Educate For Life with Kevin Conover

It’s not easy being a teacher—which explains why a lot of them are quitting!  A recent article from The Atlantic examines some of the challenges that teachers face: from long hours of overtime, to less than average pay, to having to buy missing supplies with their own money, to overwhelming stress verging on nervous breakdowns.  Hard to imagine why not enough young people are choosing or sticking with a teaching career anymore!  And teachers who are Christians have one more thing to worry about: potential law suits they might face by showing any indication of their personal faith at school.

Fortunately, there are a variety of perfectly legal ways that Christians, whether teacher or student, can live out their faith at school.  Sadly, many Christians are simply not aware of these rights and have been silenced by fear.  To help solve this problem, Jennifer Kvalvik created the Apples for Teachers ministry at the Rock Church in Point Loma.  Kevin talks to Jennifer, Janel and Camilo about their experiences as Christians who have worked in San Diego public schools for many years.  Jennifer explains what her ministry does, as well as sharing some excellent resources for Christian teachers (such as Christian Teachers in Public Schools by Julia and Gloria Stronks).

This ministry meets once a month as a support group for Christian teachers to mutually encourage one another.  Learn more and get involved by visiting SDRock.com/ministries/ApplesForTeachers!  And even if you are not a teacher, you can assist them in their current service project by donating small school supplies that will go to Syrian refugees.

This episode first aired on August 13th, 2016.

We make video lessons to raise up confident Christians: https://educateforlife.org/

At the beginning of a new school year most students are worrying about settling into their dorm room with a new roommate, finding their classrooms, or how they’re going to pay for textbooks. Their parents may be worrying about how well their child will do academically and hoping they stay out of trouble. But if you are a Christian student or parent you may be worrying about how you, or your child, will survive college or high school with a faith that is intact.

According to recent studies about 25% of college professors are professing atheists or agnostics whereas only about 7% of the general public are atheists or agnostics. Only 6% of professors believe the bible is the actual word of God and 51% say it’s an ancient book with good moral precepts. 75% of teachers and professors say that religion has no place in public schools. With statistics like these, a Christian parent or student has a reason to be worried. In fact, 8 out of 10 young people will leave the faith due to questions they encounter in public school.

But today on Education For Life, Kevin is joined by three guests who are actively working to turn the tide with the Ratio Christi organization. Ratio Christi means “The Reason of Christ”. Kevin will speak with Michael Bossman, Vice President of Ratio Christi, Conor Anderson, Chapter Director and Evan Young, a student who has been mentored by Ratio Christi members. Their mission is to equip university students and faculty to give historical, philosophical, and scientific reasons for following Jesus Christ. They aim to show young adults how reasonable a belief in Christ really is.

Tune in to hear the amazing testimony of these three men and learn about the purpose of Ratio Christi. The learn more about Ratio Christi and their program you can visit ratiochristi.org. You can also get involved and be a mentor for a student or schedule a member to run an apologetics class at your church. There are many ways to get involved and you can view them all at http://ratiochristi.org/partners/get-involved/. You can also donate to Ratio Christi to support their mission at http://ratiochristi.org/donate.

This episode first aired on July 30th, 2016.

We make video lessons to raise up confident Christians: https://educateforlife.org/

It’s in the news almost every day. Another white police officer has shot another young black man. People march through the streets crying for justice. Some even riot, loot and call for the death of cops in retaliation. They are followed by politicians who take a tragic situation and use it to their own political benefit. This is the tangled mess that is racism in America.

But is racism the real issue or is there a root cause that needs to be dealt with? Is racism alive and well in America? Join Kevin Conover as he discusses this important issue with three special guests. Glen McKinney, Theo Goodwin (aka. Protege) and Daniel Wigginton are three African American men who have experienced the reality of racism in America. They will reveal how deep the problem goes and practical steps that everyone can take to help solve the issue.

They will also discuss the role that the church has to play. For far too long the church has been asleep at the wheel. Sadly, the church has largely remained silent and has failed to reach out to people and teach them what the Bible has to say on this important issue. As a result, the younger generation has largely lost interest in attending church and learning what Jesus had to say about racism. You do not want to miss this show. Listen in as two generations of black and white men come together in a spirit of unity to try to begin to heal the racial divide.

"There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus."  - Galatians 3:28

This episode first aired on July 16th, 2016.

