The Land of Israel Experience

This is an in-depth course in the Biblical landscape of Israel and Israel's significance to the local church today. This exciting course was filmed on site in Israel with state of the art 360 video and instructors Dr. Wayne Wilks and Pastor Olen Griffing of the Gateway Center for Israel.
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The Land of Israel Experience Instructors

  Dr. Wayne Wilks
Wayne Wilks Jr. is the Executive Pastor of Church and Jewish Relations at Gateway Church in Southlake, TX. He is also an Adjunct Professor and Special Assistant to the President for Church and Jewish Relations at The King's University. Wayne holds a Ph.D. in College Teaching from the University of North Texas, an M.A. in Speech Communication from Oklahoma State University, and a B.A. in Biblical Studies from Abilene Christian University. He also has done graduate work at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Preaching and The University of the Holy Land of Jerusalem in Biblical Geography. He and his beloved wife, Bonnie, have one daughter, Julia.
  Dr. Jon Chasteen
Jon Chasteen has served as the President of The King's University and is the Lead Pastor of Victory Church, a multi-campus church based out of Oklahoma City. Passionate about empowering and equipping the local church through the preparation of Christlike servant-leaders. Dr. Chasteen desires to lead with transparency and authenticity. Prior to serving as the President at TKU, his experience included seven years of pastoral leadership and six years of administrative leadership in Christian higher education. Dr. Chasteen has three earned degrees, including a Doctor of Education from Oral Roberts University. He and his wife, Michele, are blessed to enjoy life with their two children, Corey and Jace.
  Olen Griffing
Olen Griffing is the Apostolic Elder at Gateway Church in Southlake, TX. Olen gave his life to Christ in 1970 at the age of 31 during a revival meeting. The son of a preacher, he answered God's call to pastoral ministry shortly afterwards. Upon graduating from Southwestern Theological Seminary in 1972, he served in his first pastorate at the First Baptist Church of Johnson City, Texas. In March 1974, he became the pastor of Shady Grove Baptist Church in Grand Prairie, Texas. In 1974, Shady Grove Baptist Church burned to the ground. Olen founded Shady Grove Church with the few families that remained. Under his leadership, Olen built a foundation with a strong emphasis on team ministry, world missions and vibrant praised and worship. Years later, Olen along with the elders of Shady Grove felt the Lord direct them to pursue a relationship with Gateway Church. In 2013m the churches merged and Shady Grove became the Gateway Church Grand Prairie Campus. Olen and his wife Syble have two children, six grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren.
  Nic Lesmeister
After a successful career as an entrepreneur in the finance sector, Nic earned a Master's Degree in Nonprofit Management and Leadership from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in 2015. He then led the Messianic Jewish Bible Institute (MJBI) until it merged with Gateway Church to create the Gateway Center of Israel in 2019. Nic and his wife, Tabatha, have three children and live in Dallas/Fort Worth.
  Dr. Aaron Crider
Aaron Crider has been in full-time vocational ministry for over 20 years in a variety of settings-leading worship, pastoring, teaching, resource development, and about anything else you can imagine. Dr. Crider serves as a pastor at Gateway Church and a chaplain in the Air National Guard 136th Airlift Wing. Dr. Crider has been married to his wife Holly since Aug 7, 1998, and together they have two beautiful daughters named Emma and Aliya, and a son named Samuel.

Course contents