Raised as the eldest of three
children in a Baptist pastors
home, Jan Carlberg weaves her
Scandinavian heritage into her
speaking and writing with
insight, humor and wit. She has
extended her love for teaching
in a number of ways: teaching
English and speech/drama in
junior and senior high schools;
leading small and large
community Bible studies for
women; and serving for three
years as director of women’s
ministries at Grace Chapel in
Lexington, Massachusetts.
Jan currently focuses on
writing and a national speaking
ministry, sometimes teaming up
with her mother, well-loved
author Margaret Jensen, for
women's events and conferences.
She has appeared several times
on 100 Huntley Street,
one of the most respected
Christian television ministries
in Canada. Jan has also been
interviewed numerous times by
Jim Warren on Prime Time
America, aired on the Moody
Radio Network.
As a board member of several
ministries, Jan shares her gifts
widely. She serves on the
Advisors’ Board of Women at the
Well, a ministry of Menlo Park,
California, and on the Board of
Vision New England, chairing the
Congress Committee of VNE. Her
gifts of encouragement and
leadership are experienced
annually by the 10,000 New
Englanders who attend the
three-day conference in Boston.
Her greatest joy is to share
the love of Jesus through
stories and to encourage all to
persevere and finish strong. Her
first book, The Hungry Heart
(Hendrickson Publishing, 1991),
examines experiences of the
ancient Hebrews to show how God
directs His people. The book
contains 366 short Bible
selections drawn from the Old
Testament, each applied to
contemporary living.
Jan’s second book, The
Welcome Song and other stories
from a place called home
(Baker / Revel I Publishers,
1999) is "Glimpses of a God Who
somehow loves us enough to show
up, especially when we know we
least deserve His company."
Harold Myra, president of
Christianity Today
International, wrote of The
Welcome Song: "Jan is so warm
and enthusiastic, she lifts
everyone she meets with her
humble, inspiring search for
God. All these chapters from her
life experiences are like
sharing coffee with Jan and
connecting with her personal
quest for spiritual life and
authenticity."
Jan was also a contributing
author to the book Joy for
the Journey (Word
Publishing, 1997) a woman's book
of joyful promises with
Scripture passages and brief
devotionals by several leading
Christian female authors.
Jan is married to Dr. R.
Judson Carlberg who has been
president of Gordon
College in Wenham,
Massachusetts, since 1992.
Gordon is a four-year
nondenominational, Christian
liberal arts college, offering
33 majors and numerous
off-campus national and
international study programs.
Over the years Gordon has won
recognition for its general
excellence, the high caliber of
its faculty and its role in
character building. It is rated
one of the best national liberal
arts colleges in the United
States by US News and World
Report, and the College has
been ranked the third safest
campus in the United States
according to an independent
survey done by APB News.
The Carlbergs have two grown
children. Their son, Chad, a
graduate of Gordon College,
works in theatre, film and the
visual arts. Their daughter,
Heather, married to Matt
Willis-both recent M.D.s- are in
their first year of residency in
Cambridge Massachusetts. They
have one child, Lily.
The Carlbergs consider it
God's gift to serve as a team
encouraging college age women
and men to follow Jesus with all
their hearts, minds and
strength.
