Our Journey to Hope

Send us Fan Mail We've discussed in the past about how it sometimes takes courage to have hope.  I've discovered that it also takes patience to see hope truly realized. Often we want something and we want it quickly.  When we are especially dealing with a challenge to our hope, we seek immediate relief.  We might even wonder if God is truly listening to us in these moments.   In this epi...

Send us Fan Mail Taking care of children is among the most noble and important activities in which we can be engaged.  Children offer so much to our lives.  A major thing they bring to us is hope.  At the same time, one of the most tragic things is a child whose hope is challenged. In this episode, I'm speaking with Chris Moran, Director of the North Alabama Chrisian Children's Home in F...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode I am sharing an excerpt from my book, Journey to Hope.  I look at two seemingly unrelated events in the life of Christ where He heals two men of paralysis.   I will talk to the similarities and differences in these two events and what we can learn from them.  We'll focus on the most important point in these two events and how that applies to us today. If you w...

Send us Fan Mail We've held the position throughout all of our podcast episodes that true and lasting hope is found in our Lord Jesus Christ.  We learn about our Lord through Bible study.  But sometimes folks may feel that they don't know where to begin a Bible study or even how to study the Bible.  The World Bible School is a wonderful resource to help in this effort. Also, some folks a...

Send us Fan Mail Sometimes life events happen that can be either good or bad but they may have prevented us from achieving what we want in life.  Perhaps a person is deep into a career and feel a change is needed.  Sadly, some may feel they have no direction to turn to in order to improve their life situation or restart from those life events.  This may lead to a sense of hopelessness. It does not...

Send us Fan Mail When I teach folks about getting out of their selves and looking how they can help people as the best way to find and sustain hope, I also ask them to look at what is in their hands and think about how they can use that in the effort.  All of us have things we can do, talents we can use to help others in their journey to hope.  No where is this more evident than in the guest on th...

Send us Fan Mail Imagine going through a difficult cancer only to have it resurface again.  Just when you began to think you've defeated this evil disease, it comes back with a vengence, perhaps worse than before. Such is the challenge to hope that my guest, Todd Tipton is facing.  But unlike some, rather than give in to the life threatening situation, Todd lives up to his faith and knowledge...

Send us Fan Mail When we hear that hospice has been called in to assist someone, we often think the person is at the end of their life, that there remains no more hope for living.  This is not always true.  Hospice does so much more for a person and his or her family.    In this episode I speak with Chasity Abram, a hospice nurse with Ivy Creek Hospice Care.  This wonderful care provider explains...

Send us Fan Mail Many times when we ask a child what they want to be when they grow up we hear heroic professions like firefighter, police officer, doctor, or nurse.  Well, in this conversation we talk with a former firefighter, Ted Huges.  Ted stated in his characteristically humble way that he doesn't consider himself a hero, but he is one for many, including the two young ladies he and his...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode I will discuss a bit about finding hope through reflection.  I will discuss what reflection is and how it relates to hope.  I'll give some practical things we can do to grow in hope. I apply the meaning of reflection as looking back or looking at a situation in my life and think about what it meant or how it impacted my life.  This action helps us to be aware...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, I have a conversation with Donna McChord of Women of Hope.  This organization helps bring hope to those who have survived breast cancer or are currently fighting the fight.  Donna is the President of Women of Hope, Montgomery, Alabama.   Donna shares her own battle with breast cancer and how she now is able to pay it back and pay it forward by providing support an...

Send us Fan Mail Yet again, if we simply look around we can find ways to use our gifts as a way to bring hope to others.  You might think that simply smiling and offering friendship doesn't seem like much, but it is truly a great way to share hope.  In this episode, I have a conversation with Lisa Missildine as we explore how we offer hope to others when we express hospitality.  Lisa is a won...

Send us Fan Mail Sometimes we think that we have to do great and glorious things to make a difference in someone's life.  That is a bit of a misunderstanding.  Sometimes just being there as a friend is wonderful beyond our imagination. Such is the case in the life of Devon and Paul Hewlett.  This wonderful couple are friends of my daughter, and now our friends.  They proved that friendship as...

