2025 Speakers
Jimmy Adcox
Jimmy Adcox
Jimmy Adcox is the Discipleship Minister at Southwest Church of Christ in Jonesboro, AR.
Brett Andrews
Brett Andrews
Brett is the founding pastor of New Life Christian Church in the northern Virginia suburbs of Washington DC. Since launching in 1993 New Life has grown to be multi-site and has helped support 240 new church plants. They’ve also built a national church planting ministry Passion for Planting that has impacted countless other church plants by providing Assessment, Training, Project Management and Coaching, and by shaping Exponential into what it is today. New Life also runs the nZone, an indoor recreational facility, which allows over 400,000 Washingtonians to experience the love of God every year before they know it’s God’s love they are experiencing. Brett’s greatest blessing on earth is his wife of 29 years, Laura, and their four children. He enjoys sailing, coaching baseball, and his beagle, who will eagerly greet you by wetting the floor.
John Bliffen
John Bliffen
John Bliffen, director of Latino Christian Movement, has experience in Spanish-speaking mission work for 37 years through Team Expansion in countries such as Uruguay, Ecuador, Cuba, and Spain. He and his wife have also started two Hispanic churches in the USA, one in Miami, FL, and one in Memphis, He currently is mentoring and coaching 4 Latino pastors who are working with Arkansas Church Planting Network to plant Hispanic churches, as well as 4 Latino pastors in other states
Josh Branham
Josh Branham
Josh Branham is the Lead Pastor of Hill City Church in Boise, Idaho. He studied preaching at Boise Bible College and later earned his Master of Arts in Christian Ministry from Grand Canyon University.
With over a decade of preaching experience, Josh has developed a unique ability to take complex theological ideas and make them relevant, concrete, and engaging for all audiences. He is passionate about empowering the next generation to discover their God-given gifts and use them for the kingdom. He invests in leaders worldwide, regularly speaking at conferences and creating online content to inspire and equip them to follow Jesus with everything. Josh’s new book What Are You Waiting For? A Young Leader’s Guide to Changing the World is out now.
When he’s not working, Josh enjoys training for marathons, exploring new trails, and spending quality time with his wife, Shaina, and their three daughters. To learn more about Josh and his work, visit joshuabranham.com.
Preston Conder
Preston Conder
Preston Conder serves as the College Minister of University Church of Christ in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. He grew up in Tyler, Texas, played quarterback at Arkansas Tech University and coached football at Ole Miss before being called into vocational ministry. Preston loves King Jesus. His vision is to catalyze disciple making movements across college campuses that mobilize this generation to finish the Great Commission. He is married to the love of his life, Meg. Fun fact: Preston once grew a mullet to fit in in Arkansas.
Monte Cox
Monty Cox
I first taught at Harding as the Visiting Professor of Missions in 1988-89 then returned to Harding full-time in 1992.
Greg Comp
Greg Comp
Greg came to NXTStep Church Services with forty-two years of located ministry experience. In 2018 he and his wife, Kathy, moved to Nashville, Tennessee where his three children, their spouses, and seven grandchildren live. In 2020 he began his first TIPS assignment in Meridian, Mississippi and his second in 2023 in Lehighton, Pennsylvania. Currently Greg is on the Managemnt Team as the Coordinator for the Independent Christian Church/Church of Christ and partnering with Renew.org as their Job Board Coordinator.
Matthew Crowson
Matthew Crowson
Matthew Crowson is a recent graduate from Harding University who grew up his whole life as a third culture kid in various countries in Africa. He lives in Spring Hill TN with his wife Molly and their dog Mango.
Jim Dalrymple
Jim Dalrymple
Jim Dalrymple is the Executive Vice President of Advancement and teaches New Testament at Ozark Christian College. Jim also serves as an elder at their home church in Oronogo, Missouri.
Alex Diaz
Alex Diaz
Alex Diaz serves as the Midtown Campus Pastor at Traders Point Christian Church, located in Indianapolis, Indiana. Hailing originally from Caracas, Venezuela, Alex brings a diverse background to his role. He pursued a legal education and holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Biblical Studies, complemented by a Master of Arts degree in Intercultural Studies.
