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DEREK PRIME was born and brought up in London, where he received his secondary education at Westminster City School. National Service immediately followed for eighteen months, during which time he was attached as an army teacher to the Royal Scots Greys in Germany. Upon demobilisation he went to Emmanuel College, Cambridge, where he studied history and then theology. For the next three years he taught at a London Grammar School, prior to his ordination to become pastor of Lansdowne Evangelical Free Church in West Norwood in south London. After twelve years at Lansdowne he was called to Charlotte Chapel in Edinburgh where he was pastor for eighteen years. He then devoted himself to writing and an itinerant ministry. During this time, sadly, within a few years of one another, both his younger daughter and his wife died of cancer. However, he was greatly blessed in having his other daughter and older son in Edinburgh and second son in London, giving him the joy of eight grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren, an ever-growing family!
Read MoreJANET POPE is a 2012 graduate of Dallas Theological Seminary with a Masters in Theology. Teaching the Bible is her passion, and her distinct speaking ministry inspires others to run to God’s Word first. Her solid foundation comes from memorizing entire books of the Bible—15 books and counting. Janet and her husband Ethan live in Dallas, Texas.
Read MoreJOHN TRENT, Ph.D., is the President of StrongFamilies.com, a ministry committed to building strong relationships in these stressful times. Dr. Trent's main focus includes writing and speaking at retreats, conferences, business settings, churches, and seminars across the country. In addition to building family teams, Dr. Trent regularly speaks to corporate America on team building, recruiting and retaining outstanding employees. He has authored and co-authored more than a dozen books for both adults and children, including Love For All Seasons, The Language of Love, and The Blessing. In addition to writing books, Dr. Trent has written numerous articles for both professional and popular publications. He and his wife, Cynthia, live in Scottsdale, Arizona and have two adult daughters.
Read MoreMELINDA SCHMIDT graduated from Moody Bible Institute and holds a B.S. in Broadcasting-Bible from Calvary Bible College. She has served with Moody Radio since 1980 in various hosting capacities. She is now a co-host of the radio talk show for women, Midday Connection (www.middayconnection.org) . Melinda has served as an editor and contributing author to Come to Our Table: A Midday Connection Cookbook, Daily Seeds from Women who Walk in Faith, and Tending the Soul. Married to Dave, they are parents of two young adults, Kelly and Kevin.
Read MorePAUL ANGONE is one of the leading voices in the nation to, and for, the Millennial generation. He is the best-selling author of two books, a sought after national speaker, and an organizational consultant who specializes in helping companies attract, retain, and develop Millennials. With over 10+ years writing, speaking, and engaging with Millennials, plus a master's degree in Organizational Leadership, Paul has created a cutting-edge process to help organizations called Millennial Mapping. Paul is also a media spokesperson on Millennials, executive coach alongside his father, Dr. Louis Angone, and the creator of www.AllGroanUp.com, which has been read by millions of Millennials in 190 countries. Read more of Paul Angone's work at www.AllGroanUp.com. You can follow him on Twitter @PaulAngone.
Read MoreJADA EDWARDS is an experienced speaker, Bible teacher, and mentor and holds a Master of Business Administration from the University of Texas at Dallas. She currently serves as the Creative Arts Architect for her church, One, where she seeks to serve the evolving communities of Collin County through creative expression and cultural relevance. She also works in new business development, partner relations and marketing for Caribbean Choice for Christ. Jada and her husband, Conway, have co-authored two books: When Love’s in View: Finding Focus in Dating and Relationships and The Undercover Woman: A Guide for Single Women and Their Spiritual Fathers. Jada lives in Allen, Texas with her husband.
Read MoreJOHN TRENT, Ph.D., is the Gary D. Chapman Chair of Marriage and Family Ministry and Therapy at Moody Theological Seminary. He works to help train the next generation of family pastors and Christian counselors. He's also the President of StrongFamilies.com, a ministry committed to building strong relationships in these stressful times. Dr. Trent's main focus includes writing and speaking at retreats, conferences, business settings, churches, and seminars across the country. In addition to building family teams, Dr. Trent regularly speaks to corporate America on teambuilding, recruiting and retaining outstanding employees. He has authored and co-authored more than a dozen books for both adults and children, including Love For All Seasons, The Language of Love, and The Blessing. In addition to writing books, Dr. Trent has written numerous articles for both professional and popular publications. He and his wife, Cynthia, live in Scottsdale, Arizona and have two grown daughters.