We make video lessons to raise up confident Christians: https://educateforlife.org/

“In every action we take, we are doing one of two things: we are either helping to create a hell on earth or helping to bring down a foretaste of heaven.”  These are the words of Chuck Colson, and Audrea Taylor, founder of im2moro, has taken them to heart.  In this episode, Audrea and Kevin discuss the crossroads that America has arrived at with the upcoming presidential election, and what millennial voters must do to secure the future of the nation.

While performing with her choir in Washington D.C. as a young teen, Audrea heard an event speaker state that the political future of America rests on the next generation.  She suddenly realized that almost no one from this “next generation” was present or showing an interest in politics!  That’s why she and a group of like-minded individuals formed im2moro, an organization devoted to promoting the principles that make America great, as well as encouraging young people to think critically and get involved in politics.

You can learn more at im2moro.com, and find them on Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and Instagram.  You can contact Audrea or even book her as a speaker by visiting the website, or emailing her at [email protected].

This episode first aired on July 9th, 2016.

We make video lessons to raise up confident Christians: https://educateforlife.org/

“Once a junkie, always a junkie.”  That’s what Herlindo had been told, and that’s what he believed about himself.  However, even 16 years into his heroin addiction his mother told him something different: “Son, I know that some day you are going to change.  I am praying for you.”  Today Herlindo is San Diego County’s Director of Teen Challenge, the very organization that helped him turn his life around in 1990.

In this episode Kevin talks to Herlindo and his assistant director Mike about the impact that Teen Challenge has had on their lives, and the lives of countless others.  The ministry was started by David Wilkinson (author of The Cross and the Switchblade) in 1960, and it is still helping teens and adults step out of drug addiction today.  Teen challenge is not a rehab center, and does not just teach behavior modification.  Instead, it takes those whose lives have been destroyed by drug addiction and introduces them to the one person who can actually help: Jesus Christ.

Learn more by visiting TeenChallenge.org(/SDTC for San Diego).  You can help Teen Challenge help others by praying for them, donating to the organization at GiveTC.com, and getting involved in Teen Challenge events such as the San Diego Walk for Recovery on September 24th.

This episode first aired on July 2nd, 2016.

We make video lessons to raise up confident Christians: https://educateforlife.org/

To many, the chasm between Christianity and homosexuality is insurmountably large. Some people believe that a person can be both a true Christian and openly homosexual. Is it possible to hold this position without compromising the Bible’s teachings? Kevin discusses the issue with Candice Czubernat, a therapist, writer, speaker and professing Christian who is raising two kids with her female spouse.

Candice is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor with the State of Washington and an MFTI in the state of California. She has a Masters in Counseling Psychology and has been working in the mental health field for over a decade. Candice grew up in a loving home, but her Christian roots did not provide any context or support for her struggle with the notion of being gay.

Kevin and Candice fall on opposite sides of the debate, but come together in spite of their disagreement to express their thoughts in a civil discussion. Tune in to hear Candice explain why she holds the position she does and how she views scripture, as well as Kevin’s response.

This episode first aired on June 25th, 2016.

We make video lessons to raise up confident Christians: https://educateforlife.org/

You probably wouldn’t expect a committed evolutionist with a secular upbringing, who earned multiple graduate degrees in the hard sciences from prestigious universities, to end up being one of the world’s leading creation scientists.  But that’s exactly what happened with Dr. John Baumgardner of the Logos Research Associates, the foremost expert on Noah’s Flood and its significance to Earth’s geology.

After completing his BS in electrical engineering at Texas Tech and MS in electrical engineering from Princeton, John began work on his PhD.  Some other students invited him to a Bible study that was covering the gospel of John, and despite his secular background he soon found himself face to face with Jesus.  John gave his life to the Lord, and then had to determine how to best use his life for the Lord, while using his scientific training and also fulfilling his prior commitment to the U. S. Air Force.  John talks with Kevin about his subsequent journey from witnessing with Campus Crusade for Christ, to earning more graduate degrees at UCLA, to creating the world’s greatest geologic modeling software, to developing anti-missile lasers for the Star Wars program at Los Alamos National Laboratory, to leading the Carbon-14 research with the RATE project, to joining the Logos Research Associates.  He also shares some of the many evidences he has discovered as to why it was a global flood, not uniformitarian processes, that shaped the earth’s geologic features into what they are today.

