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RAY PRITCHARD serves as the president of Keep Believing Ministries. He is a graduate of Tennessee Temple University (B.A.), Dallas Theological Seminary (Th.M.) and Talbot School of Theology (D.Min.). Ministering extensively overseas, speaking at conferences, and appearing on Christian radio and television talk shows, Dr. Pritchard focuses on evangelism and encouragement to spread the hope of Jesus Christ through all the world. For 27 years he pastored churches in Los Angeles, Dallas and Chicago, and most recently served at Calvary Memorial Church in Oak Park, Illinois. Dr. Pritchard is the author of 27 books, including An Anchor for the Soul, Stealth Attack, Names of the Holy Spirit, and Credo. Ray and his wife, Marlene, have three sons.
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JOY DOWNS is a 1979 graduate of Indiana University in Journalism. After graduation, she joined the staff of Campus Crusade for Christ where she served as a radio writer and producer and helped direct the Communication Center, a communication training facility of Campus Crusade. Joy and her husband, Tim, have spoken at FamilyLife Marriage and Parenting Conferences. Together they have co-authored two books entitled The Seven Conflicts: Resolving the Most Common Disagreements in Marriage and Fight Fair!: Winning at Conflict without Losing at Love. Joy lives in Cary, North Carolina, with her husband and three children.
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E.V. HILL (1933 - 2003), author of A Savior Worth Having and Victory in Jesus, pastored the Mount Zion Missionary Baptist Church, and was a preacher and teacher for conventions, universities, seminaries, Bible conferences, local churches and city-wide revivals throughout the world. Several United States presidents sought his counsel. He was honored by Time magazine as one of the seven most outstanding preachers of the United States. Dr. Hill also served as a member of the board for directors of the Billy Graham Association, America for Jesus, and the Board of Reference of African Enterprise.
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DR. RICK FOWLER, son of missionary parents, has for over forty years served in a variety of capacities, including as pastor, licensed counselor, university professor of psychology and sociology, and head basketball coach. Dr. Fowler is currently a member of the graduate faculty of psychology/professional counseling at Truett McConnell University. In addition, he has been a frequent speaker at numerous seminars and Bible conferences across America and overseas. He is the author of thirteen books and has been a featured guest on FOCUS ON THE FAMILY and the 700 CLUB. Married for 52 years, he and his wife Jen have two children and eight grandchildren.
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SARAH "VIRGINIA" JACOBER was born in Dayton, Ohio and accepted Jesus as her Savior at age eleven. The first time she heard a missionary speak, she knew this was what God wanted her do. After graduating from Nyack College, she married Edward G Jacober. They pastored a church while he attended Dallas Theological Seminary, and then were appointed by The Christian and Missionary Alliance to do evangelistic work in India. Their four children attended school in the Himalaya Mountains. Transferred to Bethlehem, Israel, they taught the Bible and visited Bedouin tents for fifteen years. Sarah’s husband died, but she continued working and speaking in churches. After retiring, she made fifteen short term mission trips to various countries around the world.More than forty of Sarah’s articles and poems, plus six books have been published. Sarah lives near family in North Carolina, has seven grandchildren, two great-grandchildren, and continues to write for God’s glory.
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NICHOLAS SKYTLAND is co-founder of Quite Uncommon, a technology firm that helps organizations build, test, and launch new and innovative ideas. He is also the Deputy Chief of the Exploration Technology Office at NASA. His technical and leadership experience has helped him build high-performing teams and pioneer new ways of doing business in both government and industry for over two decades. He has trained astronauts, designed next-generation spacesuits, developed open-source technology, led missional movements, and created some of the largest purpose-driven collaborations in history. Outside of work he is an experienced diver and avid triathlete, having completed more than twenty Ironman races. He lives in Houston with his wife and three kids, and serves as an elder at Clear Creek Community Church.
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ERIC DEMETER (B.S., Purdue University; M.A., Bethel University) is a relationship and conflict resolution specialist with advanced studies in mediation, peacemaking and negotiation from the Korbel School of International Studies at the University of Denver and Peacemaker Ministries. He is currently a missionary with Youth With a Mission (YWAM) based in Athens, Greece where he disciples young people from the Middle East, and teaches conflict resolution and healthy relationships to YWAM staff and missionary students. His experiences growing up listening to heavy metal, working alongside ex-convicts, and being raised in the Roman Catholic tradition give him the ability to connect well with people of diverse belief systems. He considers every reader a friend and challenges everyone to become more like Christ in everything they do.