With nearly two decades of dedicated service in the realm of ministry, Alex has contributed his expertise to churches across South and North America. His multifaceted career has encompassed pivotal roles such as worship leader, church planter, and teaching pastor at one of the nation’s most influential multiethnic congregations.
At the core of his professional journey lies an unwavering passion for guiding individuals toward the transformative hope offered by Jesus. Alex’s extensive experience also equips him to provide valuable insights on leadership and intercultural ministry to the local Church.
Jeff Duerler
Jeff Duerler
Jeff grew up in Ohio but was born in Indonesia (his parents were medical missionaries). He married Julie in 1997 after graduating from Toccoa Falls Bible College in Georgia, and they moved to New York to attend Alliance Theological Seminary. After graduating with a Master of Divinity degree in 2001, they moved back to Ohio for Jeff to get his Ph.D. at Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion. After settling on the west side of Cincinnati, starting a family, and launching a rental property business, Jeff and Julie helped pioneer a third location of LifeSpring in Harrison, OH in 2008. When the decision was made to become autonomous churches in 2016, Jeff transitioned into the Senior Pastor role of LifeSpring Community Christian Church. He also serves as an adjunct online professor with Nyack College – Alliance Theological Seminary. Jeff loves to get off the beaten path to explore something new. When he was in high school, he thought Christianity was just for young kids and elderly women, but when he encountered the real Jesus, everything changed. His passion today is to help others know, love, and serve a Jesus who doesn’t just offer eternal life for the future but who calls us to brave, adventurous, abundant living now.
Michelle Eagle
Michelle Eagle
Michelle currently quarterbacks the Discipleship Ministry at Harpeth Christian Church in Franklin, TN.
Prior to joining the ministry team at Harpeth, Michelle was a Physician Assistant working with HIV infected mothers and their children in Jacksonville, FL. After a family move to TN in 2008, Michelle began volunteering in the home groups ministry at Harpeth which led to a staff administrative position. A lot of experience has been gained over the years and she takes great pleasure in coordinating and educating home group leaders, as well as matching church members to groups. Much of her experience has been gained through supporting women while they work the 12 steps of Celebrate Recovery. Michelle finds great joy in helping women grow in their relationship with Christ.
David Empson
Jeff Faull
Jeff Faull
Jeff Faull is a fourth generation preacher. He is in his 34th year as the Minister of the Mt Gilead Church in Mooresville, Indiana. A graduate of Cincinnati Christian University and of Summit Theological Seminary, Jeff co-founded and led the National Preaching Summit, an organization that promotes preaching excellence. He served 14 years as a contributing editor for Christian Standard magazine. He presently serves on the board of E2 Effective Elders and also as a regional director for Renew Discipleship. He has been blessed with opportunities to preach and lecture on preaching in multiple places around the globe. He and his wife Valerie have three children and nine grandchildren.
Christian Ray Flores
Christian Ray Flores
Christian Ray Flores leads Tribe, a church community in Austin, TX and is co-founder of Third Drive – venture development company. He has a Masters degree in Economics speaks four languages and has lived on four continents. Christian has inspired audiences as an international recording artist, award winning producer and speaker. He has led churches in Russia, Ukraine and the US and has dedicated much effort to serve the poor in Eurasia, Latin America and Africa. Christian is married to Deb de Flores and has three daughters – Diana, Violetta and Isabella.
Deb de Flores
Deb de Flores
Deb studied Theater and left a thriving career in the entertainment industry in Hollywood to pursue her dream of missions. She was so passionate about missions that she moved to Russia and married Christian in 1999. The Flores have three beautiful daughters and Deb is redeeming her own education by homeschooling them. Deb speaks three languages has a passion for learning and loves new things. She is a Packer fan, but no one holds that against her.
Ken Flora
Ken Flora
Lamont Francies
Lamont Francies
Dr. Lamont A. Francies was born and raised in San Francisco, CA. Preaching since 2003, Dr. Francies then started the Delta Bay Church of Christ (Antioch, CA) in 2007. In 2023 the congregation joined the Independent Christian Churches, and has been renamed Delta Bay Community Church. Dr. Francies is currently the African American Family and Community Engagement Coordinator for the Mt. Diablo Unified School District. He possess a BA from Pepperdine University. He holds an MA in both Sociology & Counseling and a doctorate degree from the University of San Francisco in Multicultural Education. Dr. Francies currently resides with his wife and their five children.
