2025 Conference Schedule

Saturday, August 2

Opening Concert at 7:15 in the Tabernacle

Steven & Hannah Musso are worship leaders and songwriters based in Albany, NY, with a passion for revival. Steven is a Billboard-charting songwriter, co-writing hits like “Thank You Jesus For The Blood” and “I Believe.” Hannah is a gifted vocalist and songwriter, co-writing “I Believe” and “Because of Jesus.” They lead worship at Redemption Church and nationwide. In March 2024, they released their debut album, The Time Is Now.

Steven & Hannah Musso

Sunday, August 3

8:30-8:55am  Prayer |  Basement of Chapel
9:00-10:00am  Annual Report | Founders Hall |
All Conference Attenders are Welcome
10:30am-12:00pm  Rick Porter, Worship Team | Tabernacle

7:15pm  Bryan Clark, Worship Team | Tabernacle
9:00pm  Food and Fellowship | Terrace

Pastor Rick Porter led the Okoboji Bible Conference for 20 years. He first served from 1994 until 2000 and then from 2005 until 2019. Rick loves the Lord Jesus and delights to serve Christ's Church in her beauty and diversity. His family is dear to him and he celebrates their ongoing participation at Conference. Rick and his wife Dianne reside in Mountain Lake, Minnesota.

Bryan has been married to Patti since 1981 and has three daughters. Living south of Lincoln, he enjoys fishing, blacksmithing, and playing the cello. A Moody Bible Institute graduate with advanced degrees from Talbot and Denver Seminaries, Bryan has been a pastor for nearly 40 years. He has spoken at Moody Bible’s Founder’s Week, led Back to the Bible, and now co-hosts Talk’n Truth with Dan Whitney (Larry the Cable Guy). An author and speaker, he transitioned to Senior Pastor Emeritus at Lincoln Berean in 2021, continuing to preach and serve the wider church.

Monday, August 4 & Tuesday, August 5

8:30-8:55am  Prayer |  Basement of Chapel
9:00-10:00am  Bible Hour with Juan Hernandez | Tabernacle
10:00am-12:00pm  Children & Youth Communities
10:30am-12:00pm  Adult Christian Life Communities

6:45-7:10pm  Prayer | Basement of Chapel
7:15pm  Preston Sprinkle, Worship Team | Tabernacle
9:00pm  Food and Fellowship | Terrace

Preston Sprinkle (Ph.D.) is an international speaker and a New York Times bestselling author, who’s written over a dozen books including Does the Bible Support Same-Sex Marriage? and his most recent book: Exiles: The Church in the Shadow of Empire. Preston currently serves as the president of The Center for Faith, Sexuality & Gender, an organization that equips Christians to engage questions about faith, sexually & gender with theological faithfulness and courageous love. And he’s also the president of Theology in the Raw ministries, which includes the popular “Theology in the Raw” podcast and the bi-annual “Exiles in Babylon” conference.

Wednesday, August 6 

8:30-8:55am  Prayer |  Basement of Chapel
9:00-10:00am  Bible Hour with Juan Hernandez | Tabernacle
10:00am-12:00pm  Children & Youth Communities
10:30am-12:00pm  Adult Christian Life Communities

1:00pm   Women's Event | Lake Okoboji Resort

6:45-7:10pm  Prayer | Basement of Chapel
7:15pm  Allison Allen, Worship Team | Tabernacle
9:00pm  Food and Fellowship | Terrace

Allison is a Bible teacher, speaker, and writer who brings Scripture to life through storytelling. Since 2022, she has co-hosted Back Porch Theology with Lisa Harper, making biblical truth accessible in a “substantive but not stuffy” way. With nearly 30 years of experience, she weaves biblical teaching with narrative across podcasts, social media, and live events.

A former Broadway actress, Allison began her career in Grease before spending three years as Women of Faith’s dramatist, performing original one-woman pieces nationwide. Now, she channels her passion for storytelling into writing and teaching. She is the author of Shine and Thirsty for More, with a new book and Bible study releasing in 2024.

Allison lives in Middle Tennessee with her husband, Jonathan, a worship leader and Bible teacher, and their two sons.

