The Highlands Fellows are like-minded pastors from around the country who work with the ministry by writing for our magazine, Every Thought Captive, sharing their writing on the website, offering advice, spreading word about our ministry work and sharing with our people stories of God’s faithfulness from their own lives and the lives of their flocks. We are pleased to call them our brothers and friends.
Rev. Jay Barfield: Pastor of Christ Covenant Reformed Church, Billings, Montana. Jay spent some time in southwestern Virginia where he prepared for the ministry under the watchful eyes of R.C. Sproul Jr. and Laurence Windham. He was a regular on the Basement Tapes for several years and now contributes to Every Thought Captive. Jay and his wife Kim have six children.
Rev. Robert Barnes: Robert, with his wife Kim and children, Bethany and Noah, live in Spring Hill, Florida, about 45 minutes north of Tampa. After a stint of writing and editing for 15 years, Robert tired of pastoring pronouns and periods and responded to the call of God to pastor the people at Dayspring Church (PCA) in 2007. He continues to write, as well as coaching soccer and giving music lessons in the community, as he happily pastors those at Dayspring.
Rev. Roger Erber: Roger was born and raised in a busy northwest suburb of Chicago. He and his family now enjoy living on a couple of acres outside of the small town of Harvard, Illinois which is known for the statue of a Holstein cow (not made of gold) in the center of town. During WWII the Harvard area was the milk capital of the country. He is married to Maggie and has eight wonderful children, four of whom are married and have given him eleven lively grandchildren, thus far. The house is really hopping when the whole family gets together! Rog has had a diverse “career” from Engineer, Tool & Die Designer, President of Illinois Christian Home Educators, and now – Pastor/Elder of Christ’s Church, which is a member of the Covenant Presbyterian Church denomination.
Rev. Marion Lovett: Marion is the pastor of Heritage Church in Centerville, Tennessee and is married to Chesley with whom he has eight children.
Rev. James McDonald: James, husband to Stacy, father of ten (three married), and grandfather of two, serves as pastor of Providence Church in Morton, Illinois. A graduate of the University of Idaho (BSME), James is on a lifelong quest to complete his Master of Divinity and is currently enrolled at The North American Reformed Seminary. A man who has worn many hats, James has served as a design engineer, operations planner, global marketing director, and a publisher, but his true love is preaching God’s Word and ministering to God’s people. He enjoys strong coffee and what some consider to be odd food – from anything Cajun to shark, crawfish, sushi, elk, ostrich, the list goes on and on. Thankfully, his wife Stacy is a wonderful cook, who could make card board taste like bruschetta. The McDonald family lives on two acres of heaven in the middle of nowhere Illinois, where they spend their spare time raising a few chickens, adventuring in the woods and corn fields, and reading good books.
Rev. Mark Robinette: Mark is an elder on the session at Foundation Church, as well as it’s founding pastor. God has blessed the Robinettes with seven children and a small farm in central Ohio. God birthed their church as they worked among the poor in inner-city Columbus. They have had the privilege of pouring their lives into their converts and teaching them the wonderful ways of God. Mark is also an award-winning investigative journalist who has written for several magazines and spoken at home education conferences.
Rev. Jeff Swanson: Pastor of Christ the King Church, New Era, MI. He is the husband of one wife, Kelle, and father to seven children. A farmer in his heart, he spends much of his working life around cows and “sheep.” Jeff and family benefit from his work at a dairy which specializes in cheese and ice cream. If he wasn’t so “freakishly” tall, Jeff could be considered “Hobbit-ish”, loving all things that grow. Jeff loves to plow the lives of his family and his congregation as they seek to take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. Not only does Jeff consider himself a fisher of men, but also a fisher of fishes. A life of peace, communing with family and friends, finds Jeff often enjoying good fellowship, good cheese, good beer, good wine, and good bread together in community.
Rev. Kevin Swanson: Pastor of Reformation Church (OPC), Castle Rock, Colorado. A second generation homeschooler, Kevin Swanson with his wife, Brenda are now homeschooling their five children (9 – 18 years old) out on the eastern plains of Colorado. For the last 6 years Kevin has hosted a daily radio program from deep in the recesses of his basement, that now reaches 80 countries around the world. His message – to bring a Christian relational life back to family and church, applying God’s law to every area of life. His goal: to plant gardens in the ashes of the rapidly-disintegrating humanist empires. Kevin has also served as the Executive Director of Christian Home Educators of Colorado for the last eleven years. He has also authored Upgrade-10 Secrets to the Best Education for Your Child, The Second Mayflower, the Family Bible Study Guide Series, and others. Kevin be contacted via email at kevin@generationswithvision.com.
Rev. Steven Warhurst: Steve is the Associate Pastor of Westminster Presbyterian Church, Kingsport, Tennessee. He is married to Susan and is a father to seven children. Steve attended Reformed Theological Seminary in Orlando, Florida where he first met R.C. Sproul Jr, Laurence Windham and Eric Owens.