Ellen Krause

ELLEN KRAUSE, aka Mentor Mama, is cofounder of Coffee and Bible Time with daughters Ashley and Taylor. She hosts the CBT Podcast, which equips people to delight in God’s Word and thrive in Christian Living! Ellen has been involved in women’s ministry for over 20 years and mentors women worldwide through CBT. Her MA in marketing and her years in corporate America help CBT flourish. In her free time, she enjoys working out, doing mixed media art, sewing, gardening, and cooking.

Hallie Dye

HALLIE DYE is a wife of 13 years and mom to 3 spirited children in Monroe, Louisiana. Hallie is the host of The Saltworks podcast and founder of the Saltworks Ministries. Encouraging everyday people to share their stories of incredible faith one Tuesday at a time, the Saltworks is a place where we can both connect from all walks of life and be encouraged to live boldly for Christ no matter our occupation or situation.Hallie and her husband teach a life group for 20-40s at their local church, and she loves speaking at events when able. When she’s not studying, recording, or writing, you can find her with friends and family, eating Louisiana soul food, or reading a fiction novel before bed.

Nell Branum

NELL BRANUM is a former editor and elementary school librarian who is the daughter of both a World War II paratrooper and a Rosie the Riveter and believes God still uses lessons from history. She was married for 43 amazing years to her minister husband, and now she writes from a small town near Birmingham, Alabama, where she keeps chickens in the backyard, likes to go on adventures with her grown kids and their families (including nine grandkids), and enjoys watching sunsets on her front porch while drinking blueberry-flavored coffee.

Timothy George

TIMOTHY GEORGE is the founding dean of Beeson Divinity School and a professor of Divinity. He is the author of numerous books including Baptists: A Brief History, God the Holy Trinity: Reflections on Christian Faith and Practice, and Is the Father of Jesus the God of Muhammad?. He is co-author of For All the Saints and The Mark of Jesus. He is currently serving as executive editor for Christianity Today and on the editorial advisory boards of The Harvard Theological Review, Christian History and Books & Culture. Tim resides in Birmingham, Alabama.

Diane Elliot

DIANE LYNN ELLIOT is an author, professional photographer and business administrator. With a heart for people and a passion for ministry she has worked and volunteered with children, teens, women, and short-term missions and relief projects. Diane's interest in the global orphan crisis started many years ago with a trip to a hospital for terminally ill children in Siberia, and later to an orphanage in Mexico. Seeing a small snapshot of the great need started her journey and fueled her passion for the orphaned child. For the research of the book Diane also traveled to Peru and Haiti which continued to expand your vision and passion for orphaned children. Diane has a BA in Communication from Trinity International University and an M.B.A. in Global Management from the University of Phoenix. Professionally she has co-written two youth management books, and has spent many years as a freelance meeting and events planner and business manager in both not-for-profit and corporate settings. Diane, her husband David, along with their trained Alaskan Klee Kai therapy dog named Kody, live in Wauconda, Illinois and attend Willow Creek Community Church.

Jerry Root

DR. 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.

Gary J. Bredfeldt

GARY J. BREDFELDT (M.A., Denver Seminary; Ph.D., Trinity International University) has been married to Marlene for nearly forty years and is the father of four adult children: Lynne, Stephen, Michael, and Amy. He is a resident of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania where he serves as Vice President for Global Impact at Lancaster Bible College. Gary has also served as an administrator and faculty member at four prominent theological institutions: Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary (Wake Forest, NC), Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (Louisville, KY), Moody Bible Institute (Chicago, IL) and Tyndale College and Seminary (Toronto, ON). He is the author of four books, three of those with Moody Publishers: Great Leader, Great Teacher; Caring for Souls: Counseling Under the Authority of Scripture, and Creative Bible Teaching.

Ramon Presson

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.

James Ingles

D.A. Horton

D.A. HORTON currently serves on staff at Summit Church in Durham, NC while he and his family are preparing to plant a church in Los Angeles. Prior to his current role he served as an urban church planter, pastor, and Lead Teaching Elder in Kansas City, MO for nearly six years; a National Coordinator of Urban Student Ministries and the Urban Initiatives Team at the North American Mission Board (NAMB); and the Executive Director at ReachLife Ministries, the non-profit arm of Reach Records. D.A. is currently working on his Ph.D. at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Applied Theology with a North American emphasis. With a heart to provide local churches with quality Bible-centered tools and resources for evangelism and discipleship, D.A. wrote two books: G.O.S.P.E.L. and DNA: Foundations of the Faith both published by Moody Publishers. His third book, Bound to Be Free: Escaping Performance to be Captured by Grace will be released through NavPress in spring 2016. He and his wife Elicia have two daughters, Izabelle and Lola and one son, D.A. Jr. (aka Duce).

Paige Haley Drygas

Conway Edwards

CONWAY EDWARDS (Dallas Theological Seminary, Regent University) is Lead Pastor of the church, One, which ministers to the evolving communities of Plano, Allen, Frisco, and McKinney, Texas. He is also the Executive Director for the US-based ministry Caribbean Choice for Christ and the president of the National Center for Christian Leadership-Jamaica. Conway is the author of Leading a Turnaround Ministry: A Process for Exponential Growth. He co-authored When Love’s in View: Finding Focus in Dating and Relationships and The Undercover Woman with his wife, Jada. He and Jada reside in Allen, Texas.

Mary A Kassian

MARY KASSIAN is an award winning author, internationally renowned speaker, and a distinguished professor at Southern Baptist Seminary. She has published several books and Bible studies, including The Feminist Mistake. A graduate from the faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine from the University of Alberta, Canada, Mary has also studied systematic theology at the doctoral level and taught courses at seminaries throughout North America.

Thabiti Anyabwile

THABITI ANYABWILE is the full-time husband to a loving wife, Kristie, and father to three adorable children. He currently serves as a pastor of Anacostia River Church in Washington, D.C. Previously he served as senior pastor at First Baptist Church in Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands, and as an assistant pastor at Capitol Hill Baptist Church. Thabiti holds B.S. and M.S. degrees in psychology from North Carolina State University. A former high school basketball coach and bookstore owner, Thabiti loves reading, sports, and watching sci-fi films. He is the author of Reviving the Black Church, The Decline of African-American Theology, What Is a Healthy Church Member?, and The Faithful Preacher.

Austin Hill

AUSTIN HILL is an emerging American voice on talk radio and in national publications such as U.S. News & World Report and Townhall.Com. Focused on addressing culture-defining questions, Hill has an M.A. in the philosophy of religion and ethics from Biola University.

Stephen Miller

STEPHEN MILLER is a pastor and artist who strives to enlarge people’s view of God with the truth of Scripture, and artfully provide a vocabulary to express thankfulness and praise. He is a passionate advocate for the local church and he travels all over the world to preach and lead worship. Stephen is the author of Worship Leaders, We Are Not Rock Stars and his latest album, Liberating King, is now available.