Celebrating Two Decades With My Dad

By Lauren Biggs

I was only six years old when my dad began working at Randall House in March 2002. Over the last two decades, churches around the world have heard my dad talk about generational discipleship and Deuteronomy 6 principles. Growing up, I truly did not know all my dad did—not entirely. Like any other dad, he left for work or travel, returned home, helped my brother Michael and me with homework, took us to school, and did other typical “dad tasks.”

Despite the busyness of life, both my dad and my mom (Pam) continuously and intentionally found ways to connect our faith to everyday activities through our developmental years. It has always been clear my parents wanted us to develop a walk with Christ more than anything else in life.

This mindset of generational discipleship has been the driving force behind Dad’s time at Randall House. Because I was young when he started, many details in this article do not come from my own observations. He was just “Dad” to me, not the CEO of a publishing house. While I admittedly write with a daughter’s perspective, I wanted to balance that view and share important details. So, I interviewed nearly 20 individuals: past board members, current and former employees (team members), denominational leaders, and publishing industry leaders.

My dad’s journey to Randall House started long before he got the job. He pastored 11 years before starting his role at the publisher. During those years, he watched teens in his church get their driver’s licenses and seemingly “drive away” from God and church. Michael and I were only grade-schoolers at the time. Dad recalls that he did not want that for us, and he did not want that for the teens in his church, or any other church for that matter.

Back then, he did not understand why the first seven years of his ministry were bi-vocational. But today, in retrospect, he sees God’s hand at work. He worked in advertising, marketing, print design, and layout. In addition, he worked for a major television network and later managed his own advertising agency. He served as a consultant, regularly helping numerous clients spend hundreds of thousands of dollars for media placement. Looking back, he now realizes these roles prepared him for where God would lead.

Dad has always been a strategist and visionary. I’ve heard him say many times God has woven the fabric of his experiences together to prepare him for what he is doing. He even planned out his education carefully, from Bible and pastoral studies at Welch College with a minor in Christian education to a nonprofit management master’s degree from the University of Colorado, and ultimately, a Ph.D. in leadership from Dallas Baptist University. He would say we are the combined total of our experiences, reading, relationships, and most importantly, our moments with God.

The original board members who hired my dad still remember the interview. One was amazed when Dad submitted much more than a résumé. He submitted a 32-page vision statement! (If you know my perfectionist dad very well at all, this will not surprise you.) Those pages contained the foundation upon which D6 was later built, because his vision included Deuteronomy 6, church and home intentionality, excellence in design, and moving Randall House and Free Will Baptists to a place of greater respect within the Body of Christ.

At the first offsite vision retreat in fall 2002, my dad challenged the Randall House team to create a learning system and a family-aligned curriculum. Those present included editors, designers, and managers. Before leaving the two-and-a-half-day event, the concepts and details for CLEAR Curriculum were born. Over 18 months, every department within Randall House worked tirelessly to roll out a revolutionary new curriculum that facilitates discipleship reaching both church and home.

CLEAR Curriculum, based upon the principles of Deuteronomy 6, was launched in fall 2004, the first of three subsequent generations of curriculum: D6, D6 2nd Gen, and the current D6 EveryDay. Through the years and evolution of D6 Curriculum, many families, pastors, and leaders have cultivated cultures of generational discipleship in both their churches and homes.

The D6 Conference launched in 2009 and has since expanded to eight countries, five hosting annual events. To date, D6 Curriculum has won 160 awards for content and 50 awards for design and print excellence. D6 Curriculum addresses one of the greatest needs in the local church: preventing the loss of teens and young adults. This revolutionary generational discipleship approach disrupted the Christian curriculum industry. Before long, other major publishers, including Lifeway and David C. Cook, began producing a similar style of curriculum, emphasizing discipleship at church and home.

Over the past 20 years, Randall House has also taken great strides in other areas. Denominational publishers are known for works detailing the doctrines and historical beliefs of their movements. This is certainly true for Randall House, which has published numerous works on church history, theology, Christian living, standalone Bible studies, and numerous family ministry titles. In 20 years under my dad’s leadership, three talented acquisition editors of the book division have produced 151 titles.

