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RON BLOCK has been banjoist guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter for Alison Krauss & Union Station since 1991. He wrote many of the band's gospel songs: "There is a Reason," "In the Palm of Your Hand," "Jesus, Help Me to Stand," and his playing has been featured on albums by Dolly Parton, Vince Gill, Reba McEntire, Randy Travis, Alan Jackson, Brad Paisley, Fernando Ortega, and others. He's received 14 Grammy Awards for his work with Alison Krauss, Vince Gill, and the O Brother, Where Are Thou soundtrack, and received a Dove Award for his song "A Living Prayer." He has also written on spiritual and musical topics for the Rabbit Room website since its inception in 2007, rabbitroom.com.He married Sandra in 1988 and they live in rural Tennessee. They have two grown children, Ethan and Erica.
Read MoreTIM 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.
Read MoreJAMES FORD, JR. (Moody Bible Institute, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School) has been the Senior Pastor at Christ Bible Church (formerly South Shore Baptist Church), located on the south side of Chicago, Illinois, since 1982. He serves on several boards, including the Alumni Board of Moody Bible Institute, is President of Impact Ministries, and provides the messages for Impact Ministries’ radio broadcast, Treasured Truth for Troubling Times. Pastor Ford is a contributor to the book Heart for the City and is the author of When A Man Loves A Woman and Seven Reasons Why God Created Marriage. He and his wife, Leslie, have three children and six grandchildren, and live in Chicago, Illinois.
Read MoreNORMAN GEISLER (Th.B., William Tyndale College; A.B., Wheaton College; M.A., Wheaton College Graduate School; Ph.D., Loyola University) Distinguished Professor of Apologetics at the Veritas Evangelical Seminary in Murrieta, California. He was the author or co-author of some 80 books including A General Introduction to the Bible, Baker Dictionary of Christian Apologetics, Christian Ethics, and Systematic Theology. He also wrote hundreds of articles. He and his wife of 57 years, Barbara, have six children, fifteen grandchildren, and three great grandchildren.
Read MoreEARL R. HENSLIN (Psy.D., Biola University), is a licensed marriage and family therapist, former part-time faculty member at the Rosemead Graduate School of Psychology at Biola University, La Mirada, California, author of seven books, and co-author of three books and numerous professional articles. He is a member of several professional organizations and helped in the founding of Overcomers Outreach to aid churches in establishing support groups.For the past 14 years Dr. Henslin has been integrating brain imaging into the treatment of psychological, physical, and spiritual problems at his counseling practice, Henslin and Associates, a Christian counseling group in Brea, California. Dr. Henslin has four adult children and two lovely granddaughters.
Read MoreJUSTIN HOLCOMB is an Episcopal priest and teaches theology, philosophy, and Christian thought at Gordon-Conwell-Theological Seminary and Reformed Theological Seminary. He holds two masters degrees from Reformed Theological Seminary and a Ph.D. from Emory University.Justin has written or edited numerous books: Know the Heretics, Know the Creeds and Councils, On the Grace of God, Acts: A 12-Week Study, For the World, and Christian Theologies of Scripture.He and his wife, Lindsey, 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.Justin serves on the boards of REST (Real Escape from the Sex Trade) and GRACE (Godly Response to Abuse in Christian Environments). He also serves on the council board of the Biblical Counseling Coalition.Connect with Justin Holcomb on Twitter, Facebook, Amazon, and his blog.
Read MoreANDREW MURRAY (1828-1917) was a church leader, evangelist, and missionary statesman. As a young man, Murray wanted to be a minister, but it was a career choice rather than an act of faith. Not until he had finished his general studies and begun his theological training in the Netherlands, did he experience a conversion of heart. Sixty years of ministry in the Dutch Reformed Church of South Africa, more than 200 books and tracts on Christian spirituality and ministry, extensive social work, and the founding of educational institutions were some of the outward signs of the inward grace that Murray experienced by continually casting himself on Christ. A few of his books include The True Vine, Absolute Surrender, The School of Obedience, Waiting on God, and The Prayer Life.
Read MoreMATT MARKINS serves as the President and CEO of Awana, a global leader in child discipleship. As a researcher in child discipleship and children’s ministry, Matt has commissioned eleven research projects since 2013, including a study conducted by Barna Group called Children’s Ministry in a New Reality. He’s a board member at large for the National Association of Evangelicals and is the author or coauthor of four books, most notably The Faith of Our Children: Eight Timely Research Insights for Discipling the Next Generation and RESILIENT: Child Discipleship and the Fearless Future of the Church. He’s also the cofounder of the Child Discipleship Forum and D6 Conference. Matt and his wife, Katie, have been involved in children’s ministry for more than 25 years and spend their time in Nashville with their two sons. For more information go to www.ChildDiscipleship.com and www.Awana.org.
Read MoreTODD NETTLETON is the Chief of Media Relations and Message Integration for the Voice of the Martyrs—USA and host of The Voice of the Martyrs Radio. He serves as a voice for persecuted Christians, inspiring Christians with the faithfulness of Christ's followers in 70+ nations where they face persecution for wearing His name. During more than 20 years serving at VOM, Todd has travelled the world and conducted face-to-face interviews with hundreds of Christians who've endured persecution in more than 30 nations. He is a graduate of Bartlesville Wesleyan College (now Oklahoma Wesleyan University) and has done postgraduate study at the University of Oklahoma. Todd and his wife, Charlotte, have two sons and two daughters-in-law. In his spare time he enjoys reading, music, travel and sports, including serving as commissioner of a fantasy football league.
