This month I’m excited to welcome Troy Anderson as the new managing editor of Charisma. While I maintain the title of founding editor, Troy replaces Marcus Yoars who has felt the call of God to serve as a missionary in Europe.
Troy is the fourth editor to sit in this seat. I was the first, then J. Lee Grady and, most recently, Marcus Yoars—to whom I owe a great debt of gratitude for the hard work and professionalism he brought to the position.
Besides being an outstanding editor, Troy is an author, speaker and Pulitzer Prize-nominated journalist who spent two decades working as a reporter, bureau chief, editorial writer and editor at the Los Angeles Daily News, The Press-Enterprise and other newspapers. He has also written for media organizations as diverse as Reuters, Newsmax and Christianity Today and has interviewed everyone from Billy Graham to Rabbi Jonathan Cahn to Kirk Cameron. During his career, Troy has received numerous journalistic accolades: more than two dozen local, state and national writing awards and two Eddie Awards. He was featured as an investigative reporter in The McGraw-Hill Companies book, Careers for Puzzle-Solvers & Other Methodical Thinkers.
We feel honored to have an editor with such strong journalistic credentials join our team. Troy has worked with us for many years as a freelancer. He started writing for us in 2007, and in October 2009 he wrote the cover story in Charisma titled “Last Days Fever.” In December 2012 he wrote the story “America at the End” for Charisma.
Afterward, successful Hollywood producers who had read the story and were interested in turning it into a film contacted Troy. This resulted in a major book, which will be released by Hachette Book Group in September 2015. The nonfiction book, which explores one of the Bible’s greatest mysteries, is the result of a five-year investigation into whether the world is now in the run-up to the end-times events predicted in Scripture.
Troy says he feels a special affinity toward Charisma, as he has been reading it since he was a teenager! At 11, he met a Jesus movement youth pastor from Southern California who studied Bible prophecy at the UCLA Light and Power House seminary under Hal Lindsey, author of the best-selling nonfiction book of the 1970s—The Late Great Planet Earth. The pastor told Troy how the Bible predicts the Antichrist would lead a global government and economic system before the Second Coming. He then led Troy to the Lord and later introduced him to Charisma.
Troy says he is excited about this new role because Charisma influences leaders in the Pentecostal/charismatic movement, one of the world’s fastest-growing religious groups and one that is key to the future of the church. In the last century, the number of Pentecostals, charismatics and members of independent churches has grown from less than 1 million to more than 600 million.
“Many countries—including America—are in a moral free-fall, and many believe the great falling away is already underway,” he says. “Many faith leaders believe America’s sole hope is another Great Awakening. I believe the Pentecostal/charismatic movement will take on an increasingly visible role as a conduit for the work of the Holy Spirit as a strong and courageous voice to uphold Judeo-Christian traditions and biblical truth.”
A year ago, Troy interviewed Billy Graham right before Graham’s 95th birthday. The legendary evangelist told him that the signs of the end of the age are converging for the first time since Jesus made those predictions almost 2,000 years ago.
Troy says he feels humbled to be given this opportunity to serve Charisma and the church in this role. He says he anticipates that in the years ahead Charisma will continue to provide news, ministry tools and inspirational content to pastors, ministers and believers who are on the front lines of the global spiritual battle.
“In the years ahead, Charisma will play a critical and prophetic role in the church—helping influence the larger Christian community with its strong adherence to biblical integrity,” Troy says.
Please join me in welcoming Troy Anderson to the Charisma family.
Steve Strang is the founding editor and publisher of Charisma. Follow him on Twitter @sstrang or Facebook (stephenestrang).
Stephen Strang