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RAMON PRESSON, PhD, a licensed marriage & family therapist, has been in practice for 30 years and is the founder of LifeChange Counseling and Marriage Center of Franklin. He is a newspaper columnist; and with a dozen books in print he is the most published practicing therapist in Tennessee. He is a charter member of the American Association of Christian Counselors. From 1989 to 2004 Presson served as an assistant pastor in large churches in North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, and Tennessee. Ramon has had the unique privilege to serve on staff with and later co-author several books with Dr. Gary Chapman. He is currently co-authoring the teen edition of When Will My Life Not Suck? Authentic Hope for the Disillusioned with his 17-year-old son, Cameron. Ramon and his wife, Dorne, have been married for 28 years, have two sons, and live outside Nashville. He can be reached at ramonpresson@gmail.com.
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JIM WILDER (PhD, Clinical Psychology, and M.A. Theology, Fuller Theological Seminary) has been training leaders and counselors for over 27 years on five continents. He is the author of nine books with a strong focus on maturing and relationship skills for leaders. His coauthored book Living From the Heart Jesus Gave You has sold over 100,000 copies in eleven languages. Wilder has published numerous articles and developed four sets of video and relational leadership training called THRIVE. He is currently executive director of Shepherd's House Inc., a nonprofit working at the intersection of brain science and theology, and founder of Life Model Works that is building contagiously healthy Christian communities through equipping existing networks with the skills to thrive. Dr. Wilder has extensive clinical counseling experience and has served as a guest lecturer at Fuller Seminary, Biola, Talbot Seminary, Point Loma University, Montreat College, Tyndale Seminary and elsewhere.
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WESS STAFFORD From the poor of Africa's Ivory Coast to President and Chief Executive Officer of Compassion International, Dr. Wesley K. Stafford — Wess — has maintained one simple belief: God's children are priceless resources. To that end, Wess leads Compassion's efforts to break the cycle of poverty for children everywhere. Wess joined the staff of Compassion International in 1977 and has worked with the ministry, both overseas and at headquarters, for 34 years. He has served as president since 1993. Wess lives on a small ranch near Colorado Springs, Colorado with his wife, Donna, of 32 years who was a Compassion sponsor even before she met Wess! They have two daughters, Jenny and Katie — the two children in the world for whom Wess is the greatest advocate of all.
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MATT APPLING teaches Pre-Kindergarten through sixth grade art, as well as high school art history. He has taught and ministered in a variety of school and church settings. He has also been a popular blogger for four years, as the author of www.thechurchofnopeople.com, and as a featured contributor to many other online publications. Matt lives with his wife, Cheri in Kansas City, Missouri.
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DM FREED, M.Ed. is a former elementary teacher and has been employed for the last 18 years as a school counselor with Central Valley School District. He holds an Elementary Education Degree from Boise State University and two Masters Degrees in education from Whitworth University. His school and district have been recognized with numerous awards by Washington State for “Outstanding Educational Excellence”. D.M. believes that a student’s academic success hinges on the positive relationships they build with other students, their family and school faculty. When he’s not working, he enjoys spending time with his family at the lake and playing golf.
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LINDSEY HOLCOMB counsels victims of sexual assault and domestic violence. Previously, she worked at a sexual assault crisis center and also served as a case manager at a domestic violence shelter. Lindsey provided crisis intervention to victims of sexual assault and domestic violence and conducted a variety of training seminars to service providers. Her graduate research focused on violence against women and public health responses.She and her husband, Justin, are authors of: Is It My Fault?: Hope and Healing for Those Suffering Domestic Violence and Rid of My Disgrace: Hope and Healing for Victims of Sexual Assault.She was cofounder of REST (Real Escape from the Sex Trade).
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LEE JENKINS (B.A., University of Tennessee, Knoxville) is regarded as one the nation’s top Registered Investment Advisors. He is President and CEO of Lee Jenkins Financial, LLC. An ordained minister, Lee is founder of Economic Evangelism, Inc. He is the author of several books, including What to do When Your Money is Funny and Taking Care of Business. Lee and his wife, Martica, live in Atlanta, Georgia with their three children.
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TED KLUCK is co-author of Why We’re Not Emergent and author of Facing Tyson, 15 Stories, Paper Tiger and Game Time. His award-winning writing has also appeared in ESPN the Magazine, Sports Spectrum Magazine and on ESPN.com’s Page 2. An avid sports fan, he has played professional indoor football, coached high school football, trained as a professional wrestler, served as a missionary, and has also taught writing courses at the college level. He currently lives in Michigan with his wife and two sons.
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ED YOUNG has been the pastor of 32,000-member Second Baptist Church in Houston, Texas, since 1978 and is also a trustee of Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary and Houston Baptist University. A former president of the Southern Baptist Convention, Ed is the author of many books including The Ten Commandments of Marriage and The Ten Commandments of Parenting, and ministers through the international television and radio broadcasts of Winning Walk. He and his wife, Jo Beth, have three adult sons and seven grandchildren and reside in Houston.
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ASHLEIGH SLATER is also the author of the book Team Us: The Unifying Power of Grace, Commitment, and Cooperation in Marriage and Braving Sorrow: The Transformative Power of Faith and Community When Life is Hard. With over twenty years of writing experience and a master's degree in communication, she loves to combine the power of a good story with practical application to encourage and inspire readers. She and her husband Ted married in 2002 and have four daughters.
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JIM VAN YPEREN (B.A. ,Wheaton College; M.A., Wheaton Graduate School) is the Founder and Executive Director of Metanoia Ministries, a non-profit Christian ministry serving evangelical churches in conflict reconciliation and leadership formation. Jim is the author of Making Peace: A Guide to Overcoming Church Conflict. He and his wife, Sharon, reside on a small sheep farm in East Washington, New Hampshire. They have two adult children.
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DARRELL BOCK (BA, University of Texas; ThM, Dallas Theological Seminary; PhD, University of Aberdeen) has earned recognition as a Humboldt Scholar (Tubingen University in Germany), and is the author of more than forty books, including well-regarded commentaries on Luke and Acts and studies of the historical Jesus. He was president of the Evangelical Theological Society (ETS) for 2000-2001, is a consulting editor for Christianity Today, and serves on the boards of Wheaton College and Chosen People Ministries. His articles appear in leading publications, and he is often an expert for the media on New Testament issues. Dr. Bock has been a New York Times best-selling author in nonfiction and is elder emeritus at Trinity Fellowship Church in Dallas. When traveling overseas, he will tune into the current game involving his favorite teams from Houston, even in the wee hours of the morning. Married for over forty years to Sally, he is a proud father of two daughters and a son, and is also a grandfather.
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