Read MoreRICK OSBORNE is a bestselling, award-winning author of both parenting and children’s books. One of Rick’s main goals is to create resources that help families develop loving relationships and peaceful, happy homes. Among the many children’s books he’s written and coauthored are, ‘The Legend of the Christmas Tree,’ ‘The Legend of the Christmas Stocking,’ and the ‘101 Questions Kids Ask About God’ series. These have sold millions of copies and have been translated into many languages. Rick has coauthored books with Dr. John Trent, Josh McDowell, Larry Burkett, and Dr. Gary Chapman. He helped write and produce the booklet ‘The Most Important Story Ever Told’ which has had over 50 million copies distributed around the world. Find out more by visiting www.rick-osborne.com.
Read MoreCRYSTAL RENAUD DAY is a pastoral counselor, certified coach, author, and speaker with over a decade of experience working with women, couples, and teen girls. She holds a Master of Arts in Pastoral Counseling: Life Coaching from Liberty University and eight certifications in counseling and coaching specialties from the American Association of Christian Counselors. Crystal owns and operates Living on Purpose Coaching & Pastoral Counseling and is the founding director of Dirty Girls Ministries, a non-profit organization helping women overcome porn and sexual addiction. Her work has been featured in the New York Times, ABC News, CNN, Christianity Today, The 700 Club, Outreach Magazine, and more. Her books include Dirty Girls Come Clean, 90 Days to Wholeness, and Dating Done Right (releasing December 2019). Crystal resides in the Kansas City area with her husband Tim.
Read MoreRALPH EARLE (1908-1995; B.A., Eastern Nazarene College; M.A., Boston University; B.D., Gordon Divinity School; D.D., Eastern Nazarene College) was Distinguished Professor of New Testament Emeritus at the Nazarene Theological Seminary, Kansas City, Missouri, where he first began teaching in 1945. While holding pastorates in Woonsocket, Rhode Island, and Everett, Massachusetts, from 1933 to 1945, he was a professor of biblical literature at Eastern Nazarene College, Wollaston, Massachusetts. He later served on the fifteen-man Committee on Bible Translation, the governing body for the New International Version of the Bible. Ralph is the author of several books including Mark (from the Everyman’s Bible Commentary series), Word Meanings in the New Testament, How We Got Our Bible, Exploring the New Testament, and Story of the New Testament. He is now at home with his Lord.
Read MoreDR. JERRY ROOT is an Associate Professor at Wheaton College where he teaches graduate courses in the MA in Evangelism Program as well as courses in the undergraduate Christian Formation and Ministry Department. In addition, Jerry is a visiting professor at Biola University and Talbot Graduate School of Theology in La Mirada, California.Jerry has written many books centered around the teachings of C.S. Lewis. He has lectured on C. S. Lewis at 48 College or University Campuses in 11 countries. He has taught college and graduate courses on C. S. Lewis for 30 consecutive years.Jerry and his wife Claudia have four married children, four grandchildren, and a Welsh Corgi; they live in Wheaton, Illinois.
Read MoreJOHN WALSH is the founder of BibleTelling and the Christian Storytelling Conference. His network of BibleTelling trainers conduct seminars in the US as well as 21 other countries. The most exciting seminar is the annual BibleTelling Seminar in Israel. Those who attend tell 120 stories of the Bible at the 45 locations where they happened. The Art of Storytelling was first published in 2003, and then republished in 2014. His book, All the Stories of the Bible is used worldwide by missionaries, pastors, and other Christian workers. John shares his Bible stories on a 2-minute daily radio spot called All the Stories of the Bible in a Year and a 4-minute weekly radio spot called Telling the Stories of the Bible.
Read MoreDAVE CARDER serves as Pastor of Counseling Ministries at First Evangelical Free Church of Fullerton, CA. His specialty is Adultery Recovery and Prevention for which he has appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Network, Discovery Health, and The Learning Channel, has done training for the US Army and Navy, plus multiple tapings for The Tony Robbins Passion Project, Marriage Uncensored, 100 Huntley Street, Salvation Army Leadership Training, and the American Association of Christian Counselors. His interviews and articles have appeared in Ladies Home Journal, USA Today, The Counseling Connection, and various other magazines and journals. He is the author or co-author of Torn Asunder: Recovering from an Extramarital Affair, Close Calls: What Adulterers Want You to Know About Protecting Your Marriage, and Unlocking Your Family Patterns: Finding Freedom from a Hurtful Past. He holds the Michigan Limited License for Psychology and the California Marital and Family Therapy license, and has graduate degrees in Biblical Literature and Counseling Psychology. Dave and his wife, Ronnie, have been married 49 years, have four adult children, and eight grandchildren.
Read MoreWILLIAM LANE CRAIG is a Research Professor of Philosophy at Talbot School of Theology in La Mirada, California. He earned a doctorate in philosophy at the University of Birmingham, England, and a doctorate in theology from the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitat Munchen, Germany, where he was for two years a Fellow of the Alexander von Humboldt-Stiftung. Prior to his appointment at Talbot he spent seven years at the Higher Institute of Philosophy of the Katholike Universiteit Leuven, Belgium. He has authored or edited over forty books, including The Kalam Cosmological Argument; Assessing the New Testament Evidence for the Historicity of the Resurrection of Jesus; Divine Foreknowledge and Human Freedom; Theism, Atheism, and Big Bang Cosmology and God, Time, and Eternity, as well as over 150 articles in professional publications of philosophy and theology, including The Journal of Philosophy, New Testament Studies, Journal for the Study of the New Testament, American Philosophical Quarterly, Philosophical Studies, Philosophy, and British Journal for Philosophy of Science. His website is www.reasonablefaith.org.
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