While it is hard to single out any favorites, it is noteworthy to recognize several titles completed in the past 20 years: The Randall House New Testament Bible Commentary Series, several printings of The Rejoice Hymnal, numerous works by Free Will Baptist theologians, as well as The D6 Family Ministry Academic Journal series. In addition, Dad opened the door to authors beyond the denominational movement.

Additionally, during his tenure, Randall House’s books began being sold on Amazon, all e-book distribution points, and Lifeway and other family bookstores (while they were still open). Today, 30 of Randall House’s book titles have been translated into one or more languages (a total of 56 translations) and are being distributed internationally. These carefully selected titles have been beneficial for Free Will Baptist international missionaries and other international family ministry partners.

My dad is part of Generation X, meaning he was born in an analog world that gradually transitioned to a digital world during his teen years. His vision and leadership in the digital arena were vital to guide Randall House into digital file-keeping, app development, complex websites with digital storefronts, and a strong social media presence. At the same time, he maintained the tradition of analog and print publishing, which continues to be a staple for the industry.

From early elementary days, my brother and I were blessed that Mom prepared lunches, and Dad drew pictures and wrote notes on our napkins. When Mom took us to school each day, as she dropped us off, she told us, “You go be Jesus to someone today.”

In retrospect, one could say my brother and I were “at-home experiments” for generational discipleship. Today, I realize those intentional teaching moments at home were not a new concept. Those connections were what God always intended for the family, and what my husband Austin and I now intend for our own daughter Kinsley. The past 20 years have taught me discipleship happens in every moment of life—not just at church. I suspect many of you have been reminded of that principle because of Randall House and D6 Family Ministry.

How does one measure these past 20 years for my dad and Randall House? Is it by growing income from $1.9 million to a high of $4.6 million? Maybe by earning many awards of excellence for books and curriculum? Or maybe it is how many countries are now reached with generational discipleship materials?

I think my dad would argue it is not about the achievements. I think he would say our effectiveness is measured in generations. So, the value of his 20 years may only be evident in the generations to come.

About the Author: Lauren (Hunter) Biggs is the Media Connections Coordinator at IM, Inc. She loves Starbucks iced coffee, being a social media manager and consultant, traveling anywhere tropical, and hanging out with her husband Austin and daughter Kinsley. Learn more about Randall House and D6 Family Ministries.

A Short Ron Hunter and Randall House Timeline

• March 2002 – Ron Hunter hired
  

• Fall 2002 – First vision retreat
  

• 2003 – New design department serves all departments of Randall House
  

• 2003 – First TEAM Church (regional training)
  

• 2004 – Book division created
  

• Fall 2004 – CLEAR Curriculum launched
  

• 2005 – Dave Ramsey signed to write columns for teen and adult devotional magazines
  

• Spring 2005 – First issue of ONE Magazine printed
  

• 2005 – First book on Amazon (The Case of Stuart's Ship)
  

• 2006 – Ron coins the name “D6” in his hotel room during the NAFWB, Birmingham, Alabama
  

• 2007 – Dedicated marketing department created
  

• Fall 2009 – CLEAR rebranded to D6
  

• Fall 2009 – First D6 conference
  

• 2011 – Randall House presents 400th Anniversary KJV Bible exhibit at the NAFWB
  

• 2013 – Events department created
  

• 2013 – First international D6 Conference in Norway
  

• Fall 2015 – Gen 2 of D6 Curriculum launched
  

• 2015 – DNA of D6 published
  

• 2015 – D6 Podcast launched
  

• Fall 2016 –D6 Plus launched
  

• July 2019 – New Testament Bible Commentaries completed
  

• 2019 – D6 Family App launched
  

• Fall 2020 – D6 EveryDay Curriculum launched
  

• December 2020 – Kinsley, Ron’s first grandchild, is born
  

• 2021 – Development department created
  

• March 2022 – Ron's second grandchild will arrive