John Phillips

JOHN L. PHILLIPS is currently a Bible conference speaker through the Moody Bible Institute Extension Department. He was born in Great Britain, where he received much of his Bible teaching under the instruction of Stephen Olford. He spent two years in Israel during the last years of the Moody Bible Institute Correspondence School. He later served as director of the Emmaus Correspondence School. He is author of many books including 100 Sermon Outlines and Exploring Genesis.

Colin S. Smith

COLIN SMITH is President of Open the Bible and Pastor Emeritus of The Orchard church in northwest suburban Chicago. He can be heard daily on the radio broadcast, Open the Bible, and at openthebible.org. Colin is the author of many books, including: Fly Through the Bible, Heaven, How I Got Here, and Momentum: Pursuing God’s Blessings Through the Beatitudes. He is married to Karen, and they have two married sons and five granddaughters.

Gilbert Peterson

Gerald W. Peterman

GERALD PETERMAN is Professor of Bible and Director of Biblical and Theological Studies at Moody Bible Institute. Before coming to Moody he taught at Palm Beach Atlantic College in West Palm Beach, FL, spent 4 1/2 years doing church planting for the Evangelical Free Church in central Florida and in south central Iowa, and also served eight years in the Air National Guard as a Chaplain. Peterman also serves part-time at his local church. For Moody Publishers he has written Joy and Tears: The Emotional Life of the Christian (2013) and Between Pain and Grace: A Biblical Theology of Suffering with Dr. Andrew Schmutzer. Research interests include New Testament Greek Language and Exegesis, Greek and Roman Background to the New Testament, and Biblical Theology. Gerald has been married to Marjory since January 1984, with two adult daughters, Bethany and Grace.

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.

Irvine Robertson

IRVINE ROBERTSON was born in Glasgow, Scotland. He graduated from Moody Bible Institute in 1938 and served as a missionary in India for eighteen years. He is a former faculty member of the Moody Bible Institute and former professor at MBI's evening school program in Boynton Beach, Florida. He is author of several books including What the Cults Believe and Transcendental Meditation and co-author of Comparing Christianity with the Cults and The Spirit of Truth and the Spirit of Error. He is now at home with his Lord.

Margaret D. Pagan

MARGARET PAGAN received an A.B. in English from Morgan State University and studied writing at Johns Hopkins University. Her first published work appeared in Essence magazine, and she continued to publish many freelance articles, for the most part, dealing with African American history and genealogy. After accepting Jesus Christ as her Savior she studied at Baltimore School of the Bible, and she began to desire to write on things that glorify Christ. After writing an entry on the life of Katherine Ferguson, a pioneer in the Sunday School movement, for a biographical encyclopedia, Margaret went on to write her first work of historical fiction, More Than a Slave: The Life of Katherine Ferguson. Margaret is the wife of Carl E. Pagan, pastor of Urban Bible Fellowship Church and resides in Baltimore, Maryland.

Miriam Neff

MIRIAM NEFF is the founder and president of Widow Connection (a not for profit ministry) and author of twelve books, including From One Widow to Another: Conversations on the New You and Women and Their Emotions. She is a counselor by profession, Bible study teacher, seminar and conference speaker, mother, and grandmother. She sponsors sewing projects and bakery training for widows in Africa and Albania. Her one-minute features, New Beginnings and Wise Women Managing Money are heard on many outlets, and she is a frequent radio guest on Moody Broadcasting and other networks. She is the co-creator of a video series, with her daughter Valerie Neff Hogan, Wise Women Managing Money. For more information, visit www.widowconnection.com.

Ruth Paxson

RUTH PAXSON (1889-1949) was Bible teacher, missionary, and author. Born in Manchester, Iowa, she graduated from the State University of Iowa and then attended Chicago’s Moody Bible Institute. She served as YWCA secretary for Iowa and eventually traveled as secretary for the Student Volunteer Movement. In 1911, Ruth sailed for the mission field in China, sponsored by the YWCA. Health concerns forced her to leave China soon thereafter and she then taught Bible in Europe and the United States until her death. She is author of several books, including Life on the Highest Plane and Caleb the Overcomer.

George Mueller

GEORGE MUELLER (1805-1898), evangelist and philanthropist in England, was a man of prayer and strong faith who depended wholly on God for his temporal and spiritual needs. During his time serving as pastor at a church in Bristol, England, his famous work with the orphans began when two young children were thrown upon the church's care. Mueller resolved never to tell anyone what his needs were. He told them to God and confidently expected them to be met. Over his life, he handled more than $8 million, although his own worldly possessions were valued at about $800 at his death. He is author of the book Answers to Prayer.

Andrew Murray

ANDREW 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.

Arthur W. Pink

ARTHUR W. PINK (1886-1952) was born in Nottingham, England, became a follower of Jesus at age 22 and left England in 1910 to study at Moody Bible Institute. He had a handful of short term pastorates in Colorado, California, Kentucky, and South Carolina, as well as in Australia. He is author of a great number of books including The Ability of God, Gleanings in Exodus, and The Nature of God.

Dave Carder

DAVE 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.

Gary Chapman

GARY CHAPMAN, PhD–author, speaker, counselor–has a passion for people and for helping them form lasting relationships. He is the #1 bestselling author of The 5 Love Languages® series and director of Marriage and Family Life Consultants, Inc. Gary travels the world presenting seminars, and his radio programs air on more than 400 stations. For more information, visit his website at www.5lovelanguages.com.

Derek J. Prime

DEREK PRIME was born and brought up in London, where he received his secondary education at Westminster City School. National Service immediately followed for eighteen months, during which time he was attached as an army teacher to the Royal Scots Greys in Germany. Upon demobilisation he went to Emmanuel College, Cambridge, where he studied history and then theology. For the next three years he taught at a London Grammar School, prior to his ordination to become pastor of Lansdowne Evangelical Free Church in West Norwood in south London. After twelve years at Lansdowne he was called to Charlotte Chapel in Edinburgh where he was pastor for eighteen years. He then devoted himself to writing and an itinerant ministry. During this time, sadly, within a few years of one another, both his younger daughter and his wife died of cancer. However, he was greatly blessed in having his other daughter and older son in Edinburgh and second son in London, giving him the joy of eight grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren, an ever-growing family!

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.