The Jackson Institute Staff
John L. Musselman, Founder & President
John Musselman is the Founder and serves as President of the Jackson Institute, a leadership development organization whose mission is to contribute to the cultural, intellectual, and spiritual formation of individuals who are on a passionate quest to be welcomed, received, and acknowledged by God.
John graduated from the University of Alabama, Reformed Theological Seminary (MDiv), and Fuller Theological Seminary (DMin). After serving on the staffs of the Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, Evangelism Explosion International, and Perimeter Church in Atlanta, he founded the Jackson Institute in 1991 in order to engage the minds and hearts of leaders through mentoring relationships, strategic discipleship training, teaching, and recommended readings to foster life transformation in Christ as a passionate response to the Great Commandment, the Great Commission, and the Cultural Mandate.
John’s early influences – his family, church, and the staff of Cru (Campus Crusade for Christ) – instilled in him a passionate desire to know God and to make Him known throughout the world. During his seminary years, Dr. Gerard van Groningen and Dr. Simon Kistemaker, offered profound teaching and personal mentoring to guide him through the significant questions that had been raised during his study of philosophy under an atheistic professor at the university. Later, at Fuller Seminary, Drs. Peter Wagner, Roberta Hestenes, and Robert Boyd Munger continued to shape his life in church growth, small group theory and practice, evangelism, and church renewal.
While John is grateful for every godly influence in his life, he acknowledges, with deep gratitude, the unique contributions from the lives and writings of the following during important milestones in his life: D. James Kennedy, Francis A. Schaeffer, Carl F.H. Henry, Billy Graham, John Bunyan, Stuart Briscoe, James M. Baird, Oswald Chambers, Blaise Pascal, C.S. Lewis, G.K. Chesterton, J.R.R. Tolkien, Cornelius van Til, R.C. Sproul, Os Guinness, A.B. Bruce, Carl W. Wilson, Charles Spurgeon, J.I. Packer, John R.W. Stott, Don Jacobsen, Howard Hendricks, James Sire, Stonewall Jackson, Chuck Colson, Peter Kreeft, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, John Calvin, Martin Luther, E.V. Hill, and John Wesley. These – and many others – have faithfully pointed him to the risen Lord Jesus Christ and encouraged him to live by grace, to love His Word, and to make His name known to as many people as possible by the power of the Holy Spirit.
John’s travels have taken him to over thirty countries in the service of Christ. He has edited John Bunyan’s The Pilgrim’s Progress, A.B. Bruce’s classic work, The Training of the Twelve, and Thomas Watson’s Man’s Chief End: God’s Glory. In addition, he has written Classic Discipleship, a manual for equipping leaders in Christian discipleship, The Holy Spirit and His Gifts, and Short Stories of Christmas.
In addition to his work at the Institute, John takes great pleasure in the beauty of God’s creation, in conversation with family, friends, and strangers, and in art, music, great books, theatre, film, and historic places.
John and his wife, Colleen, take great delight in their seven children, eight grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren and live in Roswell, Georgia.
Fay Lavinghouze, Executive Secretary
Fay Lavinghouze is the Executive Secretary to John Musselman at the Jackson Institute.
From Mobile, Alabama, Fay married Ron Lavinghouze, a Marine and, later, a Marketing Manager with the Burroughs/UNYSIS Corporation for thirty years. Over the course of their married life, they lived in North Carolina, Florida, Georgia, and Alabama, where they raised three daughters.
From 1978 to 1983, Fay worked at the Briarwood Christian School in Birmingham, Alabama, where she was the secretary and office manager. After moving to Atlanta in 1983, she worked at a computer brokerage company for two years. Then, from 1987 to 1992, Fay was the Assistant Administrator for the East Cobb Presbyterian Church in Marietta, Georgia.
In January, 1993, Fay joined the staff of the Jackson Institute where she serves in the areas of administration and finance. Since becoming a part of TJI, Fay has developed a deeper understanding and passion for discipleship and continues working in the ministry of women’s discipleship which began for her in 1988.
Fay and her husband Ron reside in Roswell, Georgia. They have three adult daughters, six grandchildren, and one great-granddaughter.