Theme & Speakers
Theme | Speakers
Action Based On Love
The INK '08 theme is “Action based on love”, drawn from 1
John 3:18 which says, “Dear children, let us not love with words or
tongue but with actions and in truth” (NIV). The theme will be a call
to action on God's calling in one's life, a time to be challenged, to
be inspired and encouraged during the decision making processes in our
lives as Christian internationals here in the US. We will have
outstanding men and women as speakers and seminar leaders whose lives
exemplify the theme verse above. God will use them and fellow
internationals that you will meet at the conference to speak to
whatever you are dealing with in your life as the Holy Spirit directs
and leads the conference.
- Alicia Britt Chole
Alicia Britt Chole speaks to leaders, professionals, women's groups,
ministers, and college students concerning spiritual life, temptation,
conflict, disillusionment, commitment, choices, deception, mission, and
mentoring. She has authored several books and audio/video series
including Anonymous: Jesus' Hidden Years and Yours; Pure Joy;
Reflections of a Young Atheist; The Making of A Mentor; Real Life, Real
Pain, & A Real God; Choices: To Be or Not To Be a Woman of God;
Until The Whole World Knows; and Sitting in God's Sunshine.
Describing her personal pilgrimage, Alicia Britt Chole explains: "Truth
to me was dead, God had never lived, life was full of pain, and death
was the end of life. As a young Atheist, I sincerely believed that man
had created God to fill the gaps in knowledge that would never be
spanned by experience, reason or science. In 1983 the God who pursues
those who deny Him interrupted my existence. He captured my soul with
raw love. Two decades later, God's tangible friendship still amazes me.
To deny His existence I'd have to first deny my own."
Today, Alicia Britt Chole and her fun-filled tribe of five live in the
country off a dirt road in a home devoted to reflection and writing.
- Ananda Kumar
- Ananda Kumar grew up in a Hindu family in Sri Lanka and came
to know Christ as a teenager in high school. He came to the US in fall
1993, as a transfer student during his undergraduate studies because of
the civil war in Sri Lanka. He completed BS degree in biomedical
engineering at Mercer University, Macon, GA. While at Mercer he was
involved with Reformed University Fellowship (RUF) campus ministry as
one of the core leaders. Later he completed his MS degree in
Bioengineering from University of Toledo, OH in 1999. In 2000, he moved
to Baltimore to take up a job as a Research Associate in MRI at Johns
Hopkins University. He became active in Intl. student ministries, an
outreMach to Muslims while at Hopkins and joined a local church and
later became a ruling elder there. He completed his PhD. in electrical
engineering from Johns Hopkins while employed, as a part-time student.
Ananda is married to Sahayini who is a physician also from Sri Lanka
and they reside in Baltimore city, Maryland. Ananda and his wife are
actively engaged in missions work in Sri Lanka through their church and
denomination, Presbyterian Church of America.
- Dr. David M. Howard
On his return to the US, he joined the Intervarsity Christian
Fellowship as Missions Director and also served as Director for the
Urbana Missions Conference in 1973 and 1976. He has provided leadership
to various mission agencies and ministries on the international level
as Director for the Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization
(1977-1980), International Director of World Evangelical Fellowship
(1982-1992) and President of Latin America Mission (1995-1999) among
others.
He recently retired in 2006 and now lives in Fort Meyers, FL, from
where he pursues speaking engagements, writing and teaching in the U.S
and overseas. Dr Howard is a well-known author, whose writings include
numerous articles in a wide variety of magazines and missions journals,
as well as ten books. He enjoys interacting with students and sharing
from his vast experience and vision for God's kingdom throughout the
world.
- David Ping
EMI’s interactive training materials have been translated into many
languages including: Chinese, Danish, Dutch, Italian, Korean,
Norwegian, Polish, Russian, Spanish, and Swedish. They address such
essential ministry topics as: leadership, evangelism, prayer,
guiding life-changing small groups, confronting conflict, speaking
truth in love, renewed thinking, and healthy couple relationships.
Dave is perhaps best known as co-author of the Outflow:
Outward-Focused Living in a Self-Focused World.
Over 2000 congregations have used his Outflow book and church-wide
campaign to inspire and equip their people for evangelistic outreach.
Dave is also the co-author of other popular books including: Listening
for Heaven’s Sake, Irresistible Evangelism and Quick-to-Listen Leaders.
