Breakout Sessions

David has over twenty-five years of ministry experience as a pastor, church planter, church consultant and conference speaker. He has served as an adjunct college professor and has pastored churches in Lewisburg, Charlotte, Los Angeles, Atlanta and Sacramento. He is currently serving as the Thrive Conference Director at Bayside Church in Granite Bay, CA. A highly engaging and gifted communicator, David is increasing in demand as a speaker at conferences, seminars, and churches.

John is the Executive Director of Thriving Churches International and the Executive Pastor of Bayside Church, Granite Bay, CA. He has served in senior leadership roles for the past 30 years within church and non-profit ministry settings. He is a teacher, author, and strategist, serving both the non-profit and for-profit sectors. John and his wife Pamela have five children ranging in ages from 11 to 25.

Bill is the Chief of Staff of Bayside Church, Granite Bay, CA. He has been a pastor, church planter, and 3-time state legislator (OK), in addition to his development work for the Evangelical Covenant Church denomination. Blending homespun wisdom with a lifetime of leadership and service, Bill brings clarity and confidence to every setting he touches. Bill makes people and organizations better just by his presence and input.

Michael is currently the Singles Pastor at Bayside Church in Granite Bay, California. He has years of experience in church leadership, strategic planning, ministry expansion and discipleship, and has served primarily in singles ministry since 1993. Michael brings unique insight to the various felt and actual needs of single adults, including divorce recovery ministry, single parent family ministry and various age groups. With a primary gift of leadership, Michael enjoys developing leaders and has a fresh, authentic style of teaching that relates well to single adults and others who have experienced life in the real world.

Glenn is Pastor of Community Care and has been serving in this role for the last 12 years. He carries out pre-marital and marital counseling and has performed more than 100 weddings throughout his time in ministry. Glenn is also involved with caring for people through baptism and funerals. Glenn and Denise, his wife of 31 years, have 4 adult sons.

Lincoln Brewster, an internationally-acclaimed worship leader, is Worship Arts Pastor of Bayside Church in Granite Bay, California. A multi-talented guitarist, singer and songwriter, he speaks to the hearts of people who are hungry for non-traditional, passionate worship. Lincoln’s latest album, “Today is the Day” reached number one on iTunes’ Christian Charts. While he has reached impressive heights of success, Lincoln’s passion for God far surpasses his musical talent – and he’s an awfully good musician. As modest as he is talented, Lincoln displays his passion to help people enter God’s presence by recording worship songs that minister to a new generation of believers.

Mariann is the Director of Small Groups at Bayside Church. She is full of energy, enthusiasm and passion for small groups and has seen it grow to include more than 7,000 participants. Prior to her 7 years in fulltime ministry, she worked for 15 years in the hospitality industry as a director for Hilton Hotels, Hyatt Resorts and Club Med Vacations. She is an experienced speaker, writer and trainer with a long list of accomplishments. Mariann and her husband Mike have been married for 17 years and have two sons, ages 12 & 14.

Mark is serving as the Pastor of Community Care at Bayside of Granite Bay. He’s been serving in this role for the past eight years and oversees care ministries which include: counseling, financial assistance, support groups, Celebrate Recovery, Career Coaching, parenting, prayer, lay pastors, chaplains, weddings, memorials and baptisms. Mark and his wife Linda have been married for 32 years and have four children and three grandchildren. Together they share ministry experience in adult, youth and children’s ministries.

Rachel has been on staff at Bayside Church in Granite Bay, CA since 1997, serving as Pastor of Women’s Ministry. She began this ministry as a volunteer and is now overseeing a staff of 4, plus 380 key volunteer leaders. Rachel knows firsthand what it takes to lead a ministry in a variety of phases. She has a passion for reaching women for Christ and helping them find their full potential through healing, growth, and discovering their purpose. Rachel is married to her high school sweetheart, Doug and they have three sons, ages 16, 21, and 22.

Ray is the Senior Pastor of Bayside Church in Granite Bay, CA. A 20-year veteran of both youth and adult ministry, he is the founding pastor of Bayside Church, which has grown to over 10,000 in just a thirteen-year period. A veteran pastor and visionary leader, Ray believes that the church is called to outreach, spiritual growth, and equipping our leaders. In addition to his tireless efforts at Bayside, Ray serves as president of Developing Effective Leaders and has authored four books, all of which contain his trademark wit and dynamic style. Ray also speaks frequently at conferences, leadership training events, family camps and national youth events.

Jim has served as the Outreach Pastor at Bayside Church for the last eight years. He oversees both the local and global ministries of the church, along with being the Director of the Bayside Church plant movement. This ministry alone has planted eleven churches in the last several years. Prior to joining Bayside, Jim was on staff with Youth for Christ for 22 years. Jim and Sarah, his wife of 29 years, have three children.

Jeff is the Director of Celebrate Recovery & Life Hurts God Heals at Bayside Church of Granite Bay. He serves as a Lay Pastor and Life Counselor and is Manager of Maintenance for Bayside. He’s been married to Debi for 36 years and has 4 grown children and 7 grandchildren. Debi serves alongside Jeff every Friday night at Celebrate Recovery.

Nancy is the Director of Finance at Bayside Church of Granite Bay, and Controller for Thriving Churches International. Her 8 years on staff include managing finance, information technology, human resources, and facilities. In addition to her CPA background, Nancy has extensive experience in real estate development and management, risk management, and accounting/finance technology. She resides in Granite Bay, CA, and enjoys sharing her passion for fitness with others as a certified personal trainer and group exercise instructor.

Greg has served on the Bayside Church pastoral staff since 1997. He is currently the Pastor for Men’s Ministry and Bayside Adventure Sports. Greg spent 23 years involved in youth ministry, several years as the pastor of Small Groups, and is the founder of the Bayside Adventure Sports Ministry. Married for 27 years, Greg and Gloria have four children. The entire Weisman family participates in ministry and loves their own outdoor family adventures.

CJ is a thinker, new media evangelist, and tech & music producer. Prior to joining the Bayside team as the Director of Marketing and Technology, CJ worked for Digidesign, the prestigious leader and industry standard in the world of digital media. He loves to get people excited about what could be and then finds ways to make it happen.

John has been a licensed minister for 18 years. He’s had a wide range of ministry experience. He served ten years as a youth minister and six in college ministry. John also served as the Vice President of a missions organization that mobilized 2,000 students in 30 countries each summer. He has traveled extensively, and has been to more than 60 countries. John’s passions consist of missions and working with young adults.