Chris Tomlin was born in east Texas on May 4, 1972 and he grew up listening to country music by bands like Alabama. His dad taught him to play guitar and he wrote his first song at the age of 14. Saved as a child, he always knew that God had a specific plan for him, but he couldn't see what that was beyond following the Lord. He finished high school and enrolled in college, graduating with a degree in Psychology. It was at that point that he started spending a lot of time with Passion founder, Louie Giglio. He took a big step of faith and became involved in the first Passion conference in 1997. The rest, as they say, is history.