Your Biggest Breakthrough

"The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much." James 5:16 All Jim Maxim ever knew as a child was dysfunction. His father's alcoholism caused the family home to be repossessed by the bank, and he turned to booze and hard drugs to numb the pain. One day while driving under the influence of the drugs and the pain of his reality, he was in a terrible car wreck that left him hanging on...

Justin Maina of American Ninja Warrior fame dropped by the Your Biggest Breakthrough studios to talk about FEAR . What do you fear? Government run amok? Public speaking? Death? We all have fears, and Justin spends his days counseling and coaching people all over the globe how to first identify , and then confront the fears that cripple us from achieving our potential. Justin is careful to point ou...

"Excuse me, are you Todd?" "Yes, how can I help you?" "We're supposed to meet here at Starbucks." "We are? That's great! But I had no idea I was supposed to meet anyone here today." A text message arrives in Matt Kriha's phone, from the Todd he was scheduled to meet - at a different Starbucks. "Hey it turns out you're not the Todd I was supposed to meet." "Well that's okay, Godspeed to you. Since...

Susie Jennings, founder of Operation Care International stopped by the studio to share her own story of overcoming personal tragedy, questioning God's plan for her life, and ultimately having a deep trust in Him that only comes through true obedience. **Please note that due to a poor connection on our call with Susie, the audio quality in this episode is not the greatest. We beg your indulgence an...

Remember when... You were absolutely crazy about your spouse, and couldn't see enough of him or her? You craved time in the Scriptures, and sought every opportunity to hang out with other believers in Jesus? You poured your heart and soul into your work every day , and rose to the head of the class or your field? But today, those feelings are distant memories. You're stuck in a rut, and there seem...

Imagine being told from a very young age that the church your family attends is the only real church in the world? That even the thought of leaving the church is tantamount to rebellion against God? Our guest on today's episode experienced that, and let's just say it had a negative effect on her. After becoming wise to the ways of the world, Karen Y. Wilson Wilson-Starks realized the folly of such...

You may recall the very end of our conversation with media personality Os Hillman in last week's episode of Your Biggest Breakthrough in which Os' wife Pamela made a surprise cameo appearance. Well, we were so captivated by Pamela's personal story that we just had to get her to share a bit of it on the podcast for y'all to listen in. Pamela's story is one of overcoming great trauma and adversity f...

Suffering is never any fun. We like to experience the good times, and often times begrudgingly endure the bad times. Sometimes we even blame and get angry at God because of hardships we endure in our lives. Our guest today has endured much suffering in his life, beginning as a child and into his adulthood and beyond. Os Hillman has learned that just as Joseph suffered greatly, and was ultimately g...

“A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of silver.“ Proverbs 25:11 KJV Or as Todd’s father might have done around the family campfire, Encouragement is like throwing gasoline on a waning flame and watching it come back to robust life before your eyes. In this episode, Todd and Wendie share personal anecdotes and insights on the extremely valuable, yet often times overlooked necessi...

"There are too many "welcome signs" in churches today, but not enough outreach outside the church walls to the people who truly need the gospel," says our guest today, Victor Torres. Victor was trapped in drug addiction as a young boy in New York City, but through the power of prayer and a rather stubborn believing mother who showed her zeal for the Lord in (ahem) unconventional ways, he was deliv...

"For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. --Jeremiah 29:11 That is Jon Ramirez' theme Scripture verse, one that he has relied on in sometimes humiliating circumstances. Things were going well in Jon's marriage, when his spouse suddenly announced she was no longer interested in being marri...

Returning podcast guest Wayne Pederson ( listen to our first interview with Wayne ) shares an up close experience with how God is still in the healing business. Faced with a 1 in 10 MILLION prognosis, Wayne and his fellow prayer warriors simply believed God for a miracle... and God delivered! But what happens when it seems God doesn't answer your prayer, when His sovereign plan for your life means...