You can learn more about John’s work with the Logos Research Associates, including how to get involved, at LogosResearchAssociates.org.  You can find out more about the results of the RATE project (which set out to evaluate the alleged evidence for an old earth from radioisotopes)  in the popular book Thousands, Not Billions, or the more technical volume Radioisotopes and the Age of the Earth, available from many book sellers.

This episode first aired on June 18th, 2016.

We make video lessons to raise up confident Christians: https://educateforlife.org/

The issue of homosexuality is a hot button topic in today’s society. For Christians, it is even more so. In regards to the LGBT community, christians and the church are often seen as bigoted, hypocritical, unloving and uncaring. But is there a way for the church to change this perception and come along side this community to minister to them and love them?

Guest Patti Height believes there is. She has founded Out of Egypt Ministries to help churches accomplish this goal. Out of Egypt is a non-profit ministry that is dedicated to speaking forth the truth of God’s Word to a generation that has been enslaved by lies. Patti Height knows the destructive bondage that comes as a result of believing and living under this deception, and began this ministry with a desire to help others find the same peace and healing she found, through faith in Jesus Christ. As a teen, Patti turned to alcohol and drugs, and later entered into the world of homosexuality. For many years she believed the lie that there was no hope for change, and her life spiraled down as a result. Today, Patti’s life is a testimony to the transforming power of God and the truth of His Word. In 2003, she was set free from the bondage of addiction and homosexuality, and is now committed to sharing with others the hope and freedom she found in the Gospel.

To learn more about Patti Height and her ministry, visit outofegyptministries.org. You can also find a list of events to hear her speak.

"I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, that you should not be their slaves; I have broken the bands of your yoke and made you walk upright."   – Leviticus 26:13

This episode first aired on June 11th, 2016.

We make video lessons to raise up confident Christians: https://educateforlife.org/

If you had to guess the number one belief system in the state of Israel, what would you say? If you said “jewish” you would be right and wrong. The majority of Israelis would say they were jewish simply because it is their nationality. However, the major belief system in Israel is atheism or secularism.

Furthermore, the majority do not recognize Jesus as a jew, much less the savior of the world. Many simply do not know who Jesus was or that his name in Hebrew means salvation. Israel is one of the most unreached parts of the world. Today on Educate For Life, Kevin speaks with a man who has made it his mission to reach these people. Guest Dan Sered knows first hand what it is like to have never heard the name of Jesus.

Dan Sered was born in Israel on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. His upbringing, like that of many Israelis, was secular, though he was bar mitzvah at age thirteen. Two years later, his family moved to New York where Dan attended Stony Brook University and met Dinah, a Jewish believer in Jesus. Dinah shared the Gospel with Dan explaining that the name of Jesus in Hebrew is Y’shua, and showed Dan how the Hebrew Bible spoke of His coming. Dan committed his life to Y’shua, but not before telling his parents first. Surprisingly, they didn’t respond negatively and Dan discovered that Dinah, her family and church had all prayed about his parents’ response. Dan’s parent’s reaction was one of ‘you will get over this Jesus’ which off course Dan did not. This led to Dan’s parents’ disowning him.

Tune in to hear the rest of Dan’s amazing story and how God is working among His people. You can learn more about Dan and his group Jews For Jesus at http://jewsforjesus.org/. You will also find information on how to get involved or to support Dan’s mission.

This episode first aired on June 4th, 2016.

We make video lessons to raise up confident Christians: https://educateforlife.org/

Quick! What type of government does the United States have? Would it shock you to know that we don’t have a democracy? In fact many of our founding fathers and early presidents abhorred democratic government. James Madison once said, “Democracy is the most vile form of government. … democracies have ever been spectacles of turbulence and contention; have ever been found incompatible with personal security or the rights of property: and have in general been as short in their lives as the have been violent in their deaths.”

However, the founding fathers realized that certain properties of democracy would benefit America which is why they framed the United States as a democratic republic. They also recognized that a democratic republic would only be stable as long as God was at the center.

Today’s political atmosphere has shifted. Democratic socialism has become popular to some and to others it is still a taboo. Join Kevin Conover to dissect these often confusing political terms. What is democratic socialism and is it something to be feared? If we allow it in American are we opening the door to communism and ultimately fascism. Is this issue being blown out of proportion? Tune in and listen to Kevin break it down and explain why it’s so important to keep God at the center of our government.

This episode first aired on May 28th, 2016.

We make video lessons to raise up confident Christians: https://educateforlife.org/