, not a place, event or institution. I am part of a faith community that meets in the homes of its participants, a house church. I have the privilege of doing most of the teaching in our group, which began meeting in 2005. I also attend a number of services at conventional churches during the year, driven by my travel schedule.
How about your time outside of work. What do you like to do in your free time?
What time? I love reading mystery and suspense novels. I’m especially fond of books by John Grisham, James Patterson, John Sandford, Dan Brown, Joseph Finder, and David Baldacci. I’m also a big music fan and love playing bass and guitar. If I were not doing what I do, I’d probably be on the road with a band, playing and writing songs. Sports are a big deal to me, too, and I have been a big fan of the Lakers and the Yankees. My favorite place to spend time is at the beach. And my favorite people to be with are my wife and daughters.
You mentioned music. Who do you listen to?
Mostly electric blues, featuring great guitar work, and a lot of classic rock. I’m a big fan of Eric Clapton, Paul Gilbert, Joe Bonamassa, Jeff Beck, Brian May, Phil Keaggy and a bunch of other hot players. On bass, nobody touches Billy Sheehan. Bands at the top of my list include Mr. Big, Styx, Dada, and The Eagles. My favorite songwriters include Billy Joel, Randy Stonehill, Steven Curtis Chapman, and Wayne Kirkpatrick. Don’t get me started on this, I could go on forever.
You travel a lot. What are your favorite places?
I have been to so many wonderful places it’s hard to rank them. My favorite places outside of the U.S. would have to include London, Brisbane (Australia), Cape Town (South Africa) and Antigua (Guatemala). There are incredible places everywhere I’ve traveled. I’ve been to 21 foreign nations but there are still dozens of countries I am eager to explore. And my wife, the incorrigible traveler, will probably see to it that we get to them!
What are your plans for the future?
There are always a number of book projects I’m working on at any given moment, so books will continue to be a big part of my future. I’m working with various organizations that are focused on child development, leadership enhancement, media content, and worldview development. Those are all important components that I want to contribute some value to. I’d also like to be heavily engaged in one more presidential campaign, if the right candidate comes along. Leading our little faith community is a good challenge. And on the personal side, I’ll keep trying to improve my musicianship, and being intimately involved in the lives of my wife and daughters is a kick.
What is your favorite or most meaningful Bible verse?
I really can’t narrow it down to just one – that’d probably insult God! But among my favorites are Mark 12:30, Proverb 29:18, Ecclesiastes 12:13, I Chronicles 12:32, and James 2:18. And the list could go on. The Bible is like a compendium of God’s greatest hits! It’s all great stuff.
What is your personal vision statement?
To be an agent of transformation enabling God’s people to understand the times and know the best course of action to pursue.
