What happens when faith feels like pretending, and you can’t live with the disconnect anymore?

Erika Diaz-Castro, a wife, mom, and Bible teacher who once lived a double life—publicly religious but privately wrestling with doubt, shame, and the pull of self-fulfillment. Her story traces a winding path through skepticism, identity confusion, new-age spirituality, and even spiritual darkness, until a powerful encounter with God changed everything.

Guest Bio:

Erika Diaz-Castro is a wife, homeschooling mother, Bible teacher, and founder of Her Renewed Strength, a ministry equipping women to know God’s Word and grow in confidence through it. Once a skeptic, Erika now helps others cultivate daily spiritual discipline and find freedom in surrendering to Christ. She also hosts Her Renewed Strength Podcast and is pursuing a Master of Theology with a concentration in Apologetics and Philosophy.

Resources Mentioned:

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Have you ever tried to find peace by walking away from God or from the judgment and expectations that once made faith feel heavy?

Heather Sewell shares her story of running from faith and searching for peace. Raised as a pastor’s daughter, Heather learned early how to wear masks and manage secrets. As her family’s struggles deepened, so did her confusion about God and truth. Searching for meaning, she embraced Eastern religions and the “Coexist” movement, calling herself a “Christian Hindu” while trying to find peace through self-discovery. But when the illusion of freedom gave way to pain and numbness, Heather encountered God in an unexpected way—a voice that simply asked, “Are you done?”

Guest Bio:

Heather Sewell is a ministry leader, speaker, and storyteller whose faith journey began with basic questions concerning God’s goodness in reaching secular religions. She started her ministry work at Orphan Care Alliance in Kentucky and now works at Summit Ministries in Colorado Springs. She now has the opportunity to equip parents and teens nationwide through the Summit Student Conferences and Ambassador Program, empowering families to help their teens grow in faith with clarity and confidence. With more than 10 years of experience working with children and youth, Heather has seen firsthand the questions and cultural pressures that can shake a young person’s beliefs. Her journey, rooted in her own story of God’s redemption and her passion for guiding the next generation, has shaped her calling to walk alongside families so that truth and relationship come together in everyday life.

Resources Mentioned:

America’s Christian Credit Union (ACCU): https://americaschristiancu.com/Jana/

Summit Ministries: https://www.summit.org/

Registration for Summer 2026 is now open, with two-week sessions in Manitou Springs, Colorado, and Anderson University, South Carolina. Visit summit.org/exskeptic to learn more. And when you register before March 31st, use code EXSKEPTIC26 to save $500 off your student’s registration.

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What if you’re content with life, confident in science, and still quietly curious?

Dr. Jim Small, MD, PhD, pathologist, professor, and lifelong scientist was raised without faith and felt no need for God. Science explained the world well enough. But through marriage, community, and simply showing up at church, curiosity began to stir, not from crisis or doubt, but from an openness to questions he’d never felt compelled to explore. In this episode of eX-skeptic, Jim reflects on a quiet, surprising journey from confidence in science alone to faith in Christ and how curiosity slowly reshaped how he understands life, death, and truth.

Guest Bio:

Dr. James Small, MD, PhD, is a retired pathologist and current Professor of Microbiology at Rocky Vista University College of Osteopathic Medicine. His career spans Duke, the University of Utah, and service as Medical Director of Laboratories at Porter Adventist Hospital in Denver, with research published in the New England Journal of Medicine. Raised in an atheist home, Jim was surprised to discover faith in God and Jesus during his medical training. He’s now active in the Christian Medical and Dental Associations and has served on medical mission trips abroad. Jim and his wife of 44 years have three daughters and five grandsons.

Resources Mentioned:

America’s Christian Credit Union (ACCU): https://americaschristiancu.com/Jana/

C.S. Lewis, The Screwtape Letters

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What happens when a brilliant researcher, once convinced God was nothing more than a cultural artifact, decides to take a second look?

