Meet John

Hi, I'm John Westfall.

Thank you for visiting this website. I want you to know I think writing can be a conversation, not just a monologue, so I appreciate your input and encouragement.

To give you a little picture of who I am, let me share a little bit about where I've been. I was born in East L.A. in the very Catholic Queen of Angels hospital. According to family lore, I was a difficult birth for my mother. I was backwards with the cord wrapped around my head, and some people think I've been that way my whole life. 

In my early years, my family took a bit of a detour and we moved to West Africa where we lived deep in the jungle in The Cameroons. We lived in a leper colony while my dad built a hospital for the village. Because it was all I knew, I thought this was what everyone's life was like. It wasn't until we moved back to southern California that I realized nobody's life was like that. Maybe being in Africa gave me the feeling that I didn't belong. So, wherever I was, I felt like an outsider. 

After what seemed like a ridiculous amount of education, I had the privilege of serving as a pastor in some wonderful congregations where my life was enhanced by interesting, gifted, and often troubled people. These folks helped me discover that our lives can be filled with wonderful and difficult things at the same time. The past few years I was Pastor at Harbor Church in Seattle, Washington.  My friend Baron Schaaf faithfully posted various sermons on Youtube.  You can listen to them by clicking here.

People send me photos of the random and unconventional places they find my books. Take a moment to check out my photo album page and enjoy some of the quirky sites. I'll also be adding photos of family, friends, and other great life moments.

We all have a story, many of which are not finished yet. In my books, I talk about the twists and turns of my life. I look forward to hearing your story as well. I invite you to contact me and share a little bit of what is happening in your life and what are your hopes for the future.