OUR PASTOR
Patrick Misciagna
Pat got saved in the Spring of 1998, the fruit of an outreach called "Operation: Jerusalem" when the church he would later come to be a part of was putting the gospel on every door in Staten Island.
Twenty years old and afraid to die, Pat tried speaking to the priests at his old church where he grew up, attended self-help seminars, and even consulted Buddhist monks to find the answer to his sin problem and the aching fear that he could die at any moment and wake up in Hell. Finally, after weeks of panic attacks and desperation, Pat called out to a God he did not know to show him "the way".
The next day, a plastic bag hung on his door with the life-saving gospel of The Lord Jesus Christ contained therein. Pat devoured the materials that day, fascinated with the Scriptures and amazed by a God so real and so personal He could have orchestrated these miraculous circumstances. That evening, Pat bowed his heart to the Lord Jesus Christ and received the gift of God purchased by the Saviour's blood: Eternal life!
His life would never be the same.
Pat began studying the Bible, searching the scriptures to see if those things he claimed to believe lined up with God's word. Shortly thereafter, he joined First Bible Church in Staten Island and began learning how to live the Christian life under the faithful guidance of Pastors Mike Veach and Pat Dean, the two men he admires most this side of heaven. He went through discipleship there, successfully completed their Bible Institute, and watched how great men of God all around him built their lives on
God's word.
It wasn't long before Pat jumped in to whatever the Lord would let him be a part of at church. He taught Sunday school, preached on the street, conducted services in nursing homes, helped in prison ministry, did personal work at the rescue mission, and led congregational singing on Sunday mornings. The Apostle Paul said, "I am debtor," and Pat figured he owed the Lord Jesus Christ every thing he had for saving a wretch like him.
A few years after getting saved, Pat met his amazing wife Danielle (who had grown up in First Bible) at a church function. They were married in 2002 and have three beautiful children. In 2007, Pat had the honor and privilege of becoming a deacon, serving among the leadership in the same church that first put the gospel packet on his door. Then, in the fall of 2018, Pat was ordained to the gospel ministry in the only church he had ever known. What a mighty God we serve! What a gracious, loving Saviour!