Reagan Grace Gibbs
Reagan Grace Gibbs
Reagan Grace Gibbs, from Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, is a speaker, student ministry director, and host of the podcast ‘Real Life Theology.’
She ministers to her 75k+ social media followers by discussing cultural hot takes and controversial opinions from a Biblical perspective.
She is married to Emmanuel Gibbs who works with her in Student Ministry at their home church, Ekklesia Christian Church.
Jeff Greene
Jeff Greene
Jeff is the Advancement Director here at IDES. He graduated from Kentucky Christian University with a Master’s in Christian Leadership. Prior to joining the IDES team, Jeff was the Director of Development, Alumni and Church Relations at Kentucky Christian University. Jeff and his wife Patty, have three children and nine grandchildren. He is excited to be working at IDES, and looks forward to continuing the rich relationships that IDES has established with churches and fellow Christians all over the world.
Guy Hammond
Guy Hammond
Bobby Harrington
Bobby Harrington
Chad Harrington
Chad Harrington
Chad is owner and publisher at Harrington Interactive Media and serves as a deacon of teaching at Harpeth Christian Church in Franklin, Tennessee. He holds degrees from Ozark Christian College and Asbury Theological Seminary and is a coauthor of The Revolutionary Disciple and Dedicated and the author of Your Spiritual Formation Plan.
Jerry Harris
Jerry Harris
Jerry Harris has served the Lord in ministry for over 40 years. Prior to his retirement in 2024, Jerry led The Crossing Church based in Quincy, IL for 26 years. In that time, The Crossing grew from 230 to over 8000 in in-person attendance in 11 locations across 3 states and baptized over 11,000 people into Christ. Jerry was a founding board member of The Solomon Foundation and has been the publisher of Christian Standard Media since 2017. He has written 3 books; Micropolitan Church, 50 Days, and Shifted: A Crossing Story for Exponential. Jerry and his wife Allison, have served the church together for 41 years and have 4 grown children, 3 children in law, and 5 grandchildren.
Dan Hamel
Dan Hamel
Our family moved to Indianapolis in 2017 to be a part of the work God is doing at The Creek! We absolutely loved this church and this community. Keren and I are blessed with three small children who you will find running the halls of this church every Sunday. My greatest passion and joy is worshiping the Lord and helping others to live a life fully devoted to Jesus.
Jason Henderson
Jason Henderson
Jason Henderson has spent over 20 years in corporate leadership. His experience includes Fortune 500, military and both public and private organizations. He has led professionally on governing boards, in corporate associations and in over 30 countries. He is the COO for Renew.org and a team member of Discipleship.org. He is a graduate of Virginia Tech and the Culinary Institute of America. He lives in Franklin, Tennessee, with his wife and two children.
Clayton Hentzel
Clayton Hentzel
Clayton Hentzel is the Lead Pastor at The Crossing – a multisite church gathering in 11 locations across three states. Clayton has been with The Crossing since 2004 and received a Bachelor of Theology from Ozark Christian College.
Orpheus Heyward
Orpheus Heyward
Dr. Orpheus J. Heyward is Senior Minister of the Renaissance Church of Christ. He is considered one of the most dynamic and scripturally sound gospel preachers among churches of Christ today. Having received his Masters of Arts in Theology, Masters of Arts in Biblical Studies and doctorate degree in Theological Exegesis, he is a constant student of the Bible.
Lashi Howard
Lashi Howard
Ajai is the founder of Central India Christian Mission and will unpack with his daughter how to disciple women for leadership roles.
Josh Howard
Josh Howard
Josh Howard has lived in India since 2008 and has a passion to see the Kingdom of God spread throughout the world through raising up disciples who make disciples, leaders who create leaders, and churches that plant churches. In 2015, he launched a ministry called “Ignite,” which has seen over 38,000 churches started in about 9 years through movements of multiplication. Josh currently serves as the Global Mobilization Catalyst for E3 Partners and Director of Vision and Mobilization for Discipleship.org. Josh and his wife, Lashi and the three kids Jeremiah, Josiah and Zara live in the Indianapolis area.
