Frank Thomas is senior pastor of Mississippi Boulevard Baptist Church in Memphis, Tennessee. He received an M.Div. from Chicago Theological Seminary, an M.A. in African-Caribbean studies from Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago, a D.Min. from Chicago Theological Seminary, a D.Min. in preaching from United Theological Seminary in Dayton, Ohio, and a Doctor of Divinity degree from Christian Theological Seminary in Indianapolis, Indiana. He is the author of The Lord's Prayer in Times Such as These; Spiritual Maturity: Preserving Congregational Health and Balance book and workbook; What's Love Got To Do With It? Love, Power, Sex, and God book and workbook; and They Like to Never Quit Praisin' God: The Role of Celebration in Preaching. He is also co-editor of 9.11.01: African American Leaders Respond to an American Tragedy.

In 2007, desiring to create new national conversations concerning the use of Scripture in preaching and worship, Reverend Simmons commissioned world-renowned scholars to assist in the creation of The African American Online Lectionary. The lectionary went online in December 2007 and in eight months received more than a half million visitors. The African American Lectionary is a resource tool that not only highlights the African American ecclesial traditions and moments that creatively express the joy, freedom, and the challenges of being both African American and Christian (e.g., Watch Night, African Heritage Sunday, Usher's Day, and Women's Day), but also recognizes the liturgical calendar celebrated across a variety of ecclesial traditions (e.g., Advent, Christmas, Lent, Easter, and Pentecost). It is designed to assist preachers in proclamation of the primary days of liturgical celebration by African Americans and to provide liturgist and worship leaders with assistance in preparing worship designs for the 21st century.

Martha received her M.Div. from Emory University (Candler School of Theology) in Atlanta, Georgia and her J.D. from New College of California, School of Law. She is one of two general editors for Preaching with Sacred Fire: African American Sermons 1750 to the Present (W.W. Norton Publishers, summer 2009). This historic 1,300-plus pages offering will be the first NortonAnthology of African American Preaching. She is the co-editor of 9.11.01: African American Leaders Respond to an American Tragedy, the editor of Preaching on the Brink, and the co-author of A Study Guide to Accompany Celebration and Experience in Preaching.

Reverend White worked as a national journalist prior to receiving God's call to ministry. A graduate of the E.W. Scripps School of Journalism at Ohio University, she began her writing career with Business Week, working in the New York City headquarters office, as well as the Cleveland, Pittsburgh, and Atlanta bureaus. She has also written for Black Enterprise and has served as a staff writer for The Baltimore Sun and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Reverend White joined U.S. News & World Report in 1995. She served on the team that covered the 1996 Centennial Olympic Games in Atlanta and went on to become the first African American to ascend to the level of editorial management at the magazine.

Since moving to Florida in 2002, Reverend Mallory White has worked as a professor of journalism at Florida A & M University and an adviser for The Famuan, the university's award-winning newspaper, and then as editorial director for a local publisher of regional magazines. A frequent freelance contributor, Reverend Mallory White's work has appeared in numerous publications, including Tallahassee's Capital Outlook newspaper and the nationally distributed Gospel Today magazine. She serves as an associate minister at Mt. Hermon A.M.E. Church, Miami Gardens, Florida, where her husband, the Reverend John F. White II, is pastor.