Thursday, August 7 

7:00-8:20am  Men's Breakfast with Jay Mills | Fellowship Hall

8:30-8:55am  Prayer |  Basement of Chapel
9:00-10:00am  Bible Hour with Juan Hernandez | Tabernacle
10:00am-12:00pm  Children & Youth Communities
10:30am-12:00pm  Adult Christian Life Communities

6:45-7:10pm  Prayer | Basement of Chapel
7:15pm  James Runcorn, Worship Team | Tabernacle
9:00pm  Food and Fellowship | Terrace

James Runcorn, D.Min., is the lead pastor at Hope Church in Spencer, IA. As an author, he has published a book on marital restoration, contributed to, "A Plain Account" and Calvary Chapel Magazine. As a podcaster, he co-hosted "Pastor's Live," hosted "Culture Crux" and recently launched "Hodgepodge Theology." He spent 2 decades pursuing a career in Hollywood (acting & comedy) before being called into ministry. James holds a Master of Arts in Christian Leadership (HIU), a Master of Divinity (HIU) and a Doctor of Ministry in Preaching (LCU). He and his wife, Dr. Tena Runcorn have 7 boys and several grandchildren.

Friday, August 8 

8:30-8:55am  Prayer |  Basement of Chapel
9:00-10:00am  Bible Hour with Juan Hernandez | Tabernacle
10:00am-12:00pm  Children & Youth Communities
10:30am-12:00pm  Adult Christian Life Communities

6:45-7:10pm  Prayer | Basement of Chapel
7:15pm  Mark Schwarz, Worship Team | Tabernacle
9:00pm  Food and Fellowship | Terrace

Mark currently serves as Pastor, Executive Director and  Chief Encourager of the Okoboji Bible Conference Ministry. Mark has pastored four churches over the last 35 years. Mark was the Founding Pastor at Good News Community Church of Okoboji in 1998. Even though Mark and Barby moved away from the Midwest in 2005 … they have been coming to the Bible Conference since 1998. Mark and Barby have been married since 1988 and they have four amazing adult married children, Amy, Ryan, Emily and Enoch. They also have a beautiful granddaughter Everly Quinn. Mark’s new favorite hobby is riding his E-Bike with Barby on the trails of Okoboji.

Morning Bible Hour

Monday - Friday
9:00am-10:00am
Located in The Tabernacle

Juan Hernández

The Gospel of John: Christ as Passover Lamb

We will explore the distinct historical, literary, and theological contributions of the Evangelist to the question of the identity and mission of Jesus for the earliest Christian readership and today. The series will offer an overview of John’s Gospel as a whole, while also focusing on its specific and distinctive contributions compared to the other canonical gospels.

Juan Hernández Jr. is Professor of New Testament and Early Christianity at Bethel University (St Paul) and the author of the award-winning Scribal habits and theological influences in the Apocalypse (Mohr Siebeck, 2006), co-editor of Studies on the text of the New Testament and early Christianity (Brill, 2015), and translator of Josef Schmid’s landmark German work Studies in the History of the Greek Text of the Apocalypse (SBL Press, 2018) and A Commentary on the Punctuation and Textual Structure of Revelation in the Editio Critica Maior (Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, 2024).

Adult Communities

Monday - Friday
10:30am - 12:00pm

Participants are encouraged to attend the same community all five days.

Dusty White

  • We’re adrift in a therapeutic culture. In some ways this is good because people have more access than ever before to help they’ve always needed. But how do Christians grow in care (or counseling) that is wise, biblically informed, and Christ-centered? How should we consider our anxiety or grief? What about our limits or loneliness? Our time together aims to help people understand practical tools to engage the story God gave us while also being equipped to help others around us.

  • Dusty and Jaci have been married for 25 years. They have six children and one awesome daughter-in-law –a few in college and a few at home. After spending their beginning years in college ministry both in the Midwest and in the San Francisco Bay Area they have dedicated their ministry focus to marriage, parenting, and soul care. Dusty serves as Pastor of Care and Counseling at Coram Deo Church in Omaha, Nebraska, where they have been ministering for over 15 years.

