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We prepare Hearts for Eternity by helping people develop a strong habit of listening to the Lord, rather than only speaking to Him. We do this primarily through enabling three types of strategic retreats— Listening Prayer, Spiritual Formation, and Marriage Revitalization— each with an emphasis on learning to Listen to God.
“Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”
– 2 Corinthians 4:16-18
God created all people for an eternal relationship with Himself. In each human heart, there is a void in our heart that may only be filled by knowing God through His son Jesus. Once you choose to follow Jesus, you have the amazing opportunity to invest in how you will spend your eternity! All followers of Jesus will go to Heaven. But how you invest your time, your talents, and your treasure will impact your eternal life as God promises more blessings to those who are faithful in this life. We named our ministry Hearts for Eternity to remind ourselves and everyone we speak with that our focus should remain on eternity rather than the temporary things of this world.
The Hearts for Eternity team includes a deep and diverse group of ministry leaders who share a passion for Jesus and the spiritual formation of His followers. God has guided our team in creating special prayer retreat experiences where we help Jesus followers learn to listen for His voice. We believe one of the best ways you can prepare for Eternity is by learning to listen to the Lord as He speaks to you today!
Bryce is a graduate of Furman University, Dallas Theological Seminary, and Asbury Theological Seminary with a Doctorate of Ministry degree in leadership. Over the past 20 years, he has served in a variety of executive roles including global pastor, discipleship pastor, executive pastor, and COO and CEO of large nonprofits. Bryce serves on various boards and partners with strategic global ministries which share his passion for all people to hear about the love of Jesus. He especially enjoys preaching on the topics of eternity, prayer, stewardship, and global missions.
Bryce grew up in St. Petersburg, FL. He came to know Jesus as a young child through the blessing of Christian parents and grandparents. He graduated from Furman University with a degree in accounting and worked for Ernst & Young as a CPA and audit manager for 12 years in SC, NC, and TX. When he was 22 years old, Bryce heard the Lord’s invitation to invest his life wisely so he would not have any regrets when he stands before the Lord for the final review of his life (Romans 14:12; 2 Corinthians 5:12).
He quit his job with Ernst & Young in NC, sold his car, and flew to Dallas, TX for seminary. Although he needed to rejoin Ernst & Young one year later in TX, God enabled Bryce to complete his Master of Theology degree with a focus on cross-cultural studies from Dallas Theological Seminary in 2004. He completed his Doctor of Ministry degree with a focus on Christian leadership at Asbury Theological Seminary in 2008. Bryce met his wife Vio during a mission trip to Romania in 2001. They were married three times in three months in 2002 (great story for later) and are now blessed with three children, AJ, Cayden, and Audrey Kate. Bryce enjoys playing tennis, pickleball, guitar, hiking, travel, grilling and smoking on the Green Egg, as well as all types of activities with his wife and kids.
Marcus currently provides executive leadership for a church ministry staff and Christian school in Texarkana, Arkansas. Originally from Knoxville, Tennessee, he came to faith in Christ at the age of 10 through a vacation bible school at Sevier Heights Baptist Church. At age 16, Marcus sensed God’s call on his life to pursue full time Christian service. This call led him to pursue his bachelor’s degree at William Jennings Bryan College in Dayton, Tennessee. He graduated from Bryan College with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Christian Education. Soon after graduating from Bryan College, God led Marcus to Dallas, Texas to pursue and complete his Master of Theology from Dallas Theological Seminary.
Currently, Marcus is in the last phase of completing his doctoral work in strategic leadership from Liberty University. Before working as an executive in church ministry staff, Marcus had the unique privilege of working as an executive in the corporate arena in the area of human resources and employee relations. Marcus married his beautiful and godly wife, Patricia, in May 2002. Marcus and Patricia are blessed with three children; Faith, Teela and Clyde.
Beth is second-career minister, having set aside physical therapy and hospital quality management when the Lord called her full-time into His service. After seven years as the adult discipleship director/pastor at a metro Atlanta church, Beth now leads retreats and seminars and provides individual and group spiritual direction/formation for women.
John 14:15 says, if you love me, you will obey my commands. As a Christian for many years, Beth said she tried hard to obey Jesus to convey that she loved Him. She “worked hard to become what the Bible taught.” Then, Beth discovered that her approach to pleasing Jesus was wrong. She was focused on obeying, while Jesus was asking her to fall in love with Him. The Lord took Beth on a journey that freed her from striving and engaged her in a relationship with Jesus—her Creator, Savior, and Friend. She prayed to know Jesus more intimately, to love Him more intensely, and to follow Him more closely.