Rowlie Hutton
Rowlie Hutton
Rowlie Hutton serves as the program coordinator of Renew University. Rowlie spent over 35 years preaching in The Dakotas, Montana, and Nebraska. He is a graduate of Dakota Bible College and Montana State University-Northern. Rowlie and his wife, Suzette, have five children and eight grandchildren. While preaching in Havre, MT, Rowlie served one session in the Montana State Senate focusing on the Sanctity of Life bills. Rowlie enjoys laughing with his friends over a stout cup of coffee, reading good books, and pouring into the next generation of “young guns.”
Paul Huyghebaert
Paul Hyughebaert
Paul serves as the Lead Minister for Southside Christian Church in Ft. Pierce, FL. Paul and his wife, Lori, have been married since the Spring of 2001, and have three children: Andrew, Nate, and Hannah. Paul holds bachelor’s degrees in Bible and Psychology and a master’s degree in Professional Counseling. He enjoys spending time with family, reading, writing, and getting outdoors. His passion is to see the Church embrace both the message and the mission of Jesus. Paul is a Renew.org Leader and the author of the book The Way Back: Repentance, the Presence of God, and the Revival the Church So Desperately Needs.
Jason Ishmael
Jason Ishmael
Jason was called to ministry at 12 and is doing exactly what he loves to do the most. He and his wife Brittney were married in 2006 and have 4 children. He graduated from St. Louis Christian College with a B.A. in Preaching and later from Lincoln Christian University with an M.A. in Church History/Historical Theology. If there’s anything you should know about him, it’s that he doesn’t do anything halfway. From ministry to a handful of ridiculous hobbies, he’s all in. Just ask him what he did to his kid’s power wheels toy.
Andrew Jit
Andrew Jit
Andrew was born and raised in New Zealand and has served in various ministry roles in youth ministry and missions in New Zealand and the United States. He is the founder of MiT Global that has a focus of making passionate purposeful disciples who are living on mission for Jesus. His passion is teaching and training disciples to live on mission daily to have a global impact. He loves to challenge disciples and inspire the next generation to live passionately and radically for God. He has trained numerous churches in their missions strategy. He has traveled extensively around the world teaching, leading and training disciples. He holds an undergraduate degree in Human Geography from the University of Auckland and a Masters in Christian Education and a Certificate in Leadership and Teaching from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. He is the author of Missions Abandoned: Re-Establishing Missions as a Priority in Our Lives and Churches and Missions in Focus: 10 Essential Conversations for Effective Sending. He is married to his beautiful bride, Jamie, and blessed with two daughters, Hannah and Ella.
Gary Johnson
Ajai Lall
Dr. Gary Johnson has served in the preaching ministry for four decades. He now leads e2 as Executive Director full-time, coaching pastors and elders nationwide. He holds a Master of Arts degree in Church history from Lincoln Christian Seminary, Master of Ministry and Divinity degrees from Cincinnati Bible Seminary, and a Doctor of Ministry degree from Grace Theological Seminary (Indiana). Gary has taught as adjunct professor for a number of seminaries, including Cincinnati Christian University and TCM Institute, a seminary serving Europe and Asia. Gary has been blessed to travel overseas for the purpose of training elders and pastors in cross-cultural settings on over 100 mission trips. Gary and Leah have been married over 40 years, and have married sons, Jared and Aaron, who are both serving in the ministry. His pursuits outside of church life include running, mountain climbing, racquetball, cycling, and back-packing. Still, one of the greatest joys in life for Gary is being called “grandpa” by his six grandkids.
Shodankeh Johnson
Shodankeh Johnson
Shodankeh Johnson is part of the Core Team of New Generations. He is responsible for the mobilization of intercessors across all regions and the training of Disciple Making Movement (DMM) leaders in the ‘pioneer places’ where the gospel has never been or has never flourished. In addition, Shodankeh provides DMM training for movement-minded ministries around the world.
Shodankeh is also the leader of New Harvest ministries in Sierra Leone, West Africa. New Harvest is an indigenous DMM organization that plants churches throughout the region and incorporates a wide spectrum of ministries such as compassion, business development, leadership development, skills training and advanced education.