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JEFF SIMMONS is the founding and senior pastor of Rolling Hills Community Church, which he and his wife, Lisa, planted twenty years ago. The church has grown from 15 people meeting for a Bible study in an apartment clubhouse on Thursday nights to several thousand people and five campuses in Franklin, Nashville, Nolensville, Columbia, and Haywood Hills. Jeff is a follower of Jesus, husband, and father of three wonderful children. He serves alongside an amazing staff team at Rolling Hills and is the President of Justice and Mercy International doing mission work in the countries of Moldova and the Amazon jungle. Jeff is an author and speaker while overseeing the ministry work with over 80 full-time church staff, 55 international staff, 70 learning center teachers, and multi-million-dollar budgets. Jeff is passionate about God's work and longs to make a difference for the glory of God in His day and generation.
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K. A. ELLIS is the Director of the Edmiston Center for the Study of the Bible and Ethnicity in Atlanta, Georgia. She's passionate about theology, human rights, and global religious freedom. Since 2006, she has collaborated with the Swiss-based organization, International Christian Response, traveling internationally to connect local and global Christians while studying and advocating for global religious freedom. Her research explores Christian endurance from society's margins, particularly in places where it's most difficult to live the Christian life. She is the Cannada Fellow for World Christianity at Reformed Theological Seminary, and holds a Master of Arts in Religion (MAR) from Westminster Theological Seminary, a Master of Fine Arts (MFA) from the Yale School of Drama, and is a Ph.D. candidate in World Christianity and Ethics at the Oxford Center for Mission Studies in England.
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ELE PARROT, a Biblical Counselor by profession, is the Director of Member Care for the Paraclete Mission Group. She worked as a missionary in the Latin community with OCI for 12 years, has worked in women’s and children’s ministry in her local church and has also been involved in Christian Camping ministry. She continues to lead Bible studies and is the head Mentor Mom at Sun Valley Community Church in Gilbert, Arizona. In addition to Transforming Together, Ele has authored a Spanish-language musical, El Futboles es mi Vida as well as Spanish materials for use in Christian homes and Sunday School classes.Ele Parrot and her husband of 35 years, Don, the President and CEO of Finishers Project, have four grown children and three grandchildren.
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ANDREW SEIDEL (West Point Military Academy, University of Illinois, Dallas Theological Seminary) serves as the executive director of the Center for Christian Leadership as Dallas Theological Seminary. He also works in Russia, Eastern Europe and Central Asia with the mission organization Entrust. A graduate of West Point and a veteran of the U.S. Army, Dr. Seidel previously served as senior pastor at Grace Bible Church in College Station, Texas for 14 years. He is the author of Charting a Bold Course. Dr. Seidel and his wife have been married for more than 40 years and have two grown children and six grandchildren.
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MICHELLE LYNN SENTERS (B.A. Education; M.Ed. Integrated Teaching Through the Arts) raised two daughters on her own and experienced many issues common to single mothers: financial crisis, emotional trauma in children, pursuit of education, isolation from church, feelings of guilt/shame, consequences of fatherlessness, and the challenges of relationships and remarriage. Her message has been forged in her own journey as a single mom and has deepened through her years of mentoring single moms and launching ministries geared to them in the local church. She founded the Arise Ministry for Single Moms at her local church in Colorado Springs and this ministry is being considered by other area churches. She is a sought-after speaker at women's events, Bible studies, and writer's conferences.
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TIM DOWNS is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Indiana University in Graphic Design. After graduation in 1976 he created a comic strip, Downstown, which was syndicated by Universal Press Syndicate. His cartooning has appeared in more than a hundred newspapers worldwide. In 1979 he joined the staff of Campus Crusade for Christ, where he founded and directed the Communication Center, a communication training facility. He continues to serve as a speaker and writer. He and his wife, Joy, have spoken at FamilyLife Marriage and Parenting Conferences since 1985. He is author of First the Dead, Less Than Dead, Chop Shop, Head Game, Plague Maker, Shoo Fly Pie, and Finding Common Ground, which was awarded the Gold Medallion Award in 2000. He is also co-author of Fight Fair and The Seven Conflicts: Resolving the Most Common Disagreements in Marriage along with his wife Joy. Tim lives in Cary, North Carolina, with his wife and three children.
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JOHN 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.
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Susie Hawkins lives in Dallas and has been actively involved in women’s ministry as a pastor’s wife, teacher and volunteer. She has also served as the Director of Women’s Ministry at Prestonwood Baptist Church in Dallas. She has taught a weekly Bible study for business women in downtown Dallas and speaks at women’s conferences and retreats. She is also a contributor to various publications, such as Voices Behind the Veil and the soon to be released “Women’s Evangelical Library Commentary.” Susie has an MA in Christian Leadership from Criswell College as well as an MA in Theology. She is married to O. S. Hawkins, president of GuideStone Financial Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention (formerly the Annuity Board of the Southern Baptist Convention) and is the mother of two married daughters, Wendy and Holly, as well as a grandmother of five. Her favorite things to do are bargain hunting, lunching with friends and playing with her grandchildren!08/08
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