Mrs. Paul Friederichsen

KAY FRIEDERICHSEN was born in China to missionary parents in the early 1900s. She and her husband, Paul, served three terms as missionaries in the Philippines and were imprisoned in Japanese concentration camps during the World War II. Following her family’s return to the United States, she conducted Bible classes and presented chalk-talk messages in churches throughout America. Kay is the author of God’s Relief for Burdens, God’s Way Made Easy, and God’s Word Made Plain. She co-authored Like Them That Dream with her husband. Kay is now home with her Lord.

Carrie E Gruhn

CARRIE E. GRUHN was born Carrie E. Meyers on April 3, 1907 in Clarinda, Iowa. After completing high school, she attended Iowa State Teacher’s College for a year. She married a printer named Stanley Gruhn on May 18, 1929 at the age of twenty-two. Later the family moved to Ogle County, Illinois with their two boys. She is best known as the author of several books including An Unwanted Legacy (1953), Happy is the Man (1963), and The Lost City (1969).

W. Phillip Keller

W. PHILLIP KELLER (1920-1997) was born in East Africa and always loved the wildlife and the outdoors. Having spent many years in agriculture research, land management and ranch development in British Columbia, he later pursued careers in conservation, wildlife photography, and journalism. His experiences as a shepherd equipped him with the insights that are the basis for A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23. His other titles include A Layman Looks at the Lord’s Prayer, Splendor from the Sea, Lessons from a Sheepdog, and A Gardener Looks at the Fruits of the Spirit.

Jasmine Mullen

JASMINE MULLEN is a writer and singer from Nashville, TN, and she was born to musical parents. Her mom is singer Nicole C. (Mullen) and her dad is a songwriter named David Mullen. She credits her love of words to their influence. Most of the time, Jasmine is writing songs or touring with her band, The New Respects, which she created with Zandy Mowry and Darius Fitzgerald. When she’s not creating music, she’s usually writing a story or daydreaming one up. Her hobbies include eating too much pizza, playing with her nieces and nephews, and laughing till she cries with her dearest and closest people.

Carolyn Nystrom

CAROLYN NYSTROM received her BA and MA from Wheaton College and is the author of more than 80 books, about half of which are written for children. She co-authored Guard Us, Guide Us: Divine Leading in Life's Decisions and Praying: Finding Our Way through Duty to Delight with theologian J.I. Packer, and Before I Was Born (God’s Design for Sex) with Sandra Speidel. Carolyn lives in the Chicago area with her husband and they have four grown children.

James Thomas

JAMES H. THOMAS (1890–1973) was a Bible teacher, pastor, and John Bunyan scholar. Born in Maury City, Tennessee, Thomas graduated from Oklahoma Baptist University and earned a ThD from Central Baptist Seminary, Kansas City. After discovering the Phillips New Testament in Modern English, Thomas wanted to take a similar approach with an updated version of John Bunyan’s most famous book. The resulting work, Pilgrim’s Progress in Today’s English, is the bestselling modern version of Bunyan’s classic.

Hannah Whitall Smith

HANNAH WHITALL SMITH (1832-1911) was born in Philadelphia to a Quaker family. Her life expressed the joy that is found in complete surrender to the Lord. The secret to a happy life, according to Whitall Smith, is to trust implicitly in the promises of the Bible. Her goal was not to impress the scholar, but to elevate the simple man or woman who longed for a more consecrated way of living. Deeply practical, her writings deal directly with the day-to-day struggles of ordinary people. She is author of The Christian’s Secret of a Happy Life and The God of All Comfort.

Arthur E. Smith

ARTHUR E. SMITH, father of five, was born in London, England. Smith received the diploma of Fellow College of Violinists (F.C.V.) of London and after he moved to Canada, became a member of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, serving as violinist with the organization for ten years. Most of his time has been spent in Bible teaching in Canada and U.S. His 40 years of evangelism include work among the men of lumber camps and gold and silver mines of northern Ontario.

Joshua Sherif

JOSHUA SHERIF was born in Egypt to a Muslim family and immigrated to the United States, where he later came to faith in Jesus. For the past decade, he has planted and pastored in Albany Park, Chicago, IL, one of the most diverse neighborhoods in the country. His congregation represents more than thirty nationalities, speaking twenty languages. Josh has enjoyed his years equipping and coaching other missionaries and pastors around the world. His story was featured in Love Costs Everything, a documentary produced by CIY and Voice of the Martyrs, concerning Christian persecution.

John Smed

JOHN SMED is the founding director of Prayer Current, an organization that helps leaders make multiplying disciples through prayer and evangelism. Since 2000 John and his team have developed prayer training materials and conferences for church planters, pastors, and network teams in North America, Cuba, India, China, and Russia. His book 7 Days of Prayer with Jesus has been translated into ten languages. His conviction for prayer was born out of thirty years of experience in church planting and urban mission.John and his wife Caron have 5 children, 11 grandchildren, and live in Lake Country, British Columbia, Canada.

Michelle Van Loon

Geraldine Taylor

Bryan Loritts

BRYAN LORITTS is the Lead Pastor of the Abundant Life Christian Fellowship of Silicon Valley, California. He is the privileged husband of Korie, and the graced father of three sons -- Quentin, Myles, and Jaden. He is also an award winning author of six books including Saving the Saved: How Jesus Saves us from Try-harder Christianity into Performance-Free Love which was given the Christianity Today Award of Merit, and his newest release Insider Outsider. Bryan co-founded Fellowship Memphis in 2003, and later founded the Kainos Movement -- an organization committed to seeing the multi-ethnic church become the new normal in our world. He travels extensively throughout the world preaching the Good News of Jesus Christ at conferences and events, as well as serving on the board of trustees for Biola University and PineCove Christian Camps. His messages can be heard daily on the Salem Radio Network's KFAX station. You can follow him on Twitter @bcloritts.

Rita A. Schulte, LPC

RITA A. SCHULTE is a licensed professional counselor who specializes in the treatment of mental health disorders. In 2011, she created Heartline Radio, a broadcast show that addresses cutting-edge mental health issues and provides content to educate and equip listeners in how mental health affects our culture. Rita is frequent contributor to many publications and is the author of Shattered: Finding Hope and Healing through the Losses of Life; Imposter: Gain Confidence, Eradicate Shame and Become Who God Made You to Be, and Think This Not That: Rewiring Your Brain to Eliminate Toxic Thinking. She speaks around the country on mental health-related issues. She received her B.S. in psychology and her master's degree in counseling from Liberty University. Rita is no stranger to loss and suffering. In 2013, she lost her beloved husband to suicide and her world was decimated. She speaks candidly about this loss at her national workshops in the hope of helping others heal. Rita makes her home in the northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C.