Read MoreKELLI WORRALL is the Chair of Music and Media Arts at Moody Bible Institute. She is the co-author (with husband, Peter, Assoc. Professor Education at MBI) of 20 Things We'd Tell Our Twentysomething Selves and the author of Pierced and Embraced: 7 Life-Changing Encounters with the Love of Christ. Kelli speaks at women¿s events and retreats. She and Peter also speak together at marriage and young adult retreats. Connect with Kelli at www.kelliworrall.com.
Read MoreAARON COE serves as the Vice President of Mobilization and Marketing of the North American Mission Board, providing leadership in mobilizing churches and missionaries to plant churches.Aaron, a native of Louisville, KY., served from 2003 to 2010 as a church planting missionary where he worked with New Hope New York, an organization that planted 38 churches in the years after 9/11. From this experience, he became the lead pastor/church planter at Gallery Church in 2006. He also has played a role in raising leaders, partners and resources for many new churches, including the Gallery Church.In 2009, he became executive director of “SendNYC,” the impetus for what has become Send North America – NAMB’s church planting initiative.Aaron has a Bachelor of Science from Middle Tennessee State University and a Master of Divinity and Master of Theology from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. He and his wife, Carmen, have four children, Ezra James, Danielle, Joshua, and Harper.
Read MoreMATTHEW CORK has served in a number of key roles over his many years at Friends Church, including: WorshipPastor, Executive Pastor and the position he currently holds, Lead Pastor. Matthew’s focus since 2003 has been on therenewal of Friends Church. He has a strong pastor’s heart that has led him to be a key part of transitioning a church incrisis. On a trip to India in 2007, Matthew saw firsthand the plight of the Dalit people and the impact education canhave on improving their lives. Since then, Friends Church has launched a new vision called Global Freedom and hasbeen instrumental in building a large number of Education Centers throughout India. Matthew lives in Yorba Lindawith his wife Mardi and their three children: Nolan, Sophie and Ella.
Read MoreWINFRED NEELY (B.A., D.Min. Trinity International University; M.A. Wheaton) is currently working towards an advanced research degree in Old Testament at the University of Bristol, England. He is an ordained minister of the Gospel and a full time professor of hermeneutics, homiletics, and pastoral studies at Moody Bible Institute of Chicago. Prior to joining the faculty at Moody, Winfred served churches in the City of Chicago and is currently interim pastor of the Judson Baptist Church in Oak Park, IL. He brings to his ministry a global perspective, having served as a missionary/pastor in Senegal, West Africa for nine years. He is also involved in a global equipping ministry, speaking and conducting workshops and training events at churches and conferences in the US and abroad. He and his wife Stephne have been married for forty years and have four adult children and nine grandchildren. He takes acting classes from time to time and is an ardent fan of science fiction films such as Star Wars and Star Trek.
Read MoreDAVID THOMPSON was born in the U.S. but grew up in Cambodia where his parents worked for 16 years. When he was 14 he and his father tried unsuccessfully to save a Cambodian man who was seriously injured when a truck and a bus collided. God used the incident to plant in David's young heart a desire to become a doctor and help people who had limited access to healthcare. David graduated from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine in 1973 with a M.D. degree and eventually completed five years of residency in general surgery in southern California. In 1977 he and his wife Rebecca moved to Gabon, Africa and for the next 34 years built a 150-bed full-service hospital to provide medical services to Gabon's least served provinces. In 1966, Dr. Thompson helped establish the Pan-African Academy of Christian Surgeons (PAACS), an organization that trains African surgeons at Christian hospitals throughout the continent. Since 2014, Dr. Thompson has been working as a volunteer to train Egyptian surgeons at Harpur Memorial Hospital.
Read MoreMATT AND CHERI APPLING live and work in Kansas City, Missouri. Cheri (DVM) is a veterinarian while Matt (M.Div) writes, mentors and teaches. He has been featured by numerous publications and radio programs and is the author of Life After Art: What You Forgot About Life and Faith Since You Left the Art Room, released by Moody Publishers.
Read MoreALICE BRAWAND (B.A., Mars Hill College; M.A., Azusa Pacific University) has served for thirty-one years with Wycliffe Bible Translators, eleven of them in counseling missionaries and pastors from Wycliffe's International Headquarters in Dallas, Texas. Alice contributed to the book Secrets of Your Family Tree: Healing for Adult Children of Dysfunctional Families. Alice and her husband, John, have three children, all of whom were raised in Guatemala, where the Brawands served.
Read MoreBECKY BERESFORD lives in North Carolina and is happily outnumbered by her husband and three wonderful boys. She is an author, speaker, and coach with a master's certificate in Spiritual Formation and Discipleship from Moody Theological Seminary. Becky loves encouraging God’s daughters to embrace Christ-centered empowerment through the truth found in the gospel. Connect with Becky at BeckyBeresford.com or follow her on Instagram or Facebook.
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