Greg & Donna Carlson

  • “Everything written in the past (the Old Testament) was written to teach us,” (Romans 15:4) so that we may gain HOPE through the endurance and encouragement of the Scriptures! This interactive, fun survey of the Old Testament provides an overview of key people and events, motivation to engage with God’s Word, and encouragement toward HOPE. An ancient Book for current times!

  • Dr. Greg Carlson is Professor Emeritus of Christian Ministries and Leadership, Trinity International University. Donna Carlson is a retired Ambassador/Trainer of Cultural Development for Chick-fil-A. They have been married for 51 years and have three adult sons and two grandsons. They live in Omaha. Both have taught Walk Thru events for over 30 years.

Chad Hayenga

  • We all begin the family journey with hopes and dreams—but what happens when things don’t go as planned? When there’s pushback, poor choices, or moments you wish you could take back? Maybe you’re not even sure what the plan was in the first place. In this community group, we’ll explore four grace-filled questions from the biblically grounded Connected Families Framework to help you build a lasting legacy in your family. You’ll walk away with practical tools for real-life challenges—and find real hope for nurturing strong, connected relationships. We will support one another by praying for our families and encouraging one another along the way.

  • Chad is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and Certified Life Coach, Chad has spent over 25 years ministering to teens and families. He desires to see creative, faith-filled families living out their purposes. Chad is married to his wife Carma and has three daughters.

Bryan Anderson

  • Repeated studies confirm the book of Psalms as the favorite book in the Bible. The New Testament quotes the Psalms over 100 times. Jesus refers to this sacred text 50 times. It’s often referred to as a book of poetry, but 13 Psalms contain a subscript at the beginning with a historical reference. These are one sentence contextual gold mines. They provide vivid reference points to interpret the Psalms. THIS WEEK, we will journey together through five of these Psalms, all in reference to David at various stages of his life. In an engaging and applicational format, we will gain new insights into these texts and be inspired to apply these truths to our own lives.

  • Bryan grew up in the wilds of South Dakota, the son of a professional trapper.

    He studied at South Dakota State University, Dallas Theological Seminary and Trinity International University.

    Bryan has been a senior pastor for more than 25 years. He is passionate about teaching God’s Word weekly to exhort, equip and encourage believers towards Christ-like maturity.

    He has been married almost 30 years to his wife Rachel and they have 4 kids and 2 daughter-in-laws. In his spare time, he likes to exercise, garden, manage his bee hives and coach his kid’s sports teams.

Skye Jethani

  • The entire narrative of the Bible is about God’s desire to dwell with his people, and in the ancient world this was achieved through temples. These special places were understood to be where the heavens (God’s realm) and the earth (our realm) overlap. This class will look at temple theology in a way that will illuminate well known stories in a new way including the creation narrative in Genesis, the Old Testament law, even the ministry of Jesus, the cross, the mission of the Church, and the symbols in Revelation.

  • Skye Jethani is a former pastor, a speaker, and the author of eleven books. After spending more than a decade reporting on issues of faith and culture for Christianity Today, he now cohosts the Holy Post podcast, a weekly show that blends cultural and theological insights with comical conversation. Skye and his wife Amanda, have three children and reside in Wheaton, Illinois.

Kayla Craig

  • How do we hold onto hope in a world weighed down by division, exhaustion, and uncertainty? How do we stay connected to God, to ourselves, and to one another when we’re caregiving, leading, or just trying to keep up with the laundry? In this hands-on, reflective workshop, we’ll explore how the people of God held onto stubborn hope in times of upheaval—and what that means for us today. Through real-life storytelling, Scripture-rooted encouragement, breath prayer, and group reflection, you’ll create space to meet God right in the middle of your mess. Leave with practices you can carry into real life, prayers you can return to, and a more grounded sense of hope that meets you where you are.

  • Kayla Craig is a former journalist turned author and spiritual director-in-training. She’s the voice behind the Liturgies for Parents community and the author of To Light Their Way and Every Season Sacred—books of prayers, reflections, and liturgies for navigating faith in real life.

    With a background in storytelling and a heart for contemplative practice, Kayla creates space for weary souls to connect with God in the chaos and beauty of everyday life. She and her husband, Jonny, live in eastern Iowa with their four children, where they’re daily learning that every season can be sacred.