War, famine, hurricanes, civil unrest. "Challenging times" ain't just a cliche; it's the reality in which we live. It's tempting to succumb to all the bad news and negativity foisted upon us by the media, politicians, even well-meaning friends and family. But it can be overwhelming at times, especially if we don't have a source of greater strength on which to rely for comfort and encouragement. Go...

What in this life is more difficult than experiencing the loss of a loved one? Perhaps when the loved one is an infant child. Candy McVicar lost a baby in a stillborn birth and found herself questioning everything, including her own faith in God. What loving God would give His child the desire to have a child, and then cruelly take it away from her? It's not an unfair question, but through asking...

It was at a church music camp at the age of 13 where Austin French’s life was changed forever. He went to camp to learn to play guitar, hoping to impress girls. Instead, Austin heard this message from one of the camp leaders: "Don’t judge Jesus on the broken people He came to save." The words described his life perfectly. He’d been judging Jesus for his own family’s brokenness, being hardened by t...

Today's episode is a story of personal redemption, and knowing God as He was meant to be known years after a superficial acquaintance growing up in a church environment. Mariam Rasmus found herself in a dark place spiritually after several injustices left her questioning everything. She sought and found the sense of community we all crave in unsavory places, and ultimately was a shell of her self....

Candace Cofer is a serious ef-ficionado. You read that right. Efficiency enthusiast. She's learning to slow down and be here, thankful to be a work in progress. As founder of The Good Day ministry, Candace inspires others to grow in their knowledge and love for Jesus and experience God in the ordinary happenings of their days. She firmly believes we connect to one another through stories. Isn't th...

*Guarantee valid only with active participation and daily effort from both husband and wife. Knowing what it takes to consistently love your wife in such a way that it guarantees that you will have a happy marriage is frankly pretty easy.  Just plain common sense would tell us that the more you put your spouse first, the more they'll will want to love and respect you in return. And that leads...

Today's episode features a one-of-a-kind interview with Geoff Kirby. Geoff is in the publishing business these days, and is the rare person who is openly transparent about spiritual warfare he has personally fought. No, we're not talking about casting aside negative thoughts about losing a job or girlfriend, although that's important in its own right. We're talking about actual encounters with dem...

Kandi Rose thought she had it made as the owner of a highly profitable business in the "adult entertainment" arena. Well, it was profitable financially, but it left her spiritually destitute, often wondering "is this all there really is?" even at the height of her monetary success. Not to mention having an erratic lifestyle and severe anger from childhood trauma which provided an overtly hostile e...

From being a multi-millionaire in his 20's, to incarceration, to being born again and building businesses for God's glory, Jerry Bloom is a servant of God and an entrepreneur! Born and raised in southeastern Wisconsin. Jerry has been married 27 years and has five grown children. He's build several successful businesses in the last 25 years and loves to mentor up and coming business people. Jerry l...

Todd and Wendie here, sharing the stage in today's episode talking all about the "C word": Commitment. We live in a world where the word has been cheapened somewhat. It seems there are all kinds of excuses available to justify us not following through on what we say we're going to do. But what the world says is cheap is often the most valuable thing in the eyes of Almighty God. "Let your yay be ya...

"How do I ignite my relationship with God, and keep the flame burning?" It's a question we have asked ourselves many times, and perhaps you ask yourself that too. The truth is that it's the hard times, negative circumstances, even tragedy that shows the contrast between the light and darkness. Surrendering our will, our ego, our desires to God, allowing Him to lead us through the darkness is what...

All is not as it seems with those who have risen to the “top" of their profession. Many are content with their positions of prominence in society, yet some have a feeling of discontent in spite of their superficial success. Today we hear from a husband and wife team who individually had reached the height of their respective professions. Their Creator was gonna do something fulfilling and rewardin...

This episode marks the final installment of our "Get Unstuck" series of episodes. Wendie and Todd share their biggest takeaways, and personal highlights from each of the guests who shared ways in which we can break free from the bonds that enslave so many of us and keep us from reaching our potential. In this episode, you'll learn: -A recap of the things that keep us "stuck"...02:30 Being "on call...