Ray Johnston

Ray Johnston is the founding pastor of Bayside Church in the Sacramento, California suburb of Granite Bay. Under Pastor Ray's leadership, in just eighteen years Bayside has become one of the largest churches in the nation, with over 12,000 people coming together every weekend for worship, teaching, prayer and connection at the Granite Bay campus, and thousands more in multiple affiliated churches throughout the Sacramento area.

Ray is the founder of Thriving Churches International, and Thrive Communications. He is a veteran of both youth and adult ministry, having crisscrossed the nation for years as a top instructor for Youth Specialties. A graduate of Azusa Pacific University and Fuller Theological Seminary, he was Chairman of the Department of Youth Ministry at North Park College and an adjunct professor at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. He currently serves on the Board of Directors at Azusa Pacific University.

Ray and his wife, Carol, are the proud parents of Mark, Scott, and twins Leslie and Christy.