Amplify Peace: Creating a Better Story Together

Send us Fan Mail Have you ever felt inadequate, fumbling for the right words to encourage, inspire or comfort someone in a tough situation? Our conversation this week on Counter Culture takes us behind the scenes with Scott Martin and some of the challenging conversations he has mediating conflict in places all over the world. He just returned from Europe, training people through the traumas of co...

Send us Fan Mail We want to have meaningful conversations but it seems too often we settle into patterns.  We end up having spent time talking but feel no less connected.  Join Lisa and Jonathan as they explore the art of conversation and how we can conversations that foster connection, peace and unity.

Send us Fan Mail So many times we know about an organization only from a present day perspective and are blinded to its rich history. On our show this week, you will learn a fascinating backstory to one such organization that has impacted our lives today (and we don’t even realize it). Today, it is still affecting our world and our communities through their various humanitarian projects, locally a...

Send us Fan Mail We like the idea of peace but we all know how hard it can be.  Perhaps one of the hardest spheres to be peaceable these days is in politics.  Glad to have our friend and superfan Chuck Fitzgerald back on our show.  Chuck is a lifelong peace advocate and serves as the Sargent at Arms for the Arizona House of Representatives.  Great stories and wisdom from a man in the trenches.

Send us Fan Mail Have you ever been to the Holy Land or perhaps it is on your bucket list? Many have visited that amazing land, rich in history, culture and diversity. But few really see “all” the people. Did you know there are Palestinian Christians living in Bethlehem, Gaza, and the West Bank? Many times these are invisible people who are labeled with all Palestinians, sometimes as terrorist. Bu...

Send us Fan Mail We all could probably come up with some places that we wish Jesus or someone at least would go and flip some tables.  But is that an approach for counter culture Christians?  Join Lisa and Jonathan for an important discussion about how we work to change things when so much of the world needs massive change.

Send us Fan Mail More than ever, after the landmark Supreme Court decision, we need peacemakers and positive solutions.  Josiah Friedman, Director of Voice for the Voiceless shares his powerful personal story and provides some much needed clarity and possible ways forward.

Send us Fan Mail For nearly 20 years, Lori Navrodztke has walked alongside women and men who are struggling with a pregnancy loss experience including miscarriage, stillbirth, abortion, and early infant loss. She shares her powerful personal story that formed her mission that brings healing to so many. 

Send us Fan Mail Large churches and well-resourced churches are often considered the most influential in our state.  Obed Escobar shares about the incredible importance of the Hispanic churches in Arizona and his heart to train future leaders. 

Send us Fan Mail We recently celebrated May as Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month . What many of us may not be aware of is that Asian Americans in recent years have become increasingly vulnerable to various acts of violence, racism, discrimination and harassment. How do we intentionally listen to their stories, their realities and their fears through the lens of peacemaking. This week...

Send us Fan Mail Join us this week on Counter Culture/Amplify Peace Radio as we continue part 2 of our conversation with Pastor Jon Moton, Gilbert Campus Pastor at Central AZ. Jon continues to candidly share insights and challenges of living as a person of color in our culture today and how we all can respond more empathetically. Jon has been serving in ministry for over thirty years in several ca...

Send us Fan Mail Jonathan and Lisa share the mic with special guest, Jon Moton, Gilbert Campus Pastor with Central Christian AZ for a candid and insightful conversation. How does it feel to be a black pastor in a predominantly white church? How do recent events, like the racially charged Buffalo shooting, emotionally impact people considering their ethnicity and race? We need more people like Jon...

Send us Fan Mail What happens when you receive a vision so big you know it can only be accomplished by the movement and direction of God? Olivier, former director of Youth With A Mission in Switzerland, is compelled by an extraordinary vision to mobilize Christians and ignite a celebration of the 2,000 years of the resurrection of Jesus. You are going to be learning and hearing more about the “Jes...

Send us Fan Mail What happens when you receive a vision so big you know it can only be accomplished by the movement and direction of God? Olivier, former director of Youth With A Mission in Switzerland, is compelled by an extraordinary vision to mobilize Christians and ignite a celebration of the 2,000 years of the resurrection of Jesus. You are going to be learning and hearing more about the “Jes...

Send us Fan Mail There is huge gap to cross if you want to accomplish anything starting with good intentions.  Lisa and I talk about practical steps to starting a journey where you can make a difference in the world.

Send us Fan Mail We are living in a world layered in trauma. It is seen in our own lives and in the lives of so many others. Sommer Knight , currently Co-Director of Foster360 , a nonprofit under Mesa United Way, helps young adults who have aged out of Foster Care through a holistic approach towards trauma-informed care and empowerment. She shares practical ways we can recognize trauma and move to...

Send us Fan Mail We want to do good in the world.  We try to help those in need.  But often we don't know what to do, or if we do something, will it make any difference.  Trace Thurlby is the President of the Global Orphan Project and helped develop CarePortal, a platform that connects the needs of children in crisis to the nearest church.  He shares the story of how this simple concept has b...

Send us Fan Mail The idea of peace is very appealing.  But it is hard work especially when working across cultural divides and in war zones.  What does bringing people together look like when you've seen friends and family killed?  Colonel Lorenzo Valenzuela served for 30 years in the US Army including overseeing peace initiatives in Iraq, Afghanistan and shares some amazing stories and wisdo...

Send us Fan Mail When the bombs are falling in your neighborhood and your country is being invaded, what would you do?  What if you had a family?  Sasha Musiyenko is a teacher at Kiev Christian Academy and shares his amazing testimony of hearing from God in the middle of the night and how his family has been able to respond to the horrible suffering around them. 

Send us Fan Mail In the 90s, Jonathan spent several years living in Russia.  He lived with a Russian family, spoke Russian and made many dear friends.  He also taught at churches and at conferences across the former Soviet Union including several trips to Ukraine.  His heart has been broken over the invasion of Ukraine.  Lisa and Jonathan try to process his experience through the eyes of pursuing...

Send us Fan Mail Dr. Samira Izadi Page is Founder and Executive Director of Gateway of Grace Ministries. She is also co-editor and contributor to No Longer Strangers . She was born and raised in Iran as a Muslim. A short while after arriving in the US as a refugee, Samira converted to Christianity and began her Christian education.  Can you imagine having to flee your home, homeland, family, frien...

Send us Fan Mail Jenny Yang is the Senior Vice President of Advocacy and Policy at World Relief where she provides oversight for all advocacy initiatives and policy positions for the organization. She represents the organization’s advocacy priorities to the U.S. government and leads mobilization efforts on advocacy campaigns. She has worked over a decade in refugee protection, immigration policy,...

Send us Fan Mail This episode is powerful, Dr. Carolyn Woo gives us tools for respectfully entering into spaces  and being effective in promoting change.   If you missed Part 1 of this two part episode, don't forget to go back and listen!

Send us Fan Mail This month is all about celebrating women! As you will hear in this conversation with Lisa Jernigan and Carolyn Woo, women are incredible, and the resiliency and strength of women all over the world is inspiring! Dr. Carolyn Woo is president and CEO of Catholic Relief Services (CRS), the official humanitarian agency of the Catholic community in the United States. CRS was founded i...

Send us Fan Mail This conversation with Eugene Cho is a powerful tool to engaging in politics, as mature Christians seeking to give theological and Biblical framework that isn't bound to either political party.  Eugene's latest book "Thou Shalt Not Be a Jerk: a Christian's Guide to Engaging Politics" is a must read, equipping us with the 10 commandments of conversations su...