Amazon to the Himalayas

Host Paul Akin welcomes Pastor Chopo Mwanza of Faith Baptist Church Riverside in Kitwe, Zambia, for a conversation about gospel ministry and church life in Zambia. Mwanza introduces Zambia as a peaceful, diverse nation of more than 70 tribes and languages, where English serves as the official language and tribal divisions are often less pronounced in urban areas. He discusses Zambia’s identity as...

Host Paul Akin interviews Jennifer Trafton about her book, If Only We Could See, highlighting missionary Lilias Trotter’s decades in North Africa and how she leveraged art and creativity for ministry. Trotter kept nearly daily illustrated journals for 40 years, shared them with supporters, and helped produce colorful Arabic publications shaped by the region’s visual language to help people “see” a...

Her legacy was relational. Her legacy was people. People who felt seen and loved by her years later. Lilias Trotter lived what looked like a hidden and seemingly unsuccessful life, but she believed we are scattering seeds far beyond what we can see. ‘The harvest of the trivial and monotonous might lie out beyond the stars.’ We have no idea what God may do with our faithfulness long after our lifet...

Host Paul Akin interviews missionary Michael about his journey from nominal Catholicism in Knoxville, Tennessee, to serving nearly 15 years overseas in Central Asia and Germany. Michael shares how God used prayer for unreached peoples to call his family to missions, the challenges and opportunities of church planting in post-Christian Germany, and the story behind their German-speaking church plan...

Host Paul Akin talks with Matthew Ellison and Denny Spits about church–agency partnership in missions, arguing agencies should serve churches as facilitators, not replace them. Citing Steve Byrne, they stress churches as senders, warn against churches acting as their own agencies, and highlight the need for strong missionary care. They conclude that pastoral leadership is key to building a sending...

Host Paul Akin interviews Denny Spits and Matthew Ellison about their book The Sending Shepherd: Leading Churches to Disciple All Nations , arguing that shepherding and sending belong together in pastoral ministry. They highlight barriers to becoming a sending church—misdefined missions, risk-averse North American culture, and “missional living” that replaces cross-cultural sending—along with rese...

Paul Akin interviews Ethiopian Pastor Nigussie Yadete about growing up in the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, hearing the gospel as a university lecturer, coming to saving faith, and facing family rejection. He shares his years teaching, serving, and training in churches in the United Arab Emirates, followed by internships in Abu Dhabi and at Capitol Hill Baptist Church, before returning to Ethiopia in...

Host Paul Akin interviews Pastor Abraham about key evangelical challenges, including family rejection tied to honor-shame dynamics, nominal Christianity, materialism, and prosperity-gospel influence. He describes his growing, English-speaking church (about 150 attendees, 79 members) with strong discipleship through classes, groups, and homes. Challenges include maintaining relational depth and mee...

Paul Akin interviews Pastor Abraham, a pastor whose church has grown from 20 to 150 and is focused on healthy church planting. Abraham recounts coming to faith at age 10 through John 3:16 and his family’s migration. After training and developing convictions about grace, along with conflict in his church context, he joined a church in 2014, becoming an assistant pastor in 2015 and serving a multina...

Paul Akin interviews Pastor Doug Van Meter, an American who came to South Africa after time in Australia and has pastored Brackenhurst Baptist Church in Johannesburg for nearly 33 years. Doug describes South Africa’s post-apartheid context, ongoing racial and political tensions, and a religious landscape marked by nominal Christianity, syncretism (including the Zionist movement), and prosperity-go...

Paul Akin interviews Pastor Juan Hernandez of Rescue Mission Church in Barranquilla, Colombia. Juan shares his journey from witchcraft and hostility toward Christians to faith in Christ and pastoral ministry. He describes Colombia’s largely Catholic context, the influence of prosperity theology, and a growing hunger for sound doctrine. He also recounts planting and reforming his church, now reachi...

Host Paul Akin talks with Sarah Lanier about her book Foreign to Familiar and how “hot” and “cold” climate cultures communicate love differently through indirect vs. direct communication, relationship vs. task focus, and views of honor, time, and authority. Lanier warns against judging other cultures through one’s own lens and argues there is no perfect culture; effectiveness requires learning wha...

