John Meador has served as a lead pastor for nearly 40 years, most recently at Cross City Church in Euless, Texas since 2006. Part of John’s story is born out of adversity. As a small child, a severe illness resulted in an irreversible hearing loss that left him profoundly deaf. This has given him the opportunity to experience God’s grace in multiple ways. John has pastored churches in Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Texas. He and His wife Kim have been married for 45 years and are parents of 6 grown children. John loves distance cycling, “real” sports, and enjoys messing around with his oldest truck - an OBS Ford F-150.

Zachary Wagner is a writer, researcher, ordained minister––thinker of thoughts and feeler of feelings. Originally from the Chicagoland area, he now lives in Oxford, England, where he is pursuing a DPhil (PhD) in New Testament studies at Keble College, University of Oxford. He also serves as the editorial director of the Center for Pastor Theologians, where he co-hosts the CPT Podcast. His research interests include economics in the ancient world, divine wages in Second Temple Judaism and early Christianity, Pauline epistles, the Gospel of Matthew, and New Testament masculinities. His first book, Non-Toxic Masculinity: Recovering Healthy Male Sexuality, was published in 2023 with Intervarsity Press. Zach’s other writing interests include evangelical and “post-vangelical” Christian discipleship, theological formation, and speaking against church-based abuse.