how it all began...  

Pastor Paul Karanick is a preacher's kid.  All of his life he has wondered why the church didn't do more to reach people that do not go to church; especially the youth.  With a burden for the lost already on his heart, Paul noticed the Anaheim Convention Center while driving home from work.  Paul's challenge to the greater church became a personal challenge.  Paul felt prompted to ask himself "Paul, what are YOU going to do to reach the un-churched?"     Paul picked up his cell phone and called to inquire about the cost of renting that location for an evangelistic event.  Roughly calculating the cost in his head, as he drove home, Paul figured that such an event would be less than $100,000.  Full of adrenaline and excitement, he walked into his home and shared this vision with his wife, Christina.  Paul told her that "God has blessed us with a four-unit building with some equity in Dana Point for our retirement.  Why don't we sell this property and use the income for an evangelistic event?"  Now, Christina is the grounding force in Paul's life and serves as a tough sounding board for new ideas.  However, God had touched her heart first and prepared her for an endeavor such as this.  Rather than finding the holes in the plan, Christina agreed to go with God's    plan.  Christina confesses that she is more afraid of stepping out of the Will of God than facing the challenges that will come with this endeavor!    Two years later the event cost is well over $100,000.  The location has changed several times as the Lord lead Paul to the Rose Bowl stadium.    Many people have questioned Paul and Christina about keeping this event free of charge.  However, they will not waiver in their belief that God has called them to do this evangelistic ministry without  charging an entrance fee.  Paul says that meeting Jesus Christ is free and it isn't right to keep people out who could not afford the entrance fee! Xclaimed Ministries is keeping the faith that God will provide and has adopted the verse of II Corinthians 5:7, "Walk by faith, not by sight." Only the Lord could have shaped this ministry through the path of His circumstance.  Xclaimed Ministries has morphed into a self-producing event based ministry along with a weekly worship in the city of Stanton.  And to come full circle, Xclaimed is now assisting other ministries in the development of their own outreach concerts. Paul is the first to admit that God looks on the heart and not the outward appearance; by human standards he is not the person for this job.  Paul often states (jokingly) that God called the wrong person and this is the proof that God can use anybody.