Meet Your 1st John Devotional Writers

Paul (along with his twin brother) was given up for adoption after a promise that the
boys would be raised in the Catholic faith. Their adopted parents were not particularly
religious, rarely attending church, but sent the boys to Catholic church and schools.
Paul rejected Christianity at around 13 years old, seeking what the world had to offer
until he exhausted that option and came back to faith at 28. Paul is grateful that God
never left or forsook him, although he gave Him plenty of reasons. He leads ACC’s
Tuesday AM men’s group.

The tenth of eighteen siblings, Mordecai has been married to his lovely wife, Ebone,
for 38 years and is a recently retired electrical engineer after a 39-year career as an Air
Force defense contractor. Mordecai has also served as a lay pastor, chaplain, and rela-
tional counselor in Las Vegas for the past 38 years. Despite advanced coronary artery
disease (survivor of seven coronary bypass grafts and nine heart blockages), Mordecai
continues to serve the Lord with gladness, leading ACC’s Tuesday PM online small
group and serving as an Elder.

Born in Las Vegas, Clay and his wife Kay have two children and 5 grandchildren. He has
been a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ since 1973, attending Anthem since 2015. He
helps Pastor Matt oversee ACC Small Groups and serves in the Senior Adult Ministry.
The Lord has impressed on his heart the importance of knowing, understanding, and
applying what He has spoken to us in His written word, so he was excited to participate
in helping others apply God’s scriptures to their lives by writing devotions for Holy
Spirit-inspired reflections.

Michelle Sullivan and the love of her life Sean have 4 adult sons and 2
granddaughters. She works full time as the Operations Manager for their eyewear
company and is a table leader at Stepping Stones. Michelle wrote a book called
Chocolate Cake Marriage and has been speaking to women’s groups for over 25 years.
Her passions include spending time with her family, encouraging women in their walk
with Jesus and playing pickleball! “I really enjoyed working on the 1 John Devo project
as it was fun to see what the Holy Spirit would download into me and onto the page.
Thank you for the privilege of being a part of this project.”

Brandi Nelson and her husband of twenty-eight years share 4 kids between them. Brandi is a
former dancer/choreographer who loves Jesus, her family, Bible study, and Siamese cats.
Currently, she serves her husband as he leads the worship/music ministry at ACC. She also
shepherds women as a group leader for Bible Study Fellowship (BSF). Brandi is grateful for
how the Holy Spirit has grown her spiritually through this study: blessing her marriage and
strengthening her love for the Body of Christ.

Jim is a retired helicopter pilot of 30 years who flew for Grand Canyon tours and TV
news shows. He was also a missionary pilot in Madagascar. He has been married to
Pam for 38 years (she is the church’s business and operations director) and they have
three grown kids. He has been part of Anthem church for nearly 11 years and is
currently working on a master’s degree in biblical studies.

Dave Johnson was born in Fort Wayne, Indiana and at age 15 met his wife, Lisa. He and
Lisa have four children and have called Henderson their home since 1998. Dave came
to know the Lord at the age of 12 and has served in church ministry primarily in the
area of administration for most of his adult life. Dave and Lisa are original members of
Anthem and now he serves as an Elder. Dave was excited to participate in the devo-
tional writing process to share his heart and voice with the church.

After earning a BA in Bible from Northeastern Bible College, as well as a Masters
in Theology from Princeton University and New Brunswick Seminary, Ralph served
the Lord through his primary gifts of preaching, teaching and counseling since 1972 –
first with youth and then as pastor in the Presbyterian Reformed Church. He and his
wife, Terry Thompson Acerno, a retired journalist, have three grown children who
continue to reside in the metro New York area (and joyfully visit them when they
return to their Connecticut home each summer). Ralph and Terry retired and
relocated to Henderson in 2018.

Jeremy and his beautiful bride, Dana, have been attending ACC with their two boys for
two years - and just added a baby daughter to their family! Jeremy has been working
for Caesar’s Entertainment as a poker dealer and supervisor on and off for 17 years.
At ACC he helps lead the Saturday AM men’s group and has enjoyed writing for the
church in the past, so when he was asked if he would like to contribute to 1 John
weekly devotionals it was an enthusiastic “yes”.

Dave Thornhill was born in California, grew up in Washington State, and has called
Henderson, NV home since 2011.  He and his wife, Heidi, have three wonderful kids:
Spencer, a Philosophy & Theology graduate from Whitworth University - and recent
interim youth pastor; Conner, an Aerospace Engineer major at Virginia Tech - and recent
president of VT Baptist College Ministries; and Brianna, a junior at New Horizons Academy
- and faithful server in Sunday morning kids’ ministry. They have attended Anthem since
2012 and have engaged with the community in myriad ways over the years; Dave enjoys
writing and seeks to serve the Kingdom through stories and thoughts.