“The Truth Found Me”: Testimony of Calvary Chapel Pastor Raj Ahuja
Photos courtesy of Calvary Prescott, AZ
Raj Ahuja, senior pastor of Calvary Chapel Prescott since 2008, preaches an Easter message from Luke Chapter 24. Raj became a born-again believer in 1997, after hearing Jesus call his name.
For Raj Ahuja, growing up in the 1970s and ’80s in Prescott, AZ, was filled with everything you would expect for a young, intellectual son of Indian immigrants. He was a good student, had a tight-knit and very religious Hindu family, went on to graduate from University of Southern California, get married, and start a wildly successful business. Eventually, Raj also had something else join him along the way, however—something he would always value but never truly understand until when it mattered the most—a relationship with Pastor Al James of Calvary Chapel Prescott.
More specifically, Raj had a relationship with Al’s daughter, Missy James. The two hadn’t started dating until their senior year in high school, and at the time, Raj had become more of an intellectual atheist who was more interested in reading Isaac Asimov than any mythical religious folly, as he saw it. “It felt right,” Raj admitted but added, “I really did desire truth, though.”
“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.” Matthew 7:7
Early Life
Growing up with Hindu parents, some of his earliest childhood memories were of him going into the pooja room, a room set aside for lighting candles and saying prayers, to light incense and pray to whichever god the family needed at the moment. When he describes this part of his upbringing, Raj confessed, “I went through the motions, but I just knew deep down this was empty—there was really nothing there.”
As a teenager, Raj was surrounded by evangelicals in school. His friends shared the Gospel with him, but he was never convinced. He was more taken in by the intellectual scene and was convinced that higher criticism and Darwin’s theory of evolution was the explanation for everything. “Even my own father couldn’t offer me an intellectual reason for their Hindu beliefs,” he lamented.
In the early 1980s, however, God surrounded Raj with a family that would be used to plant seeds of truth in him in ways that would ultimately change the course of his life. Pastor Al James had been discipled by Calvary Chapel founder Pastor Chuck Smith and began a new church in Prescott. The James family eventually moved into a home which, as the Lord would have it, was directly across the street from the Ahuja home.
“She was a pastor’s kid,” Raj lovingly recalled, “a PK and an occasional rebel, but she did tell me about Jesus.” While he still wasn’t convinced of the truth of the Gospel, the influence remained. When Raj and Missy began dating in the late 1980s, he understandably grew closer to Pastor Al, his family, and Calvary Chapel Prescott. “[Pastor Al] was always very nice, and offered to talk about the Bible,” still just empty information for Raj. He considered it to be like the religion of his own parents—just another family tradition, or maybe even some psychological antidote for coping with existential challenges of life. Anything but the actual truth.
Pastor Al described the young Raj as a “very intelligent young man who was also very polite and gracious.” Al went on to say, “He knew we were Christians, and we knew he was an atheist, but always respectful.”
“Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.” Matthew 5:16
Raj and Nate Auvenshine (right), Calvary Prescott elder and Men’s Ministry leader, lead a discussion at their recent two-day men’s conference dedicated to equipping men to walk in faith, perseverance, purity, and power, modeling Jesus Christ.
Life After High School
Raj graduated from high school in 1989 and moved to Los Angeles (LA) to attend the University of Southern California, where he immersed himself in all the intellectual discourse and studies the collegiate world had to offer. Yet even though he moved away from home and all the influences of Pastor Al and CC Prescott, his relationships with the James family and the people of CC Prescott followed him.
“Unfortunately, I had a lot of influence on Missy at the time,” Raj reflected with regret. “Missy moved out to LA to live with me, and we knew her parents were hurt by it.” Even though the couple were aware that Missy’s parents disapproved of their decisions, the family continued to welcome them, showing the love of Christ at every opportunity. Making the frequent drive back to Prescott on weekends, Raj and Missy would attend church on Sunday mornings. “I was simultaneously immersed in two worlds,” he admitted. Even though he was caught up in living a successful, Southern California life, he was also imbued in relationships with the congregation at CC Prescott.
“He would come home and visit with us, and he heard the Gospel every Sunday,” Pastor Al remembered, “but he never accepted the Gospel.” Despite this, the fellowship was warm between Raj and the church. Raj described those Sundays: “Everyone knew who I was, and they loved on me. They would also be bold and would ask why I didn’t yet believe.”
“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.” Matthew 5:7
The atheistic intellectual from Southern California was in a relationship with a Christ-centered congregation where he was exposed to, as he put it, “grace, love, and all things Jesus—it definitely made me pause.”
By the mid-1990s Raj was a very successful businessman. He created a start-up company that would eventually take over the LA market—Food Fetchers, basically the beginning of other delivery services such as DoorDash and Uber Eats.
