Who Is Rick Schworer?

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I’ve had a number of people online ask me who I am, and where I came from. I’ve had several ask me if I’m a pastor and I was amused to receive a snail-mail letter this week addressed to a “Rev. Rick Schworer.” About a week ago I was looking at what people typed in google to find this site, and someone typed in “Who is Rick Schworer.”
Well, I suppose it would be a good idea if you knew who I was, now wouldn’t it? I mean, why bother reading anything I have to say - for all you know I may be some maniac on a smoke break from his prison cell or a loser living in his mother’s basement.
I was born in 1979 in Sunrise Hospital, within Las Vegas, Nevada. Fortunately, my parents didn’t raise me in that hell-hole. The city that is, I'm sure the hospital is just dandy. My parents both got saved around the time that I was three years old, and they moved to Idaho and began attending Treasure Valley Baptist Church when I was five. Part of the motivation for them moving out of Vegas was when I began to ask questions about women stripping on billboards. While I do understand that there are those called to hold the line as best they can in places like Las Vegas, I’m very thankful my parents were not and that they had the common sense and decency not to raise me around that sort of debauchery.
At Treasure Valley Baptist Church in Meridian, Idaho, we found a home. I was saved the very next year at our church’s very first Vacation Bible School. TVBC didn’t have another VBS for another twenty years; it was exciting to see it again not too long ago.

I discovered Superman and Batman as a kid.
At thirteen years of age, God moved us to Phoenix, Arizona, and my father was an assistant pastor in a small church in a run-down, bad side of town. It was fairly common to hear gunshots in the neighborhood and see a prostitute here and there. The church was dying, and when my dad came it brought a last breath of fresh air to the people there. We were able to be a blessing and to be used. I discovered Basketball and became a rabid Phoenix Suns fan as I watched the Suns, led by Charles Barkley, squash team after team only to fall to MJ's legendary Chicago Bulls.


One year later, the Lord moved us to Georgia. Dad taught in the Word for the World Baptist Bible Institute for the next three years, and while I was being homeschooled I took about twenty classes in this institute and also worked for my dad who was a painter. I discovered coffee at Bible class. Actually, I discovered that coffee is good if you mix it with a lot of sugar and cream.

We moved back to Idaho for a short while and eventually the Lord led us to go somewhere that no Schworer had gone before… Papua New Guinea. I was eighteen, and loved every minute of it over the next two years. I purposed in my heart that while I was there I’d do a few things: learn to preach and teach the Bible, learn the language, and learn the guitar. I did all three, for the most part. I haven’t really played a guitar since PNG (that was eleven years ago), and if someone asked me if I could play today I’d say, “I know a couple chords,” which really is the truth.

I did learn how to preach and teach the Bible; in fact I fell head over heels in love with the word of God. I would work in the garage area we had for hours on end, listening to Bible preaching and teaching tapes. I ingested thousands of hours of Bible teaching and preaching during those years. I preached on the streets, in churches, and regularly in High Schools.
I also learned the language. I got to where I was fluent in it, although I don’t know how well I’d do now, and I could translate on the fly. It was common for me to translate for an English speaking preacher. After doing this one evening, I was approached by a member of the translation committee for the PNG KJV. At that time there was no KJV Old Testament, but people were working on it. He asked me if I’d be interested in helping out, and I agreed. Over a course of time, I translated the book of Daniel.
Coming back to America was tough; all I really wanted to do was go back to PNG and have fun serving the Lord. As of yet, God has not chosen to allow that, but I’m still hoping He changes His mind. I jumped back into church and started serving the Lord and going to Bible school.
One night, while checking my e-mail, I decided to see if I could find a pretty girl online who was a Christian. What a dumb idea! God was merciful, and I found my wife today, who apparently was looking for a young man who was handsome and an amazing tap dancer, marksman, and writer, though a little sarcastic and somewhat of a whiner in real life. I contacted her, and the rest is history.

My wife, Melissa, is wonderful. She is very big-picture oriented and strives for holiness more than anyone I know. She is and forever will be my best friend. She puts up with me, encourages me, and spends time doing things with me. She was my very first real girlfriend, and the only woman I've ever kissed. It's a little known secret that she's a granddaughter of the late Bruce Cummons, but she'd rather be known as my wife. She has a Master's Degree in biblical counseling, and is an amazing stay-at-home mother to our children.
We were married on May 16th, 2003. I graduated from Bible Institute, bought a house, and got married all within a two week period. Who says men can’t multi-task! We’ve had our bumps in the road, but overall we’ve had a wonderful marriage.
My father died on September 1, 2004. I had always dreamed of a time in which my children would get to know and grow up loving my dad. That dream died too; all my kids know about Grandpa is a few pictures and stories here and there. Outside of my wife, he was my best friend and I will forever miss him. Every year we go to his grave to celebrate his life. Before Mom and Dad, there was no Christianity with the Schworers.

On April 4th, 2006, Kiera Elise was born. We moved into a different house so we’d have room for her and more kids. Kiera is our sanguine/melancholy type. She’s very silly, and very detail oriented.

On November 25th, 2007, a day that will forever live in infamy, Lily Marie Schworer was born.  Depending upon which way the wind is blowing at the moment, she is either the happiest little girl in the world or the saddest.  Don’t get the wrong idea though; she is a wonderful little girl.  She is by far the most compassionate little one we have in our family; the other two are slightly antagonistic.  I have no idea where they get that.  The same year Lily was born I graduated from a secular college.

My clone, in female form, was born on August 11th, 2009. Charlotte Jane has my laid-back and slightly goofy personality and is the only person I know who loves chocolate milk more than me.
Why do I tell you about my family when this is supposed to be about me? Because my family is a lot of who I am. We do everything together, in fact we feel kinda weird and lonely when we do things by ourselves. We love our kids, and plan on having more - the Bible says they are a blessing! Melissa is pregnant with our fourth, and I’m hoping that maybe this time it will be a boy - ya right, who am I kidding?
My wife and I have been active in several ministries. She has a beautiful voice and has made two cds which are available at our website and in a few books stores here and there across the nation. She is very active in our church’s music ministry and kid’s ministries. I run the rescue mission ministry, and teach a Jr. Church class for bus kids.
I work in the insurance industry and have taken writing up as a hobby. When I was in PNG I used to try to study and figure out doctrinal subjects, and then I’d write an essay on them and give it to my dad to review and straighten me out. Years and years later I picked up a book by Sam Gipp called How to Get Your Book Published. It was a call-out for people who could write to write, and Brother Gipp’s publishing company would help you out. While studying the insurance industry and working three jobs I thought I’d go ahead and try it – why not? The book is finished now and published through Daystar Publishing, and it has been dedicated to my dad.
I have been so blessed and lived a very fulfilling and happy life up to this point. I’ve learned that sin only brings heartache and the happiest times in life are found in being busy serving the Lord. Though I’d love to be someday, I’m not a pastor or a missionary; but I am a husband, father, preacher, and writer. I’m just flesh, and all flesh is grass – “Prone to wander, Lord I feel it, prone to leave the God I love!” God has truly been merciful to me in not pounding me at times I deserved it (I'm not big into expounding on those times), and He’s been gracious in giving me so much more than I ever deserved.
Who is Rick Schworer? I’m one of the ones in Luke 17:10; I am an unprofitable servant: I have done that which was my duty to do.

2 comments:

Vera Godley said...

Delightful "read" on who you are, Rick. We are all prone to wander as you said in the ending. But God is gracious to us and holds on to us so we don't wander too far if we are truly His. God is good and I believe you have a real future in writing and speaking for Him.

Rick Schworer said...

Thanks, I'm glad you liked it.