pastor jerel hagerman
Pastor Jerel Hagerman grew up on a farm near Larned, Kansas. He came to Christ in 1975 and quickly sensed a call to ministry. In 1978, he and his wife Cindy moved to California to attend Bible college at Sky Valley Desert Retreat Center. After training, he pastored Macksville Christian Center in Kansas for nine years before being called back to California in 1990 to lead Living Stream Christian Fellowship.
Pastoral Ministry
In 2001, Living Stream became Joshua Springs Calvary Chapel. Jerel faithfully pastored the same church for 34 years, guiding its growth into a powerful ministry. In January 2025, he passed the leadership to Pastor BJ Huether.
Calvary Bible Institute
In 2017, Jerel founded Calvary Bible Institute with a donated building and 27 students. Today, it has grown into a global movement with nearly 30 campuses and continued expansion on the horizon.
Jerel’s life’s work is dedicated to equipping the saints—whether through planting Bible colleges, teaching, or raising up pastors. He continues to serve full-time, faithfully answering the call placed on him decades ago.
Family & Personal Life
In 2007, after three decades of marriage, Jerel’s wife Cindy went to be with the Lord following a battle with cancer. In a story of grace and shared calling, Jerel later married Merrily, whose husband, also a pastor, had passed away from the same form of cancer. Jerel and Merrily have now been married for 18 years, serving side by side in ministry.
a Farmer looks at the Parable of the Sower,
by jerel hagerman
“Before I ever picked up a Bible, I picked up a shovel,” writes Pastor Jerel Hagerman, a lifelong farmer-turned-pastor. In this powerful book, he brings fresh, field-tested insight to Jesus’ parable of the sower in Matthew 13. Drawing on decades of farming and ministry experience, Hagerman explores how the condition of the soil—our hearts—affects how we receive the Word of God.
Through real-life stories of heartbreak, surrender, and revival, including the miraculous growth of Calvary Bible Institute and the personal loss of his first wife, Hagerman offers honest encouragement for anyone sowing seeds of faith. Whether you’re a pastor, parent, student, or spiritual seeker, A Farmer Looks at the Parable of the Sower invites you to join the Sower in the field—to sow widely, love deeply, and trust that the harvest is worth it.