In 1994, Missy and Raj got married. Their wedding day even included Indian tradition, with the groom riding in on a horse and all the related festivities. Missy’s parents attended, as well as supportive members of CC Prescott. “We supported her because we loved her. I was her father. Becky was her mother and always kept a close watch over Missy,” Al recalled. That Christ-like love is what kept their relationship alive and put the love of Jesus on full display for the young newlyweds.
Raj and Missy had their first child in 1996. He recounted, “Life was comfy. We were doing well financially.” They were living the typical “American dream” and, by all worldly accounts, were winning in life. Everything was good. Then came 1997.
Churchgoers are greeted warmly by Raj and his wife, Missy (center).
The Day Everything Changed
The event that occurred on Saturday, July 5, 1997, in the Ahuja home in Pasadena, CA, unequivocally became the single most life-changing event for both Raj and Missy.
One of Missy’s best friends was in town, and the two women had left the home to grab some groceries. Raj was home alone, literally lying down on his couch watching a soccer game.
“I was watching the game and heard someone at the door say, Raj.” He thought it was just a buddy at the door. “I didn’t even get off the couch when I responded—I just assumed someone outside stuck their head in the door, and I said, ‘Hey!’” There was no answer. Thinking that was a bit odd, he stayed on the couch before hearing it again: Raj!
This time he turned around in bewilderment. Why didn’t they hear me the first time? When he turned around, however, no one was there. “In that moment, I knew one of two things was happening: I was either losing my mind, or this was supernatural.” Raj explained, “I knew I wasn’t going crazy and quickly went through all the possibilities of what sort of deity or being this could be.” He reverted to his usual rational, mental position of looking for some logical explanation.
While he was still struggling to wrap his mind around what was happening, he heard the voice again: You need me. Raj was still freaking out a bit when he replied, “Who are you?”
Again, the voice repeated, You need me. In his mind, Raj went through all the possible gods, listing them by name. Before he even finished the list, however, the voice proclaimed, I am Jesus, and you need me.
“In that instant,” Raj declared, “I was done. My faith was in Him. I absolutely knew this was that One that was with me every moment of my life, and I knew in that moment I was saved.”
The Lord wasn’t done speaking, though. Continuing, He urged, Know me. Learn me. Grow in me. Raj didn’t realize what the Lord was saying at the time, but it would eventually mean Raj using his God-given intellect to learn as much as he could about the truth from God’s Word and become a pastor. “It was so profound. The weight of the world was off my shoulders. I had found the truth—but wait, no, the truth found me.”
Behold, You desire truth in the inward parts, and in the hidden part You will make me to know wisdom. Psalm 51:6
Missy soon returned with her friend, and when she found Raj, it was clear something had happened. He immediately told her what had happened, that he had gotten saved and was talking with Jesus. She honestly thought he was being sarcastic, as he had made fun of Christians before by saying similar things. But when Missy looked intently at her husband, she saw a very real change in him. He looked and talked differently.
That day, Raj and Missy got on their knees in their home praying to Jesus. Raj was praying for salvation, and Missy was praying to rededicate her life to Christ. “We went on a walk at a nearby park in Pasadena, and God transformed my life in that hour. He transformed her life, too. She once again became passionate for Jesus.”
Teaching on the ministry of the Holy Spirit, Raj instructs believers during a Wednesday night service.
Life After Encountering Jesus
After their conversation, Missy called her parents to share the news. Pastor Al and his wife were on vacation, and she was literally in a swimming pool when the call came in. After hearing it, she was so excited that she fell off a float—the lifeguards thought she was drowning. “I think people thought we were crazy,” Al rejoiced, “but we didn’t care. Hallelujah!”
Raj and Missy eventually moved back to Prescott to join the church family that had been so gracious and kind to them all those years. The family business was sold to a large corporation, and Raj went from working in the corporate world to teaching at a Christian school. In 2004, Raj was ordained as a minister, and in 2008, he became the pastor of Calvary Chapel Prescott, where he continues to serve today. “He’s such an articulate teacher,” Al confirmed. “To see how God took his desire for truth and intelligence and use it to make him a teacher is incredible.”
Pastor Al offered encouragement to any parent, pastor, or church member who has been praying for the salvation of someone for so long: “Just continue to pray. Continue to speak the truth. Speak the truth in love, which may look tough at times; but keep loving and keep praying.”
The close connection with the congregation at Calvary Prescott never left Raj during his ‘wilderness’ years, something he attributes to his faith in Jesus.
Thank you for reading! If this story inspired you, we invite you to partner with us in continuing the ministry God started over 26 years ago. We appreciate your prayerful consideration in joining us to reach more souls for Jesus.
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