Thom S. Rainer is a prominent Christian author, speaker and researcher. He currently serves as president and chief executive officer of LifeWay Christian Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention, one of the world’s largest Christian resource providers. He became president Feb. 1, 2006, and within a few months launched LifeWay Research to equip church leaders with insights leading to better church health and greater ministry effectiveness. He also established B&H Academic, a branch of LifeWay's B&H Publishing Group, to provide pastors, seminary professors and students with theologically conservative commentaries and other Bible resources.

Rainer is author, co-author or editor of numerous books, including The Unchurched Next Door, Breakout Churches, Simple Church, and Raising Dad.

Rainer was founding dean of the Billy Graham School of Missions, Evangelism and Church Growth atThe Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky. He also served as professor of evangelism and church growth at Southern and has taught at Beeson Divinity School, Samford University, and Tampa Bay Theological Seminary, a branch of Dallas Theological Seminary.

Rainer served as interim pastor at eight different churches between 1995-2004 and as senior pastor at four churches from 1984-1994. He also has extensive business experience, having served as vice president of Pinnacle Publishers, Inc. (2001-05); president of Church Central Associates, Inc. (2001-05); chairman of Rainer Research, a division of The Rainer Group (1999-2005); founder, president and CEO of The Rainer Group (1988-05); vice president of corporate lending at SouthTrust Bank, Alabama (1980-83); and cash management officer at Trust Company of Georgia, now SunTrust (1977-80).

Rainer is the former president of the American Association of Church Consultants. He also served as a board member of Romanian-American Missions; Ephesians 4 Ministries; and the Southern Baptist Convention’s Home Mission Board, which later became the North American Mission Board. In addition, he was a member of the Society for Advancement of Consulting, a secular organization in which he served as the only member providing church and denominational consultations; and the American Consultants League, another secular organization in which he served as the only member providing church and denominational consultations.

He has served as a church growth conference speaker for several years and is in frequent demand as a speaker today. He is a featured columnist for Outreach magazine. He is a Gold Medallion finalist for two books; former publisher of Church Health Today, a bi-weekly church-health newsletter; recipient of more than a dozen awards related to work in church health and church growth; and he has provided consultation to numerous periodicals including USA TODAY, Time, Associated Press, Religion News Service, and others.

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