The Speak Life Podcast

The 6th of January was Epiphany — a word that means 'appearance' or 'manifestation.' In the church calendar it's a time to remember the appearance of Christ to those eastern magician-astrologers, the Magi (Matthew 2:1-12). Incidentally it was on this day last year that the Capitol in Washington DC was overrun. What kind of 'appearance' was that, and how does it r...

This sermon was preached 26 December, 2021 at Bloomfield Presbyterian Church, Belfast, by Speak Life director Glen Scrivener. Your podcast hosts are Paul Feesey and Thomas Thorogood. Speak Life is a UK based charity that resources the church to reach the world. Learn more about us here: speaklife.org.uk These episodes and more are also available to watch on our YouTube channel: youtube.com/speakli...

Paul Feesey and Nate Morgan Locke reflect on the past year at Speak Life. Support the show

The Matrix, the Metaverse and meat. How Christmas speaks to our modern struggles with bodily life. Support the show

Paul Feesey, Nate Morgan Locke and Glen Scrivener discuss the intersection of creativity and Christianity and how it all can go wrong. Support the show

Christmas is one of the biggest evangelistic opportunities the church has each year. But do we often miss the point by trying too hard? Glen Scrivener, Paul Feesey, and Nate Morgan Locke get together to talk about the concerns of the evangelical church during the holiday season. Support the show

Glen Scrivener and Nate Morgan Locke prepare for Christmas in the latest episode of our podcast, discussing the subject of loneliness during this busy time of year and how it is like an invisible pandemic. Most of all, they discuss where the solution can be found thanks to a very special baby in a manger. As part of this discussion, Dr Mary Northway from Linking Lives was interviewed. Linking Live...

Paul Feesey is back! He talks with Glen about why he's been away, and how his family has known God's presence through a very challenging time. Support the show

Glen Scrivener speaks again with international author and speaker, Sam Allberry. Sam was last on the podcast speaking about his time with the Zacharias Trust and work with Ravi Zacharias International Ministries which he has left. Sam and Glen do not consider themselves experts in the field and speak here more generally about theology, worship, grace and where church cultures go wrong. At Speak Li...

One of our favourite ever guests at Speak Life has stoked a giant controversy! Headteacher, Katharine Birbalsingh tweeted about her belief in original sin and all hell broke loose. (See this for instance: https://twitter.com/Miss_Snuffy/status/1454772839421292549?s=20). What did she mean? What does the Bible mean? Why does it matter? Join Glen Scrivener and Nate Morgan Locke as they discuss the wh...

Glen Scrivener interviews Dr Dan Strange about engaging the culture with the inescapably religious questions we must all face. Support the show

The tragic death of Sir David Amess MP last week triggered a number of "hot takes" from journalists and politicians. Many factors have been blamed including social media and heightened political rhetoric. What do we learn from these attempts to find a root cause? And what do we learn from examining the life of Sir David himself? Such lessons might not be the ones our political commentato...

Tonight on the SpeakEasy, Glen Scrivener and Nate Morgan Locke discuss the prevalence of expressive individualism. Modern people focus on ourselves, our journeys, our identities. We minimise the influence of history, family, culture, institutions—even biology. Instead we spotlight our personal experience and individual choices. But why? The turn towards the self took a decisive step in 1517 and ev...

Glenn and Nate discuss the current issues and hot topics of this cultural moment. Support the show

Join us for this fascinating conversation with James Cary. He talks about what it's like to be a Christian in the world of comedy. James has written for people like Miranda Hart and Milton Jones. He has also written his own plays and many books including 'The Gospel According to a Sitcom Writer'. Sign up for training at Speak Life at speaklifefoundry.com Support the show

This is session 1 of our first ever Speak Life intensive week. Glen Scrivener explains how being all-of-life is only possible if we are Christ-centred. We would love to welcome you for our upcoming Speak Life Intensives and Foundry Unlocked sessions. A variety of in-person and online options are available. Find out more at: https://speaklifefoundry.com/ Support the show

The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill has been a fascinating podcast-documentary about Mark Driscoll and Mars Hill Church in Seattle. Recently Liam Thatcher blogged about its brilliance, its significance and our challenges in receiving it rightly. The article has been hugely popular as well as receiving good natured pushback. Here Glen Scrivener and Nate Morgan Locke discuss the podcast, its reception (e...

Glen chats to Nate Morgan Locke, Speak Life's new Development Director. They discuss the intersection between storytelling and the gospel. What is a reformed mythologist? Find out more about Speak Life's training opportunities: https://speaklifefoundry.com/ Support the show

Dan Paterson is an author and speaker from Brisbane, Australia. Formerly of Ravi Zacharias International Ministries, Dan here speaks of his time with RZIM, what he knew of Ravi, his response to the famous evangelist's sexual, spiritual and financial abuse and his new book, Questioning Christianity. Support the show

An exciting update episode for you today. Glen Scrivener, Nate Morgan Locke and Max Paterson discuss the new opportunities to join us for training at Speak Life. A range of options are available depending on how much time you can give and whether you'd like to attend in person or online. To find out more and sign up, go to: https://speaklifefoundry.com/ Support the show

Today, Glen interviews Rebecca McLaughlin live about her new book, 'The Secular Creed: Engaging Five Contemporary Claims'. Plus, there's an exciting update about opportunities to train with us at Speak Life. To find out more or sign up, go to: https://speaklifefoundry.com/ Support the show

Glen speaks to Matt Searles, Director of Training in the South Central Gospel Partnership. Matt is a musician and loves teaching from the Psalms. His books include 'Tumbling Sky - Psalm devotions for weary souls'. In this conversation, Glen asks Matt about his recent book 'God's Story: The Bible Explained', an accessible and creatively presented Bible overview. They discus...

On this episode of the LIVEcast, Glen talks about the resignation of Matt Hancock, the former Health Secretary for the British government. He resigned after being caught on CCTV kissing one of his aides, who isn't his wife. But the outcry has been over the breaking of social distancing rules which he helped to make, rather than his marriage vows. So we ask: what is he guilty of? Adultery? Hyp...

Today on the podcast we listen to Glen Scrivener's sermon on freedom (John 8:31-36). This was part of morning worship at Christchurch Banstead on Sunday the 20th June. Glen also shares some important updates. Support the show

With England cricketer, Ollie Robinson, suspended for racist tweets he made as a teenager and Maya Forstater, winning her employment tribunal appeal over transgender tweets, how can we find the way of peace in the culture wars? Support the show