Jim was born in May of 1972 and has lived in Sandpoint, Idaho, since the age of three. He came to know Christ through the ministry of Cocolalla Lake Bible Camp in the summer of 1987 and graduated high school in 1990. Kootenai Church (KCC) has always been his home church where he attended Sunday school, VBS, and youth group. After graduating high school, Jim attended Millar College of the Bible in Pambrun, Saskatchewan. It was there that he met his wife-to-be, Diedre, who was also enrolled as a student. He graduated with a three-year diploma in April of 1993 and married Diedre in August of that same year. They returned to Millar as married students to further his education in September of 1994, and he graduated from the Fourth Year Internship program with a BA in Strategic Ministries in April of 1995. He was inducted into the honor society of the Association of Canadian Bible Colleges and appointed a member of Pi Alpha Mu.

Jim and Diedre returned to Sandpoint, where Jim began working in construction as a roofer until he was asked to take over as the preaching elder at KCC in December of 1996. He counts it his greatest privilege to be ministering in the church that ministered to him for so many years. He is the author of Truth or Territory: A Biblical Approach to Spiritual Warfare, Selling the Stairway to Heaven: Critiquing the Claims of Heaven Tourists, The Prosperity of the Wicked: A Study of Psalm 73, and God Doesn't Whisper. You can follow his preaching at the KCC website (kootenaichurch.org) and his writings at jimosman.com. Jim loves to be outdoors, whether camping, hunting, or working in his garden. He enjoys biking and watching football, especially his favorite team, the San Francisco 49ers, for whom he has cheered since childhood.

Jim and Diedre's four grown children and their spouses-Joe and Taryn Adams, Shepley and Melina Osman, Trenton and Ayden Tilton, and Liam and Molly Osman-all live nearby and attend KCC. As of the publication of this book, Jim and Diedre have four grandchildren.