Max Lucado will visit April 25 to accept the “Friend of the Year” award from the Friends of ACU Library and to help inaugurate the Max Lucado Collection at the Brown Library.
John Weaver, dean of library services and educational technology, said Lucado was an obvious honoree.
“I’m hoping that current ACU students and the Abilene community will see the deep impact that ACU had on Lucado’s life, as well as the ways that he sought to serve God and others through his writing,” Weaver said.
Randy Harris, spiritual director for the College of Biblical Studies, praised Lucado.
“Years and years ago, I read one of his books, No Wonder they Call Him the Savior,” Harris said. “It had one of the most authentic voices in Christian literature I had ever heard, and it was clear that this book was written by a guy who had firsthand experience meeting the Savior.”
Lucado is a best-selling Christian author and pastor of Oak Hills Church, formerly known as Oak Hills Church of Christ, in San Antonio. Lucado attended ACU and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in mass communication in 1977 and a master’s degree in Bible and biblical studies. Lucado has three daughters, Sara, Andrea and Jenna, and has been married to Denalyn Lucado for over 30 years.
In 1983, Lucado and his wife moved to Brazil to plant churches, where Lucado wrote newsletters to friends and family to update them about his ministry. Eventually, Lucado turned the newsletters into a manuscript and sent it to 15 different publishers.
Lucado’s first book was published in 1985 and since then, he has published close to 100 books with more than 80 million copies in print, and received three “Gold Medal Christian Book of the Year” awards for his books Just Like Jesus, In the Grip of Grace and When God Whispers Your Name. He’s appeared regularly on several best seller lists, including the New York Times best seller list.
Lucado’s reviews on numerous book-rating sites, such as christianbook.com, are overwhelmingly positive, saying that he consistently writes books among the best-selling and well-reviewed in the industry, and calling him “a rare author who can craft memorable books for all ages, races and creeds.”
Lucado’s other accomplishments include being named “America’s Pastor” by Christianity Today and “The Best Preacher in America” by Reader’s Digest. Lucado has appeared on numerous TV shows and has also been the featured speaker at the National Prayer Breakfast.
