Meet Our 2026 whc speakers

rAY rHODES JR.

Ray serves as founding pastor of Grace Community Church of Dawsonville, GA and as president of Nourished in the Word Ministries. He has served four congregations over three decades of pastoral ministry and for fifteen years, he has led Nourished in the Word. Ray has published several books and holds theological degrees from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary (M.Div.) and The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (D.Min.). He is married to Lori and they are blessed with six daughters and four grandchildren. Ray has long been a Spurgeon enthusiast, and his doctoral thesis focused on the marriage and spirituality of Charles and Susannah Spurgeon.

Learn more at https://www.rayrhodesjr.com/

justin peters

Born and reared in Vicksburg, Mississippi, Justin earned his undergraduate at Mississippi State University (1995) and then a Master of Divinity and Master of Theology (2000, 2002) from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas.  Justin met his bride, Kathy, at an evangelism conference near Los Angeles, California in 2009. From 2014 until 2019 they lived in Sandpoint, Idaho, and were members of Kootenai Community Church. They now, along with their little dog, Mia, reside outside of Billings, Montana, and are members of Laurel Bible Church (Just Justin and Kathy are members. Mia has not yet been able to give a credible profession of faith).  

Learn more at https://justinpeters.org/

Jim osman

Jim Osman was born in May of 1972 and has lived in Sandpoint since he was three years old. He graduated from Sandpoint High School in 1990. Jim came to know Christ through the ministry of Cocolalla Lake Bible Camp in the summer of 1987. Kootenai Community Church has always been his home church, attending Sunday School, Vacation Bible School and Youth Group.  After graduating from High School, Jim attended Millar College of the Bible in Pambrun, Saskatchewan. It was at Bible College that Jim met his wife-to-be, Diedre, who was also enrolled as a student.  Jim graduated with a three year diploma in April of 1993 and married Diedre in August of that same year.  He returned to Millar to further his education and graduated from the Fourth Year Internship Program with a Bachelor of Arts in Strategic Ministries in April of 1995.  Jim and Diedre returned to Sandpoint where Jim began working in construction as a roofer until he was asked to take over as the preaching elder of Kootenai Community Church in December of 1996. Now he counts it his greatest privilege to be involved in ministering in the church that ministered to him for so many years.

Learn more about Jim at https://jimosman.com/

gabe hughes

Gabriel Hughes is pastor of Providence Reformed Baptist Church in Casa Grande, AZ.   Gabe is husband to wife, Beki, and father of their five children. He’s also the founder and voice behind the online ministry When We Understand the Text (WWUTT), an online Bible ministry with hundreds of videos, viewed tens of millions of times worldwide..  He hosts a daily podcast with twenty minutes of Bible teaching Monday to Thursday, and Beki joins him on Friday to respond to questions from listeners.  Prior to becoming a pastor, he was in radio broadcasting for 22 years.  

Learn more about WWUTT at https://wwutt.com/

TIM CHALLIES

Husband, Father, Pastor, Speaker, and Author
Tim is a Christian, a husband to Aileen, and a father to two girls (one of whom is married) and one son who is waiting for him in heaven. Tim worships and serves as an elder at Grace Fellowship Church in Toronto, Ontario. He has written a number of books and began his website in 2002 and has been writing there daily since 2003. Tim states, "It is my place to think out loud and in public while also sharing some of the interesting things I’ve discovered in my online and real-world travels."

Learn more at https://www.challies.com/

TODD FRIEL

Todd Friel is the current host of both Wretched TV and Radio and the former host of Way of the Master Radio. He has authored five books, five evangelistic booklets, and is the producer of over two dozen Bible study courses. Todd has one wife, three adult children, and two grand-dogs.

Learn more at https://fortisinstitute.org/