Ajai Lall
Ajai Lall
Ajai is the founder of Central India Christian Mission and will unpack with his daughter how to disciple women for leadership roles.
Randy Jones
Randy Jones
Randy is the International Aid Director at IDES. He is married to his wife Naomi and they have three beautiful children. Prior to joining the IDES team, he was a missionary in Eastern Europe. He still gets to travel internationally with his position at IDES, but now he is encouraging and supporting the Christians around the world who partner with IDES. Randy graduated from Dallas Christian College with a Bachelor’s degree in Ministry and Leadership. One of his favorite passages of scripture is Acts 11:27-30, because it is one of the many verses that created IDES’ vision. His favorite thing about IDES is that, as long as you are willing to get your hands dirty, you have endless opportunities to serve and minister to those in need.
Daniel McCoy
Daniel McCoy
Daniel is happily married to Susanna, and they have 3 daughters and 2 sons. He is the editorial director for Renew.org as well as a part-time professor of philosophy for Ozark Christian College. He has a bachelor’s in theology (Ozark Christian College), master of arts in apologetics (Veritas International University), and PhD in theology (North-West University, South Africa). Among his books are the Popular Handbook of World Religions (general editor), Real Life Theology Handbook (with Andrew Jit), Mirage: 5 Things People Want From God That Don’t Exist, and The Atheist’s Fatal Flaw (co-authored with Norman Geisler).
David Meija
David Meija
David Mejia, pastor of Comunidad Cristiana Little Rock, has experience in Spanish church planting in the US. He and his wife started Comunidad Cristiana 3 years ago and both also help mentor future Hispanic church planters in the US. David also works alongside John Bliffen as Media Director for Latino Christian
Movement. David has been happily married to Jhuliana for 17 years and has 3 kids and one baby on the way. He also is a soccer coach for Central Soccer Club in Bryant, AR and loves investing in the second and third generation Hispanic youth.
Reese Neyland
Reese Neyland
Reese Neyland has been learning and focusing on discipling others to follow Jesus since his baptism in Gainesville, Florida, in 1978. He has been a church leader since 1982 and has been in the Los Angeles area since he moved there with his family in 1989 to plant a church. That church started with 50 disciples and is currently around 5,500 members with many other churches planted all over the world. He has also been overseeing the maturing and planting of churches in the Nordic countries for over twenty years now. Reese loves Jesus, the Bible, and Tennessee Volunteer football.
Chip Pugh
Chip Pugh
Chip Pugh serves as the Lead Coach for Be1Make1 where he trains leaders to pursue 100% of who God created them to be. As a certified strength and conditioning coach, he has spent much of his professional career training student-athletes, CrossFit competitors, and fitness enthusiasts. He teaches leadership courses as an adjunct instructor at Tennessee Tech University where he also serves as the FCA Character Coach for the football team. In his athletic career, Chip competed as a football player at Ohio University where he earned a master’s degree in Coaching. Chip lives in Cookeville, TN with his wife, Nicole and their two daughters.
David Putman
David Putman
David Putman is the founder of Planting the Gospel, a non-profit ministry committed to catalyzing gospel-centered disciple-making movements. He lives in the Atlanta area, where he lives out his mission of helping others rediscover the simplicity of Jesus and His Way.
Megan Rawlings
Megan Rawlings
Megan, CEO and founder of The Bold Movement, is a women’s minister, podcaster, speaker, old movie lover, and gas station food aficionado. She lives for dad jokes, is always up for a meaningful conversation, and genuinely wants to help women step into their role in the kingdom of God. She is married to her best friend, a pastor, Matt Rawlings.
Matt Reagan
Matt Reagan
Matt Reagan is a Lead Team/Vision Team pastor at Southeast Christian Church in Louisville, KY. He is a visionary leader with a passion to see an entire generation awakened to the glory of God, and spends his energies creating a movement of disciple makers both locally and around the world.
Noah Reagan
Noah Reagan
Noah Reagan is a recent graduate of Grand Canyon University and serves as the Worship and Teaching Director for Nissi College Ministries at Skyline Church. Passionate about equipping the next generation, he has helped Nissi grow from a small classroom gathering into a thriving movement of over 400 college students. Noah has a heart for discipleship, spiritual formation, and creative worship, blending theology and the arts to engage young adults with the gospel. When he’s not leading, you’ll find him deep in a book, overthinking a chess move, or lost in a good song.