Women’s Event

Wednesday, August 6th at 1:00pm

Lake Okoboji Resort
1405 US Highway 71, Okoboji 51355

Featured Speaker:

Allison Allen

Allison is a Bible teacher, speaker, and writer who brings Scripture to life through storytelling. Since 2022, she has co-hosted Back Porch Theology with Lisa Harper, making biblical truth accessible in a “substantive but not stuffy” way. With nearly 30 years of experience, she weaves biblical teaching with narrative across podcasts, social media, and live events.

A former Broadway actress, Allison began her career in Grease before spending three years as Women of Faith’s dramatist, performing original one-woman pieces nationwide. Now, she channels her passion for storytelling into writing and teaching. She is the author of Shine and Thirsty for More, with a new book and Bible study released in 2024.

Allison lives in Middle Tennessee with her husband, Jonathan, a worship leader and Bible teacher, and their two sons.

Featured Musician:

After nearly 30 years of ministry as a worship leader in local, national and missional settings, Jonathan Allen joins his wife, Allison, on stage. When a guitar is in his hands, everything becomes clear to him as a worshipper, teacher and mentor. With an MA in Ministry from Richmont Graduate University, the singer/songwriter prioritizes God’s presence over performance. He co-wrote several worship projects including So Loved (Matthew West) and Ever With Us (Alisa Childers.) He and his family reside in Nashville.

Jonathan Allen

$30.00 per ticket

Approx. 13 seats remaining!

Menu:

Please indicate the need for a gluten-free bread option. Salad & dessert are gluten free.

Deconstructed cranberry pecan salad with grilled chicken breast and cranberry vinaigrette dressing, House Baguette, Beverage

Dessert: Flourless ganache torte with mascarpone whip

Men’s Breakfast

Thursday, August 7th 7:00-8:20am

Jay Mills

Jay Mills spent thirty years coaching college football, thirteen as a head coach, and served at premier institutions like Notre Dame and Harvard. Jay was mentored by some of the greatest coaches of our generation, taught a university course on coaching motivation, and received the Mike Campbell Lifetime Achievement award for his distinguished coaching career. He even had the pleasure of coaching a Heisman winner.

Following his retirement, he established Coach Jay Mills Ministries (CJM). As an ordained pastor, writer, motivational speaker, and author, he shares biblically based coaching principles in leadership. He distributes a digital newsletter (Coaching Points), produces a video series (Chalk Talks), and authored Game On! A Coach’s Game Plan for Discipleship. Jay also wrote a screenplay that is based in part on his next book, Winning Spirit: Playing Life with Victory in Hand. More information on CJM is available at coachjaymills.com.

Sign up at the Welcome Center in the back of the Tab during conference week

Our Missionaries

Nate Yoder,
C&MA

Monday and Tuesday

  • We are the Yoders; Nate, Megan, Addelyn & Thias. Nate grew up in Iowa and Megan in Minnesota. We met at Iowa State University and were married soon after graduation. God spent 8 years preparing us for our move to Berlin in 2020. There we joined a 2-part team of church planters focused on East Germany and newly emigrated Arabic speakers from the Levantine region.

Julie Arant,
Global Friends

Wednesday

  • Julie Arant started befriending Muslims refugees and other international students in 1979 when Russia initially invaded Afghanistan and Afghan refugees started fleeing to the United States. Her family befriended an Afghan family who were advisers to the King of Afghanistan. Since that time, she has worked in Minnesota and Nebraska mobilizing churches and personally involved in reaching the "World at our Doorstep" through international student ministry. Currently, Julie works through the MidAmerica District of the Christian and Missionary Alliance in partnership with ISI (International Students Incorporated).

Dr. Jim Blessman, Blessman International

Thursday and Friday

  • Dr. Jim (Doc) Blessman and his wife Beth, originally from Iowa, founded Blessman International after Jim experienced a powerful spiritual transformation and felt called to full-time missions. Since 2001, they’ve lived and served in South Africa, focusing on sustainable ministry through feeding programs, clean water, education, and youth development. Together, they lead a team committed to meeting both physical and spiritual needs in underserved communities. Their work is driven by a deep love for God and a desire to see lives transformed through practical help and the hope of the gospel.