Best known for leading the multi-site National Community Church (NCC) in Washington, D.C., Pastor Mark Batterson has also authored nearly 30 books, most notably The Circle Maker, a guide to persistent prayer which has sold over a million copies.

Batterson came to Christ at the age of five after watching a Billy Graham film and describes himself as a "congregational mutt" going Church to Church in his early years, not settling on a particular tradition. That sense of being something of an outsider must surely have led to his inventive approach to Church planting that would eventually follow.

At the age of 24, having abandoned a Church plant in the Chicago area, he spotted an ad in a Christian magazine for a role at the Urban Bible Training Center and went on to found National Community Church, famously transforming a former crack house into the largest coffeehouse on Capitol Hill and converting an abandoned apartment building into a community centre.

Today, NCC owns and operates Ebenezer's Coffeehouse, The Miracle Theatre, the DC Dream Center, the Capital Turnaround, and Culture House, a portfolio that reflects his idea that Church belongs in the marketplace.

In this interview with Premier's AJ Gomez he talks about his business successes and failures, taking the long-term approach and why he takes his shoes off when he writes.

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Released on 7 May 2026