Avi Snyder

AVI SNYDER was raised in a conservative Jewish home in New York City and came to a saving faith in Jesus in 1977 with the help of a Jews for Jesus tract and the forthright witness of Christian friends. He graduated from Fuller Theological Seminary, the School of World Mission, with a Masters degree in missiology. Avi has served with Jews for Jesus since 1978 and has provided leadership for branch offices in the US, the UK, the former USSR, Germany, and Hungary. He currently lives with his wife Ruth in Budapest where he serves as the ministry director for Europe and the former USSR. He and Ruth have three grown children.

Brian Sanders

BRIAN SANDERS is the founder of the Underground Network, an international coalition of churches united by the prophetic call to love the poor, reach the lost, and seek biblical justice. The Underground is a new form of church designed and empowered for mission. A serial entrepreneur, Brian has helped to start hundreds of missional enterprises, including churches, non-profits, and businesses all over the world. He holds a degree in communication from the University of Florida, a Masters Degree in Religious Studies from the University of South Florida, and a Masters Degree in Applied Theology from Spurgeon's College. Brian has lived in intentional community in the inner city for more than twenty years, embodying the ideas that drive him. He lives in Tampa, Florida with his wife Monica and their six children.

Brittany Salmon

BRITTANY SALMON is a professor, writer, and Bible teacher. She has a MA in Intercultural Studies from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, a MA in Teaching from North Carolina State University, and is currently pursuing her doctorate from Southeastern Seminary where she is doing research on racial representation in Christian children's literature. Brittany is passionate about taking theology and applying it to everyday lives. And yet the people closest to her think of her as the friend who loves oversized sweatpants and a great conversation over coffee. She lives in Abilene, Texas with her best friend, Ben, and their four children. You can connect with Brittany on Instagram @brittanynsalmon.

C .H. Spurgeon

CHARLES H. SPURGEON (1834-1892) was known as England's most prominent preacher for most of the second half of the nineteenth century. He preached his first sermon at the age of 16, and by 22, he was the most popular preacher of his day, habitually addressing congregations of six to ten thousand. In addition, he was active in philanthropic work and evangelism. Spurgeon is the author of numerous books, including All of Grace, Finding Peace in Life’s Storms, The Anointed Life, and Praying Successfully.

Cary Schmidt

CARY SCHMIDT (MMin, DMin) serves as the senior pastor of Emmanuel Baptist Church in Newington, Connecticut. He and his wife, Dana, have been blessed with three children, their spouses, and four grandchildren, and they have enjoyed over thirty years of marriage and ministry together. Cary is the author of more than a dozen books, and his passion is to point people to Jesus Christ through leading, teaching, and writing. You can connect with Cary at www.caryschmidt.com.

Charles Sell

Charles Sheldon

Charles Stone

DR. CHARLES STONE (D.Min.) has served for forty-three years in vocational ministry, thirty of those years as a senior pastor. He recently completed a nine-year role as lead pastor of West Park Church in London, Ontario, Canada, a multicultural congregation with over a thousand attendees. He has authored seven books and now serves as a coach-consultant to pastors and leaders. Over three hundred of his articles have appeared in magazines and online in such publications as Outreach Magazine, Leadership Journal, Pastors.com, SermonCentral.com, and Churchleaders.com. Charles and his wife, Sherryl, have been married for forty-three years and have three adult children and four grandchildren. You can reach him through his website at www.charlesstone.com.

Chelsea Patterson Sobolik

CHELSEA PATTERSON SOBOLIK is the author of Longing for Motherhood: Holding On to Hope in the Midst of Childlessness, and works in Washington, DC, as the Director of Government Relations for a nonprofit organization. Previously she’s worked for the leading evangelical child welfare organization in the country, the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC), and on Capitol Hill. Chelsea has been published at the Wall Street Journal, USA Today, The Gospel Coalition, Christianity Today, and other outlets. Chelsea was adopted as a newborn from Bucharest, Romania, grew up in North Carolina, and holds a BA in International Relations from Liberty University. She and her husband, Michael, are welcoming their son home through international adoption.

Chris Swain

CHRISTOPHER SWAIN is the Disciplemaking Pastor at Long Hollow Baptist Church and the CEO of Replicate Ministries. After four years of service in the United States Marine Corps, Chris served in full-time ministry for two decades in Arkansas, Florida, Texas, Georgia, and Tennessee leading ministries ranging from students to collegiate to spiritual formation. He also served as the Director of Student Ministry Publishing at Lifeway Christian Resources, serving the church in its mission of making disciples. Chris has been with Replicate Ministries and Long Hollow Baptist Church since 2016, with a heart to expand the Gospel through disciplemaking in the local church. Along with his wife, two children, and Boston Terrier, Chris resides in the Nashville, Tennessee area.

Clarence Shuler

CLARENCE SHULER is the President/CEO of BLR: Building Lasting Relationships. Clarence is a counselor, diversity consultant, speaker, and author of ten books. He and his wife, Brenda, reside in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and have three adult daughters. For more information, visit www.clarenceshuler.com.

John Sailhamer

JOHN SAILHAMER (BA, California State University at Long Beach; MA, PhD, University of California at Los Angeles; ThM, Dallas Theological Seminary) has been teaching since 1975, most recently at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. He has published a number of books including 1 & 2 Chronicles in the Everyman’s Bible Commentary Series, An Introduction to Old Testament Theology, and The Pentateuch as Narrative. Dr. Sailhamer resides in Fullerton, California.

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.

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.

Fred Sanders

FRED SANDERS is a professor of theology at Biola University's Torrey Honors Institute, where he has taught since 1999. The doctrine of the Trinity is his main interest, but he writes and speaks on the full range of Christian doctrine. He is the author of several books, including The Deep Things of God: How the Trinity Changes Everything and Wesley on the Christian Life: The Heart Renewed in Love. He and his family live in La Mirada, California, and attend Grace Evangelical Free Church.

Joy Skarka

DR. JOY SKARKA, doctoral graduate from Dallas Theological Seminary, is the Director of Discipleship for Authentic Intimacy. Joy leads online groups for women with unwanted sexual behavior, and trains leaders how to help women find freedom from sexual shame and pornography. Joy has a published dissertation, Sexual Shame in Women and How to Experience Freedom, and a published chapter in Sanctified Sexuality: Valuing Sex in an Oversexed World.