During this time, everything Beth knew about God moved from her head to her heart. Obedience—no longer gutted out through self-effort—now flowed out of her love for Jesus. Beth now delights to make space for others to be with God…to slow down and listen to the Lord. She cares deeply for the seeking, struggling, broken, and suffering and is passionate about seeing others grow as disciples of Jesus Christ.
God used the Renovaré Institute of Spiritual Formation as a tool in Beth’s journey. In addition, she earned her Masters in Spiritual Formation and Direction from Richmont Graduate University; and she completed an 18-month training on giving Ignatian Spiritual Exercises from the Westmont College/Martin Institute in conjunction with the Jesuit Institute of South Africa. Beth is a Level 1 Certified Christian Trauma Care Provider. She and her husband have two adult daughters.
David is originally from Greenville, South Carolina, and is a graduate of Furman University (BA Business Administration) and Dallas Theological Seminary (ThM).
At age 19 he received Christ as Savior through the influence of Fellowship of Christian Athletes and a family that shared the Gospel and lived out their faith in a winsome way.
After graduation he worked in his family’s business before transitioning to seminary where he met his wife, Chamblee, also a graduate of Dallas Seminary (M.A. Christian Education).
Since 1997, David has served churches in Texas, Georgia, and South Carolina in a variety of pastoral roles such as Outreach & Assimilation, Discipleship, Community Life, and Executive Pastor. He and Chamblee are parents of four children and live in Greenville where they are engaged in discipleship ministry focused on creating relational environments and ministering in life-on-life, small group contexts. David also serves as a Board Member of Connie Maxwell Children’s Ministries in Greenwood, South Carolina.
He enjoys reading, exercise, the outdoors, and time together with his family.
Formerly Lead Pastor of Landmark Church in Peachtree Corners, Georgia, Lance joined Hearts for Eternity on a full time basis in 2024. Lance and his wife Ilah are the proud parents of five daughters⎯Shelly, Joanna, Marina, Charity, and Zoe. Since the 1990s, Lance has traveled to dozens of countries on six continents to preach the Gospel and equip the Body of Christ. Lance’s passion is to stir revival by encouraging and training leaders and workers through revelation and insight into the Word of God.
He has spent the last 35 years preaching and pastoring, discipling young people, leading conferences and traveling to the nations to teach, train and encourage leaders, and to help coordinate various global aid and building projects.
For relaxation, Lance enjoys fishing, scuba diving, and watching K-dramas with Ilah.
Ruth currently maintains a Christian Counseling Practice, teaches a women’s Bible study and a women’s Sunday school class, and speaks and teaches at retreats and events.
Having lived most of her life in Atlanta, Georgia, Ruth grew up in church and accepted Christ at the age of 12. She graduated from Duke University with a degree in business administration and worked in accounting until her children were born. Ruth is now widowed with three grown sons and ten grandchildren. Ruth gave her heart and life to missions at a mission conference in the 1980s. Because she had three young sons at home, she asked God how to begin her missions’ service. God nudged her to start a neighborhood women’s Bible study.
That study continues today. Ruth then pursued a masters’ degree in counseling at Luther Rice Seminary, graduating in 1992. She later added a unit of Chaplaincy Training at Scottish Rite Children’s Hospital and has been a counselor for almost 30 years.
After spending time with family (especially her grandchildren), Ruth is most passionate about missions, and she loves to pray. She has served on numerous short-term teams all over the world and carries a special burden for the Middle East. Her heart for prayer is shared in several prayer groups.
Eyleen served alongside Bryce on two church staffs in Atlanta, then moved back to
Greenville in 2017 to partner in ministry again and be closer to family. Recently retired
from Front Porch Housing, she is now in a sweet season of trust and rest, excited to help
others listen for God through Hearts for Eternity prayer retreats.
In her home country of Romania, Vio served as a missionary to special needs orphans for many years prior to her marriage to Bryce. Each summer, Vio trained hundreds of volunteers to work in the various camps held for the orphans. The rest of the year she organized weekly discipleship meetings for the children who had committed their lives to Jesus. Vio continues to mentor many of these orphans, who are now young adults, via transatlantic phone calls and emails.
Vio graduated from a specialized art school in Romania in 1997. Since moving to the US in 2002, she has used her artistic training and creative gifts by serving in various ministries for the homeless and for global missions. She has also taught art and science to elementary students. Vio has also successfully raised three children who love Jesus. She greatly enjoys painting and all forms of art, cooking, singing, tennis, and pickleball. But her greatest passion continues to be serving orphans in Kenya and Romania.
