Miles McPherson - Senior Pastor, The Rock Church, San Diego

Miles McPherson is the President of Miles Ahead and Senior Pastor of the Rock Church in San Diego, California. As a nationally known speaker, Miles is viewed as an expert on relevant issues such as teen pregnancy, drug use, suicide and gangs, as well as dynamic church leadership and outreach strategies.

Miles was born in Brooklyn, New York in March of 1960. The second oldest of five children, Miles grew up in Long Island, New York with a solid family background. As with most teenage boys, he had dreams of becoming a professional football player. He also had the desire to learn. After playing football in high school, he attended the University of New Haven where he majored in engineering while playing football. Miles was the university's first player to achieve All-American honors and be drafted into the NFL; he attained his dream and played as a defensive back for the San Diego Chargers.

His life began to spiral out of control. Two years into his professional football career, Miles was battling a drug problem and living a very immoral lifestyle. Fellow Chargers teammate Sherman Smith approached McPherson and asked him, "If you were to die right now, would you go to heaven?" It took over six months for Miles to answer that question. Having been up all night doing cocaine and realizing that his life was empty, Miles asked Christ to come into his life in April 1984. The change in his life was dramatic and instant.

Soon after his conversion, Miles began attending Horizon Christian Fellowship in San Diego and reaching out to teenagers. He also began doing motivational speaking with the Chargers' organization. In September 1986, within a week after retiring from football, McPherson went to work as a Youth Pastor for Horizon and enrolled in Azusa Pacific University's School of Theology. He received his Master's of Divinity degree in 1991, and in 1992, founded Miles Ahead, a non- profit organization that reaches out to the world's youth with the Gospel.
The Rock Church held its first services on February 27, 2000 with 3,364 people in attendance. The congregation grew quickly, generating the need for increased services. Currently over 7,500 people attend one of the Rock's six weekend services. The church is has now into its permanent home.

Between his crusades, speaking engagements and Rock Church services, Miles has spoken to over 465,000 people and seen over 43,000 people make decisions for Christ. Miles and his wife Debbie have three children and reside in San Diego, California.




The Rock Church



Praise and Worship at the Rock w/the Katinas