- Jacob Jasin
In spring 2002, with the help of some Christian friends, Jacob founded
International Student Ministry, a campus ministry focused on
ministering international students at Southeastern Louisiana
University. He has been leading and developing the ministry since then.
In fall 2005, he enrolled as a distance learning student at Liberty
Baptist Theology Seminary in Lynchburg, Virginia, and graduated with a
Master of Arts in Christian Leadership in spring 2008. His passion is
to share Christ’s love to international students and disciple them to
reach out others.
- Rev. John Bennett
John is happily married to his wife Donna, and they have two married
daughters who are teachers in Harford County, Maryland.
John is a frequent traveler to Asia, including Singapore, Hong Kong,
China and especially the Philippines.
- Dr. John and Mrs. Sylvia Ronsvalle
Prior to that, John and Sylvia Ronsvalle taught at Peking University,
Beijing, the People’s Republic of China, during 1986 after developing
the Yoking Map in 1984 (see The Poor Have Faces). They
were able to travel some 12,000 miles throughout China, and during
their time there visited eight of the ten Protestant seminaries then
open in the PRC.
From 1980 to 1999, they lived voluntarily in a federally subsidized
housing project. As minority white residents over those years,
the purpose was to build bridges between the larger community and other
residents of the “statistically all-Black” housing complex.
In 1971, Sylvia Ronsvalle graduated with a B.A. from the University of
Illinois,with high honors. John Ronsvalle was also a graduate of the
University of Illinois, earning an M.A. In 1967 and a Ph.D. In 1972. He
also has an S.T.B. From Fuller Theological Seminary (1963) and an A.B.
From Syracuse University (1960). The Ronsvalles have published several
books including: The State of Church Giving series, the most recent
being The State of Church Giving through 2006: Global Triage, MDG
4, and Unreached People Groups, Behind the Stained Glass Windows: Money
Dynamics in the Church, At Ease: Discussing Money and Values in Small
Groups, The Poor Have Faces: Loving Your Neighbor in the 21st, The
Hidden Billions: The Potential of the Church in the U.S.A and A
Comparison of the Growth in Church Contributions with United States Per
Capita Income.
During the INK Conference, the Ronsvalles will speak mainly on Social
Justice.
- Richard Mendola
Before working with international students, he served as the Housing
Director at Colgate University where he graduated with a B.A. in 1978.
He also did graduate studies in counseling at Colgate from 1978-80.
Rich enjoys relating to students from many different cultural
backgrounds and has been on trips to visit returned international
students 3 times. These trips have taken him to China, Japan,
Indonesia, Taiwan, Singapore, and Malaysia.
Rich is also a church planter. In 1997, he began All Nations Christian
Fellowship, a multi-cultural church that meets near the Ohio State
University Campus. Presently, the church has 175 members from 25
different countries. Rich is the lead pastor with main responsibilities
for preaching and leading the pastoral team.
Rich is also active in the Association of Christians Ministering among
Internationals (ACMI) where he has been a board member and is a
frequent speaker.
Rich is an active speaker making known the needs of international
students as well as the tremendous blessing of learning from someone
from a different culture.
He is married to Janet and they have six children: Grace, Danielle,
Hope, Philip, Melody, and Paul.
- Dr. Takashi Yoshioka
Currently he also directs an international student ministry he started
at the Johns Hopkins University's Homewood Campus, reaching out to
Hopkins internationals. Takashi and Julie currently reside in the
Balitmore area with their three daughters: Stephanie, Natalie and
Valerie.
- Bill Nelson
- Karen Oliver
is on staff with International Friendships Inc (IFI), in Columbus,
Ohio, where she disciples international women, oversees the IFI
building maintenance and the furniture ministry, and helps guide the
campus ministry team. She is a member of Columbus Chinese
Christian Church.
Karen has been a believer since 1982 and credits a two-year Bible study
by the Navigators immediately after her rebirth and her ongoing
relationships with her "spiritual mothers," Carol Rea and Mabel Bahler,
with much of her growth in knowing God. She also appreciates the
writings of John and Paula Sandford on inner healing.
Karen has two daughters, Jennifer, an artist in Orlando, Florida, and
Elise, a writer in Powell, Ohio. Karen has a grandson, Lukas, age
3.
- Ray Shin
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