Host Paul Akin interviews Sarah Lanier about her book "Foreign to Familiar" and how cultural differences affect communication, leadership, and missions. Lanier shares formative cross-cultural lessons from growing up in the Middle East, living in Amsterdam, and a painful miscommunication-filled move to Chile that led to mentoring on “hot” (relationship-focused, indirect) and “cold” (task-focused, d...

In this episode of Amazon to the Himalayas , host Paul Akin welcomes Trevin Wax and Thomas West to discuss their new book, The Gospel Way Catechism , a discipleship resource designed to help believers know what they believe and why. They explain the historic role of catechesis in forming Christians and argue that in an age shaped by secular individualism and cultural confusion, the church must emb...

Host Paul Akin interviews Pastor Tiago Vera of First Baptist Church of Lisbon on Amazon to the Himalayas . They discuss Portugal’s secular context, the revitalization of the Lisbon church, and the need for a clear gospel witness. Mentioned in this episode: Doctorate of Missiology at Southern Seminary

In this episode of Amazon to the Himalayas , host Paul Akin talks with Pastor Liam Garvie of Charlotte Chapel in Edinburgh about his journey to faith, his call to pastoral ministry, and the realities of gospel work in post-Christian Scotland. They discuss challenges and signs of hope for the church, the need for pastor training, and Liam’s involvement with the Pillar Network in church planting and...

In this episode of Amazon to the Himalayas , host Paul Akin speaks with Pastor Paul Reese, lead pastor of Charlotte Chapel in Edinburgh, Scotland. Paul shares his journey from a Christian upbringing in Cardiff, Wales, to leading one of the UK’s historic evangelical churches. They discuss the unique challenges and gospel opportunities in Scotland, the state of the evangelical church in Edinburgh an...

In this episode of Amazon to the Himalayas , Dr. Paul Akin talks with Pastor Martin Smith of Hawick Baptist Church in Scotland’s Borders. Martin shares his journey to faith, his call to ministry, and his heart for serving rural Southeast Scotland. Together they explore the cultural and spiritual realities of the Borders, the story of Hawick Baptist Church, and the challenges and hope of gospel min...

In this episode of Amazon to the Himalayas , Paul Akin speaks with Dr. Miguel Núñez about the urgent need for theological education in Latin America. They discuss training local pastors, the region’s growing role in global missions, and key theological challenges, including the influence of Pentecostalism. The conversation highlights the importance of sound doctrine, humility, and learning from th...

In this episode of Amazon to the Himalayas , Paul Akin talks with Dr. Miguel Núñez about the growth and challenges of Christianity in Latin America. They explore the region’s theological history, the influence of prosperity teaching, and the expanding global impact of Latin American churches. Dr. Núñez emphasizes the importance of Reformed theology, well-trained pastors, and the energy of young be...

In this episode of Amazon to the Himalayas , Paul Akin, provost and professor of Missions at Southern Seminary, talks with Dr. Jimmy Bledsoe, a veteran missionary with 13 years in East Africa. They discuss the crucial role of theological education in strengthening local churches, the challenges pastors face in accessing solid training, and how cultural influences shape Christianity in the region....

In this episode of Amazon to the Himalayas , Paul Akin, provost and professor of Missions at Southern Seminary, talks with Dr. Jimmy Bledsoe, a veteran missionary with 13 years in East Africa. They discuss the crucial role of theological education in strengthening local churches, the challenges pastors face in accessing solid training, and how cultural influences shape Christianity in the region....

In this episode of Amazon to the Himalayas , Paul Akin talks with Bradley Bell of the Upstream Collective about the vision of the “sending church.” Bell explains how Upstream equips churches to reclaim their central role in missions through training, resources, and partnerships. They discuss common obstacles, the importance of prayer and biblical grounding, and real-world efforts—including work in...

In this episode of Amazon to the Himalayas , host Paul Akin talks with Pastor Matt Tyler about his journey from Arkansas to Bangkok. Matt shares how he and his wife Emily followed God’s call overseas, eventually leading him to pastor Bangkok City Baptist Church. They discuss the challenges of ministry in a Buddhist-majority city, the value of English-speaking churches in global hubs, and Matt’s ho...

In this episode of Amazon to the Himalayas , host Paul Akin talks with Dr. Scott Logston, co-author of Prioritizing the Church in Mission . Drawing on his experience in church planting, pastoral ministry, and mission work, Dr. Logston explains why the local church must remain central to global missions. They discuss the risks of sidelining the church, practical ways to align mission strategies wit...