GMMI Board of Directors

Keith and his wife Ethel, a university professor teaching English as a second language, have been married for over thirty years and have two daughters. A focus of Keith’s ministry since 1992 has been the development of the Encountering Muslims course. After September 11, 2001, Encountering Muslims became his main ministry focus. In the summer of 2002, the Swartleys joined Caleb Project in Littleton, Colorado, to further develop the course, which subsequently came under the ministry of Pioneers in 2007. For over thirty years, Encountering Muslims has trained over 50,000 participants to express the love of Christ and to plant reproducing churches among Muslims. The course has been translated into Chinese, Korean, Russian, Portuguese, and Spanish, empowering Christians to love and effectively share the hope of the gospel with Muslims in 40 countries. Keith is also the author of God’s Heart for Muslims, an 8-lesson bible study.

Hon. Prof. John Abraham Godson is a Nigerian missionary who has served for over 30 years in Poland. He is a professor of International Management at the University of Management and Communication in Poznan, Poland. He has also served as an elected public servant in Poland serving as District Councillor and Deputy mayor of his district, twice as city councillor and twice as Member of the National Parliament of Poland. Prof John has served in various roles starting as a student leader in the Nigeria Fellowship of Evangelical Students – NIFES (1988-1992), International Fellowship of Evangelical Students – IFES teams in Europe and Former USSR (1993-1995), regional coordinator IFES-ChSA Poland (1995-1998), Senior Pastor Choszczno Christian Center (1998-2003), International Director, Pilgrim Mission International (1998-2015), Deputy Chair – Intercession Working Group of Lausanne Committee for World Evangelisation – LCWE (2004-2010), Founder and President of John Godson Foundation. He serves on the Board of several national and international organizations. Prof. Godson is a marketplace apostle functioning in the academic, business and political spheres of ministry. Prof Godson is the author of about 20 published books and several articles. He is married with children and grandchildren. He makes his home in Abuja, Nigeria and Łódź, Poland.

Elizabeth (Betsy) Glanville has been Admi-Faculty at Fuller Theological Seminary from 2000-2014. She oversaw the doctoral programs in the School of Intercultural Studies (now part of the School of Mission and Theology), and taught leadership courses. In 2005 she worked as part of a team that redesigned the practical doctoral degree program into a flourishing cohort-based program. After her retirement at the end of 2014, she has continued to teach leadership, missiology, research design and methods, and dissertation writing, retiring for the fourth and final time in June 2025.

Timothy Gerdts currently manages an IT Infrastructure Team for the University of Kansas Health System in Kansas City.  Prior to joining the Health System, he held positions as the Chief Operating Officer of Affinity Worldwide, Vice President of Harvest Midwest, Sr. Manager of Information Technology at American Century Investments, and various other managerial and technical roles with large companies, public utilities, private companies, and government agencies. Tim was also a founding board member of Harvest Community Charities.  When he’s not immersed in the world of technology, Tim and his wife Andrea, who live in the Kansas City area, have 5 grown children and a dozen grandchildren they enjoy doing life with.

First and foremost Sam is a husband, dad and Grandpa. He has served the Lord faithfully for 45+ years, most often as a lay church member. He has been personally focused on the importance of building the Kingdom for the last 20 years, and has had the opportunity to serve on several ministry boards and leadership teams. Sam’s heart is to see the Lord glorified in all the world, and to see the body of Christ equipped individually to realize this goal.

Josh Summers is an entrepreneur and author who has lived with his family in Asia for over 15 years. His passion for profitable, kingdom-minded business and its missional opportunities allow him to bring a unique perspective to the GMMI board. Josh currently lives with his wife and two boys in Thailand, where they serve in various ministries and encourage Christians globally to memorize the Bible.

Rita was born in Hong Kong. She became a Christian when she was a high school teacher.  As a new believer, she joined a short term mission trip to India and realized that there were many people in the world who didn’t have an opportunity to hear the name of Jesus in their whole lives.  She felt called to serve among the unreached.   She got equipped at Fuller Theological Seminary with MA in Intercultural Studies and MA in Theology.  She has served as a pastor at a Chinese church in Hong Kong.  She has also served at GMMI in Chiang Mai for four years.  Rita is single and now she is serving the poor in Cambodia.