Toni’s writing and editing skills were first affirmed and sharpened in the Louisiana Office of Special Educational Services, where she began developing a skill for drafting detailed written communication with clarity. That skill was further practiced in writing/creating a plethora of papers, charts, articles, and slide show productions for her professors at Dallas Theological Seminary, while pursuing a master’s in biblical studies.
Following seminary, Toni worked in missions’ administration for over 18 years, beginning at DTS, where she met Bryce, who needed someone to track his summer missions’ support funds. Later, Bryce and Toni served together at two Atlanta churches, where Toni applied writing and editing skills to Bryce’s doctoral dissertation, mission team training materials, 10k race administration, and church governance documents, among other things.
After spending her final career years as a paralegal at a Christian law firm, Toni is now retired and serves the Hearts for Eternity team part-time. With a love for teaching women Bible and theology, she is working on charting out two significant works by a beloved DTS professor (thank you, Dr. P)—with a view to then teaching other women about God’s kingdom, the biblical covenants, and things to come. Selah.
Pastor N and his wife Ch. were school teachers in their North Africa nation for many years. A short time after they met Jesus as adults, they felt the call to start a church in their Muslim nation. The church quickly grew from 4 people to over 600. All were Muslim background new believers. Their church was persecuted and forced to close by the government in 2019. So they took their church online and continued to share their joy and faith in Jesus all over their nation.
Due to severe persecution and a desire to protect their teenage son, Pastor N and Ch. came to the US seeking asylum in 2022.
They continue to lead their North Africa church with four different online services each week, including a worship service, a prayer service, a Bible study, and a youth service. As part of our new online Arabic church partnership with MAN Ministries, Pastor N provides leadership and training for the pastors and church leaders in persecuted nations who follow up one on one with the Arabic people in those nations who attend the online worship service and desire to meet Jesus or to develop their faith.
Dr. Chinedu is a missionary, mentor, and disciple-maker dedicated to equipping believers for a deeper life with God. He founded and operates Restless Pilgrim, a ministry focused on spiritual formation, biblical teaching, and global outreach. Through retreats, mentoring, and theological training, he helps people hear God’s voice, grow in faith, and live missionally.
His journey began in Nigeria, where he was raised in a devout Christian home yet struggled with the disconnect between faith and real life.
Seeking more, he pursued theological training and was radically transformed by a deep encounter with the Holy Spirit. This led him to dedicate his life to prayer, discipleship, and raising up leaders across cultures and continents.
Now based in Egypt, Dr. Chinedu leads spiritual retreats, trains missionaries, and partners with ministries worldwide. Once searching for depth in his own faith, he now guides others into an authentic, Spirit-led walk with God. His life is proof that the journey of faith never ends—it only deepens.
Pierre and Rentia de Jager are the founders of The Restoration Well, a Christian retreat center in Bela Bela, South Africa. They mentor young leaders, oversee Young Life’s camping ministry across Africa and the Middle East, and are known for their hospitality and servant leadership. Once bound by religious legalism and racism, they now live in the freedom of God’s grace, welcoming people of all backgrounds into their lives.
Their transformation began when a cattle herder invited them to a house church, where they worshiped alongside black believers for the first time. Later, in Zimbabwe, they lived on Morning Star farm, discipled young people, and taught “Farming God’s Way.” As they cared for Zimbabwean children as their own, God broke the walls of racism that once defined their past.
Raised in apartheid-era South Africa, they grew up in a strict, segregated church where faith was about rules, not relationship. But God had a greater plan. Through decades of transformation, He reshaped their hearts, calling them to a life of love, service, and unity. Their story is proof—no one is beyond God’s redemption.
Christel Roux, a South African, joined the Hearts for Eternity team in 2024 as an outreach volunteer in her home country. Having grown up in a Christian home, Christel realized as a young adult that she wanted a deeper relationship with God, so she gave her heart to the Lord and was baptized in 1997.
After completing her honors degree in psychology, Christel worked for two years handling security clearances as a vetting officer in military intelligence. Then, during her 18 years as a stay-at-home mom, she led a Bible study group, volunteered as a counselor/facilitator at Lifeline SA, joined Elijah Africa (New Earth Ministries)—via which she became part of a redemptive purpose ministry and participated in outreach programs in Zimbabwe.
Later, as an empty-nester, Christel spent five years at a business consulting company before God redirected her focus to train for and to coach others by founding GoThrive, a life coaching and counseling practice, where she is a channel for the Father’s love in facilitating healing and growth in people’s lives and relationships.
Christel and her husband, Jean, have two children and grandchildren and are nature lovers who enjoy camping and birdwatching. Christel also loves reading and taking long walks with her little dog.
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