Sam Reagan
Sam Reagan
At 19 years old Sam was previously a student-athlete at the University of Kentucky
he is now a student at Grand Canyon University where he is studying Christian Studies.
Son of Matt Reagan(Pastor at Southeast Christian Church)
Anthony Rex
Anthony Rex
Anthony serves as Executive Director for BE1MK1, a coaching ministry dedicated to equipping leaders to be disciple makers and lead disciple making ministries. After spending 21 years in preaching and Lead Minister roles, Anthony founded BE1MK1 with his long-time ministry partner Chip Pugh. Anthony’s passion is dreaming with Kingdom builders and empowering them with clarity and courage to step into God’s desired future. He and his wife of 19 years, Lisa, have 3 beautiful children and reside just outside of Columbus, Ohio.
Hunter Redmon
Hunter Redmon
Coming Soon!
David Roadcup
David Roadcup
Dr. David Roadcup is Professor of Discipleship and Global Outreach Representative with TCM International Institute. He has been in ministry for over 40 years. Besides youth ministries, senior/preaching ministries and college/seminary teaching through the years, Dr. Roadcup has authored numerous articles and three books. He has spoken in 37 states and 5 foreign countries. As one of the founding members of the men’s ministry Promise Keepers, he served on their Board of Directors for 11 years. In 2001, he was on the summer P.K. Men’s Conference Speaking Team. In addition to his wide-ranging ministry to the Church, teaching classes for TCMI and formerly at Cincinnati Christian University, he is presently on the Board of Directors of Christ in Youth in Joplin, Missouri (C.I.Y.) and the Board of Directors of Christian Arabic Services (C.A.S.). He has been married to Karen for over 50 years. Dave and Karen have two daughters, one son-in-law and three grandchildren. Dave’s great passion is discipling believers and helping Christians grow to deeper levels in their personal walk with Jesus Christ.
JP Robinson
JP Robinson
JP Robinson has worked at Harpeth Christian Church in Franklin, TN for over 25 years. After 10 years as the student minister, he and his wife Jill and their two children moved to Uganda, where they spent 8 years as missionaries sent by HCC. JP now serves as the disciple making minster, as well as sharing preaching duties with Bobby Harrington. He is passionate about journeying with others as they learn what it means to truly trust and follow Jesus.JP Robinson has worked at Harpeth Christian Church in Franklin, TN for over 25 years. After 10 years as the student minister, he and his wife Jill and their two children moved to Uganda, where they spent 8 years as missionaries sent by HCC. JP now serves as the disciple making minster, as well as sharing preaching duties with Bobby Harrington. He is passionate about journeying with others as they learn what it means to truly trust and follow Jesus.
Mike Rosser
Mike Rosser
Director of Learning Communications and Relationships
Mike serves as the Director of Learning Communities and Relationship Development at Renew.org. He has been in full-time ministry for 40 years, serving churches in California, Alabama, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Alberta, Canada. Mike also had the privilege of spending much time in Asia sharing the gospel and planting churches. He and Sally have been married for 37 years and have two grown children, Laura and James.
Mike Rozenboom
Michael Rozenboom
Michael Rozenboom is the Family Discipleship Minister at Harpeth Christian Church in Franklin, TN. He transitioned into this role after being an elder at Harpeth and after a long and happy real estate career.
Caitlyn Rozenboom
Caitlyn Rozenboom
Caitlyn Rozenboom is the Associate Student Minister at Harpeth Christian Church! She is passionate about relational discipleship and feels so thankful for the opportunity to walk that out with students, helping them grow in maturity and truth!
Bob Russell
Bob Russell
During his senior year of high school Bob realized a desire in his heart to enter the ministry. Soon thereafter, he enrolled in Cincinnati Bible Seminary where he graduated in 1965.