Send us Fan Mail Every now and then we come across someone in our life that leaves us breathless.  Such was my reaction from my recent aquaintance with Michaela (Chaeli) Mycroft of Cape Town South Africa.  This remarkable woman has won international recognition from such agencies as the World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates as an advocate for the disabled.  She has literally climbed mountains and...

Send us Fan Mail There are many ways in which we can help bring hope to others.  In this episode, I have a conversation With William (Dub) Hill of the Russian Social Assistance Homes in Syktyvkar, Russia.  Among other services, this ministry brings hope to the hopeless and most vulnerable by providing housing for elderly widows and homeless women and children.  We look at this as an example of usi...

Send us Fan Mail A very effective way to develop true and lasting hope is to delve into God's word.  Sometimes we might feel intimidated because we don't know where or how to begin.  Or, we may feel that the Bible is too complex to understand.      In this episode, I have a conversation with Julia Cienfuegos, Platform Manager for Bibletalk. TV.  Julia explains how Bibletalk. TV helps us...

Send us Fan Mail Yes, it is a very interesting topic, and a very important one.  In this episode, I have a conversation with Jamie Allen Vaughn as we discuss her journey to hope while recovering from breast cancer.  We also discuss how she used her podcast titled, "Test Those Breasts" to help reach out to help others in their journey.    You can listen to other topics by Jamie by searchi...

Send us Fan Mail Sometimes when we are faced with events in life and a lot seems to be crashing down around us, we may feel that our hope begins to fade.  In this episode I discuss with Brent Missildine the hope that does not fade.  We are discussing what the apostle Peter tells us in 1 Peter 1:3-5. Brent is one of our ministers at the Prattville Church of Christ in Prattville, Alabama.  He has se...

Send us Fan Mail Friends, in this podcast I present highlights from the top 5 listened to episodes from 2023.  You can hear the full episodes and others in this podcast.    It has been a remarkable first year of the podcast as we've journeyed to hope together.  I have enjoyed tremendously learning from our guests about their insights and sometimes, their personal stories as they are making th...

Send us Fan Mail No parent ever wants to hear that one of their children has any disease or sickness so you can image our thoughts as we heard that our daughter Natalie had a rare form of lymphoma.  Part of the challenge was that she was in the Seattle, Washington area  and we were in Alabama.   In this episode I discuss with Natalie about her experiences in her journey to hope.  It is a powerful...

Send us Fan Mail This episode was recorded before a live audience of the Prattville Church of Christ, Prattville, AL.   In this episode I discuss with Keith Kasarjian about how we can create an environment where hope can grow.  Keith shares his valuable insights into the importance of who we share our environment with, what we do in the environment, and how we can facilitate the growth of hope. Pl...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode we have an insightful discussion with Aven Hook about how we can sustain and regain hope as we age.  As we age we face changes , sometimes from a direction we didn't expect.  Some of these changes are negative, and some positive.  We look at some of these and some suggestions of how we can overcome the negative ones and increase the hope found through the posi...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode Philip Treat shares some wonderful insights into how we gain hope through reconciliation.  Of course, reconciliation is at the heart of the ultimate hope  found through our Savior, Jesus Christ.  It was His mission to be the way in which we find reconciliation with God.  Specifically we discuss what reconciliation is, the relationship between forgiveness and reconc...

Send us Fan Mail Steve Duer is all about bringing hope to vulnerable children and families.   Steve’s history with Agape began in the late 1980’s when his parents became foster parents for Agape.  I can personally attest and you will hear it as he speaks, that he is passionate about Agape’s ministry and is excited to help others find ways to be a part of the ministry.  Support the show If today’s...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode we get to know Lisa Rose.  Lisa serves as the Patient Advocate and Volunteer Coordinator for the Montgomery Cancer Center in Montgomery and Prattville, Alabama.  As part of her duties, she also coordinates volunteer services for the Prattville.  In this role, Lisa acts as coordinator, coach, trainer, and encourager, and sometimes fills in as a volunteer herself.  ...