In this episode of eX-skeptic, Dr. Lee Holcombe shares his remarkable journey from faith in childhood, through skepticism and intellectual dismissal of Christianity, to a surprising return to Christ. With a career spanning electrical engineering, education policy, and high-level research, Lee applied his analytical skills to life’s biggest questions. His pursuit of truth took him from Alaska to Morocco, Harvard to Texas, and ultimately to unexpected encounters with God through both reason and experience.

In this conversation, we explore:

If you’ve ever wondered whether faith can hold up under the weight of tough questions—or whether God still meets skeptics on the path of truth—Lee’s story will encourage and challenge you.

Visit exskeptic.org for curated playlists on science, suffering, meaning, and God’s reality, along with resources from past guests.

Guest Bio:

Dr. Lee Holcombe is a researcher, educator, and missionary whose career spans engineering, education policy, and international missions. After earning his undergraduate degree in electrical engineering from Rice University, he worked on advanced defense technology before serving in the Peace Corps in Morocco. He went on to earn a doctorate in education from Harvard and served in leadership and research roles at the University of Texas and Texas Higher Education Agency, bridging the worlds of research and policy.

 Resources Mentioned:

America’s Christian Credit Union (ACCU): https://americaschristiancu.com/Jana/

Gary Habermas – Minimal Facts Argument for the Resurrection

C.S. Lewis Institute – cslewisinstitute.org

Research on near-death experiences (University of Virginia Division of Perceptual Studies)

Lee’s recommended resources:

•        William Lane Craig on the Kalam Cosmological Argument

•        Thomas Nagel, Mind and Cosmos

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What if faith isn’t blind, but freeing?

For much of her life, Megan Carroll believed she didn’t need God. A self-reliant achiever who valued reason and control, she dismissed Christianity as something to accept “without evidence.” But when life unraveled—through illness, heartbreak, and uncertainty—Megan found herself face-to-face with questions she couldn’t ignore.

From a childhood encounter she couldn’t explain, to experimenting with spiritualism in college, to finally crying out to God in desperation—Megan’s story traces the slow undoing of self-sufficiency and the surprising discovery that real strength is found in surrender.

Guest Bio:

For the first 30 years of her life, Megan lived without faith, denying God every chance she could, and chasing her own path. But everything changed when the person she thought would be in her life forever walked away. That’s when she encountered the love of Jesus. Now, about 18 months into her walk with Christ, Megan is on fire for the Lord. She is deeply studying the Bible, growing in truth, and learning to seek God in every area of her life. Pre-Jesus, Megan lived for herself. Today, she lives to glorify Him.

Resources Mentioned:

America’s Christian Credit Union (ACCU): AmericasChristianCU.com/Jana

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What if belief in God isn’t opposed to reason, but demanded by it?

Olivier Bonnassies, co-author of God, the Science, the Evidence: The Dawn of a Revolution, was once convinced that Christianity was irrational and that science explained everything, but he began to question his assumptions about reality, truth, and the origins of the universe. Through years of study in both science and theology, Olivier discovered that the evidence, from cosmology, philosophy, morality, and even history, points unmistakably toward a transcendent Creator. 

Together, Jana and Olivier explore:

Guest Bio:

Olivier Bonnassies is a French engineer, entrepreneur, and author with a background in both science and theology. Educated at the prestigious École Polytechnique in Paris, he spent years building successful companies before turning his attention to life’s deepest questions. Once an agnostic, convinced that belief in God was irrational, Olivier embarked on a personal investigation that led him to faith in Christ. He is co-author, with Michel-Yves Bolloré, of God, the Science, the Evidence: The Dawn of a Revolution, a bestselling book in Europe (over 400,000 copies sold) now launching in the U.S. Through his research and writing, Olivier argues that the convergence of science, philosophy, and history reveals a compelling case for God’s existence.

Resources Mentioned:

America’s Christian Credit Union (ACCU): AmericasChristianCU.com/Jana

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Where do we find real love, the kind that fills our souls and heals our brokenness? Is it through politics, psychology, or self-help? Or is it found in a Person? 