At just twenty-two years of age, Bob became the pastor of Southeast Christian Church. That small congregation of 120 members became one of the largest churches in America, with 18,000 people attending the three worship services every weekend in 2006 when Bob retired. Now through Bob Russell Ministries, Bob continues to preach at churches and conferences throughout the United States, provide guidance for church leadership, mentor other ministers and author Bible study videos for use in small groups. An accomplished author, Bob has written over one-dozen books.
Bob and his wife Judy of 52 have two married sons and seven grandchildren with whom they enjoy spending their time. Bob also enjoys playing golf and is an avid University of Louisville football and basketball fan.
Jean Smith
Jean Smith
Executive Assistant to the CEO
Tommy Russell
Bob Russell and Grandson (Tommy Russell)
During his senior year of high school Bob realized a desire in his heart to enter the ministry. Soon thereafter, he enrolled in Cincinnati Bible Seminary where he graduated in 1965.
At just twenty-two years of age, Bob became the pastor of Southeast Christian Church. That small congregation of 120 members became one of the largest churches in America, with 18,000 people attending the three worship services every weekend in 2006 when Bob retired. Now through Bob Russell Ministries, Bob continues to preach at churches and conferences throughout the United States, provide guidance for church leadership, mentor other ministers and author Bible study videos for use in small groups. An accomplished author, Bob has written over one-dozen books.
Bob and his wife Judy of 52 have two married sons and seven grandchildren with whom they enjoy spending their time. Bob also enjoys playing golf and is an avid University of Louisville football and basketball fan.
Jonathan Storment
Jonathan Storment
Jonathan Storment is the Preacher at the Pleasant Valley Church of Christ in Little Rock, Arkansas, He and his wife, Leslie, have five children and are passionate about discipling the next generation in the way of Jesus. Storment has written two books: How to Start a Riot and Bringing Heaven to Earth,” which he co-authored with Josh Ross.
Renée Webb Sproles
Renée Webb Sproles
Director of Cultural Engagement
Renée Webb Sproles is from Murfreesboro, TN, where she directed The School of Christian Thought for five years at North Boulevard Church. She is a 15-year homeschool veteran. She is also a founder and co-director of the Discipleship Tutorial in Murfreesboro, where she has taught government, economics, personal finance, health, study skills, English grammar, and writing. She is the mother of two grown children, Houston and Emma, who is married to Thomas Goodwyn. With her husband, David, Renée has co-taught parenting classes for 20 years and currently teaches a marriage and family class of 100 students each week. Renée is the editor of Male & Female: A Biblical Look at Gender (RENEW.org, 2023).
David Stine
David Stine
David has been the Executive Director of IDES since 2021. He worked as the Director of Operations of IDES for 5 years prior to becoming the Executive Director. David has worked at various nonprofit organizations in Idaho and New Mexico prior to joining the IDES team. He graduated from Ozark Christian College with a Bachelor’s Degree, and a Master of Arts in Organizational Leadership from Lincoln Christian University. He is married to his wife Nicole and they have two sons, Luke and Logan and a daughter, Isabelle. A passage of scripture he frequently comes back to is John 13:34-35. David is excited to be a part of a team that is so passionate about helping the Church show Christ’s love to those in need around the world.
Dave Stovall
Dave Stovall
Dave Stovall is the Musical Director for Harpeth Christian Church in Franklin, TN. He’s also a recording artist and music producer, having previously played in the rock bands Audio Adrenaline and Wavorly. He and his wife Summer have three kids, and when he’s not working, he likes to write music, go on walks with his family, and play either tennis or disc golf.
Holli Turner
Holli Turner
Executive Assistant to the COO
My name is Holli Turner. I have a Bachelors of Science in Nursing and worked for 7 years as an RN before we decided that I would stay home and homeschool our children. I am married to my best friend and biggest cheerleader, Darryl, and we have 2 daughters and a son. We live in middle TN and are active members of a local Christian church. When faced with some health issues, I embraced a more holistic lifestyle and also rediscovered a forgotten love of writing after I began journaling my prayers and what I learned during my Bible study. I have a passion for applying God’s word to everyday situations, especially the cultural lies that target girls and women of all ages. I love to talk about the Bible, health and wellness, historical fiction and homeschooling.
