Messages of hope

Adelle Wiencke shares her experience of repeated miscarriage, losing her son Charlie, and the emotional struggle of trying to have children. In this honest conversation, she reflects on grief, the responses that helped or hurt, and finding hope in God’s presence through anger, fear and uncertainty. Listen to Miscarriage: A Grief Misunderstood as Adelle shares her story of loss, faith and hope, and...

This episode discusses suicide and grief. If you or someone you know needs immediate support, contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 . When someone you love dies by suicide, grief can feel overwhelming, isolating and unlike any other kind of loss. Mark Worthing shares the deeply personal story of losing his son to suicide and what he has learned about living with grief in the years since. He speaks candidly...

The older we get, and the longer we live, the more common dealing with death, grief and loss inevitably becomes. But, while loss can be a cause for sadness, it can also provide a new perspective on the life we are given, the life we have lived, and the life we still have ahead. For Lois, the loss of a number of significant people throughout her life has served as encouragement to live her own life...

"I don't necessarily know what the future holds, but I do know that God is more faithful than what we are and more faithful than we can even comprehend… He will give us what we need when we need it. I've seen it first-hand.” Have you ever struggled to think of yourself as a ‘good’ parent? Are you sometimes overwhelmed by the expectations and demands that come with raising children? Fo...

Have you ever had grand dreams of being great at something, only for them to disappear? Richard reflects on what happens when life doesn’t turn out the way we’d hoped. 

'I love going for walks, but when I walked down to the beachfront that morning I had no idea that I was going to lose my legs.' How would you cope if you suddenly lost both your legs? What changes would it bring to your life and relationships? Dean talks about his near-death encounter with an illness that ended up taking both his legs. Together with his wife, they share how they found rene...

“Science gives us this information of what things are, how they come tobe, but it doesn’t explain why the universe was created and that’s whereI find faith fills the gap.” Have you ever looked up at the night sky and wondered how everything came to be? Is all just a random series of events or is there really a Creator behind it all? Trained astrophysicist, Ben Ridley, shares his understanding of h...

“I think that all of us move into and out of loneliness. Some people tragically find themselves all alone. None of us were meant for that.” We may be surrounded by people, but if we don’t feel known by them, it can seem that we don’t even exist. Loneliness often stems from a feeling of not being known. So how can we overcome isolation and restore connection? James Winderlich shares that we were cr...

“Many of us spend more waking hours with people at work, our colleagues, than we do with our family” We often separate our work from our personal life and even our spiritual lives. But with so much of our time spent at work, could our faith have a lasting impact on the job? Craig and Susan from ‘Engage Work Faith’ explore the vital role our faith has in the workplace.

What do you do when someone you love has a different opinion than yours? Do you keep quiet, aggressively push back, or just avoid ‘those’ conversations? Why do we feel awkward when someone believes something different to us? Celia and Ali discuss how we maintain relationships with people who have different values orcore beliefs.

“If I look back over my life, what would I choose to do if I could start again?  I could have been a doctor, I could have been a nurse, I could have been a teacher. But I look back and go, no, financial counselling, because I was supporting people in this complex financial system, which has become more and more complex.” Financial counsellor, Jan, shares her experience of supporting peoplegoing th...

Bart and Anne's life was turned upside down when their son, Pascal, received a diagnosis of a rare genetic disorder at eight months old. Hear what Bart has learned from Pascal's journey, and where he finds hope in the face of constant uncertainty.  

“I had this happy life one day and the next day it had all fallen to bits. I just completely shattered. I’ve lost this little child and no-one seems to care.” Deborah’s dreams of being a mother to a happy family were shattered when she suffered a miscarriage and her relationship fell apart. Deborah struggled with all-consuming grief until one day, she was offered hope and healing.

We all have injustices that break our heart, those moments of not being able to bear standing on the sidelines to watch things that we want desperately to see changed in this world.  Kenyan refugee aid worker, Mary Obara, faces these moments every day. Hear Mary's story of bringing dignity and hope to refugees in Kenya and Somalia.

As we come to commemorating Anzac Day, conflict and violence around the world today reminds us that war isn't justsomething that happened in the past. How do we come to terms with the desire to protect ourselves and others, while facing the realities of what it means to send troops into other countries? Where is the hope for those involved in armed conflict? Hear Rev Mark Butler, a Defence Force c...

“Geoff walked past and it was just like that. I knew that was the man that God sent into my life.” “We barely said hello, barely acknowledged each other, but it was just. Something there.” Love at first sight -it's not just something that happens in the movies. Building a strong relationship that lasts beyond that first brief encounter? Now that requires a little more than just one glance! Hea...

Whatis the real story behind Easter? Hear Richard, Celia and Noel reflect onwho people believe Jesus to be – is he just a person from history, or is hestill active in our lives today?

Billions of people around the world celebrate Easter. But it’s more than just eggs, chocolate and bunnies. For Christians, there is a much deeper story of suffering and salvation. Easter hope has significant power to transform lives. Hear Adrian Kitson’s message of hope this Easter.

‘Colin was a friend of mine. He drank too much. And underneath it all was a raging thirst. A thirst for love, for forgiveness, for approval.’ Are you thirsty? Are you thirsting for love, forgiveness and approval? Trying to quench those thirsts can be difficult but there is a way. Listen as Noel Due shares stories that offer hope to quenchthose thirsts.

‘You would see me just curled up on my bed in a foetal position, not wanting to go anywhere or do anything.’  When life hits you hard sometimes the only thing to do is to fall to pieces. We may try to hide the anger, frustration, and grief behind it all, but what if there's a better way? Listen as Verena opens up about her journey through grief, and how learning to lament transformed her persp...

‘When I come home from work and I walk in the front door and get bombarded with questions or things that go on, it’s so easy to lose the plot. Especially after a hard day’s work and I’m tired, I just get angry.’   Listen to Celia and Richard as they share insights into the emotion of anger. Why do we get angry? Is anger a bad thing? And how do we deal with this anger?

Inclusive education classrooms are becoming an essential part of learning for children with high support needs. But what is it really like for teachers in such a highly unpredictable environment?   ‘I think as a teacher you always want to do the best. You want to gohome every day knowing that you've done everything you can today to give them a good day. You certainly do go home sometimes and j...

Karl was a top bloke. He’d do anything for anyone. But nobody knew the dark secret that Karl was trying to hide away. Do you have a secret, something you don’t want anyone to know about? How do you live with it? Or not live with it? Richard Fox shares Karl’s story and how hefound freedom from his past.

One in Five Australians suffer chronic pain. It can be a debilitating condition, leading to personality changes and a heavy strain on relationships. How do you cope with pain that never goes away? Stephen and Therese share their journey of managing chronic pain and how it’s affected their relationships, lifestyle, and purpose in life.   

Most couples go through a stage where that original adrenaline rush of being in love gives way to little frustrations that can slowly build until suddenly you wonder where that first love went. It doesn't have to be the end though. Stella, a couples counsellor, shares about what it takes to keep a relationship strong, especially after the honeymoon period is over.