Tony Twist
Tony Twist
Tony grew up in Dallas, Texas and Alice Springs, N.T., Australia. His formal education included Milligan College, Emmanuel Christian Seminary, Southern Baptist Seminary, and Indiana University. Following graduation from Milligan he married Suzanne Grogan from Spencer, Virginia. He and Suzanne served churches in Virginia, Tennessee and Indiana with a primary focus on disciple making. His passions are disciple making, spending time with Suzanne, working out and making new friends around the world. He currently serves as President and Chief Executive Officer for the TCM International Institute, a global graduate school for disciple makers based in Indianapolis, Indiana and Heiligenkreuz, Austria.
Anthony Walker
Anthony Walker
Anthony Walker has been preaching the gospel for 20 years. He has been actively involved in the church as a song leader, youth worker, preacher, and any other role God calls him. He attended Lipscomb University in pursuit of an Art Education Degree. For 12 years, he has been the full-time minister of the Highway 231 Church of Christ in Murfreesboro, TN. He and his wife Jenny are the proud parents of 2 young children: a son, Remington, and a daughter, Reign
Mike Williams
Mike Williams
Dr. Michael D. Williams became the sixth president of Harding University on June 1, 2022.
Previously, Williams served as the eighth president of Faulkner University from 2015-2022. He led the institution through a time of tremendous growth and progress. A significant achievement of his presidency was the creation of the College of Health Sciences and the launch of a state-of-the-art autism center.
Williams has served in numerous leadership roles in professional organizations. He also has spoken at a variety of state, regional and national conferences. Deeply committed to community development, Williams also has been involved in numerous leadership roles in community organizations.
He and his wife of 35 years, Lisa (’89), have two sons, Quentin and Cade (’20), and a daughter-in-law, Cailin (’20).
Carl Williamson
Carl Williamson
Carl Williamson is first and foremost a follower of Jesus. He has spent his life sharing the gospel with non-believers and training disciple makers in central New Jersey. He has been instrumental in establishing 2 new churches and working with 2 different church planting teams.
Alicia Williamson
Alicia Williamson
Alicia Williamson spent fourteen years, alongside her husband Carl, working as a domestic church planter in central New Jersey. They, along with their two daughters, Zoe (18) and Elle (16), were part of a church planting team that planted two churches and taught and equipped a number of new Christians. Alicia currently works for Harding University as an Instructor for the College of Bible and Ministry. She holds a Masters in Systematic Theology and a Masters in Christian Ministry from Harding School of Theology. Alicia is in her final year at Regent School of Divinity where she is earning a PhD in Practical Theology. Her dissertation focus is on the Spiritual Formation of Emerging Adults. She has a deep love for guiding college students to become disciple makers and lifelong Jesus followers.
Tina Wilson
Tina Wilson
Tina Wilson is a pastor’s wife and mom of seven. Alongside her husband Matt, she has committed her life to serving King Jesus as a church planter, Bible teacher, author, and advocate for all-in family ministry. She is the author of Step Into Scripture, a chronological Bible accompaniment guide. She also serves on the board for the Christian Standard magazine. She is passionate about making Christ and his church famous in South Carolina and beyond, and she serves her local church, Ekklesia, as director of communications and women’s ministry.
Matt Wilson
Matt Wilson
Matthew Wilson is the founding pastor of Ekklesia Christian Church in Conway, South Carolina, and he has led the church from a couple dozen people meeting in his home to more than 1,800 people in weekend attendance over the past ten years. Matt’s life mission is loving people like Jesus, leading people to Jesus, and launching people for Jesus. Matt is the author of The 40 Day Discipleship Journey. He and his wife Tina have six daughters, one son, and two sons-in-law, and they all serve together in ministry.
Todd Wilson
Todd Wilson
Todd is the founding CEO of Exponential and has over 20 years of experience in supporting church planters and church planting churches. Todd is co-founder of several other ministries including Discipleship.org and Passion for Planting, and has written 10 books on church multiplication. Todd is providing team leadership for the launch of Renew Movement.
David Young
David Young
David Young serves as a Scholar in Residence for Renew Network. David served in church work for forty years, including twenty-six years as the lead minister at the North Boulevard Church. He is the author or co-author of ten books. David received his Ph.D. in New Testament from Vanderbilt University, and lives in Murfreesboro, TN.