British journalist Heather Tomlinson shares her remarkable journey from a secular liberal worldview to a life transformed by Jesus Christ. Once convinced that human progress and political reform could heal the world, Heather found those paths empty. Her search for meaning led her through science, psychology, and even spirituality in Buddhism and Wicca—until she encountered the love of Christ through the Gospels.

Heather’s story reveals that faith in Jesus doesn’t just inform ideas—it reorders life itself: how we see people, how we approach suffering, and how we understand love.

Guest Bio:

Heather Tomlinson is a British journalist and writer who spent the early part of her career working for national newspapers in the UK, including The Guardian. Trained in molecular biology, she began her career reporting on industry and finance before moving into psychology and mental health. A one-time secular liberal, Heather’s pursuit of truth led her through science, politics, and spirituality until she found the love and reality of Jesus Christ. Today, she writes for Christian publications and serves in pastoral care, helping others discover faith and healing through God’s love.

Resources Mentioned:

America’s Christian Credit Union (ACCU): AmericasChristianCU.com/Jana

Heather’s Resources:

•        Substack: https://heathertomlinson.substack.com/

Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis

Battelle Christian Rehab (UK ministry)

The C.S. Lewis Institute Podcast Network

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Few questions weigh heavier on the human heart than death. Is there anything beyond this life? How do we face death without fear?

Dr. Stephen Iacoboni has wrestled with these questions every day for more than forty years as a medical oncologist. Once a committed scientific atheist, he sought answers in medicine, science, and humanism—only to find them insufficient in the face of mortality. Through the witness of his patients and the growing cracks in naturalistic explanations, Dr. Iacoboni came to embrace faith in God, discovering a hope that transforms both life and death.

In this conversation, he shares his journey from childhood faith to scientific atheism, through years of treating patients at death’s door, to finally returning to belief in Jesus Christ. Along the way, he examines the failures of naturalism, the role of science, and the undeniable human longing for meaning that points to something greater.

Guest Bio:

Dr. Stephen J. Iacoboni is a veteran oncologist, author, and speaker whose medical career spans more than forty years. Trained during an era dominated by scientific materialism, he once embraced an atheistic worldview. But through decades of walking with cancer patients in their deepest suffering, he rediscovered the reality of the human soul and the hope of faith. He is the author of The Undying Soul: A Cancer Doctor’s Discovery and Telos: The Scientific Basis for a Life of Purpose, where he shares both his personal journey from atheism to faith and his case for meaning and design in life. Today, Dr. Iacoboni continues to write and speak on the intersection of science, medicine, and spirituality, encouraging both doctors and skeptics to see beyond a purely mechanistic view of life.

Resources Mentioned:

America’s Christian Credit Union (ACCU): AmericasChristianCU.com/Jana

Stephen’s Resources:

•        Book: The Undying Soul

•        Book: Telos- The Scientific Basis for a Life of Purpose

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Over more than 130 episodes, we’ve listened to former atheists and skeptics share how they came to believe in Jesus Christ. This week marks a milestone: five years since eX-skeptic first launched (originally as Side B Stories). Scientists, philosophers, artists, and everyday people from around the world have opened their lives to show how the search for truth and meaning led them home to God. 

Host Jana Harmon reflects on the journey so far — the stories that shaped us, the community that’s grown around this podcast, and the faithfulness of God behind it all. Whether you’ve been listening since day one or just discovered the show, we want to thank you for being part of this story! Here’s to many more years of doubt, discovery, and faith.

Resources Mentioned:

C.S. Lewis Institute – long-time partner helping people love God with heart and mind: www.cslewisinstitute.org

Ashley Kelfer – producer and co-creator behind the mic with Jana

The Podcast Upload – production team behind the show’s excellence and storytelling: https://www.thepodcastupload.com/

America’s Christian Credit Union (ACCU): AmericasChristianCU.com/Jana

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What happens when the “certainty” of atheism collides with evidence pointing to something more?

Caleb Ball’s (YouTube’s Aspiring Christian Channel) story begins in small-town Pennsylvania, where childhood faith gave way to mocking Christianity and embracing naturalism. For six years, he lived as a convinced atheist, creating YouTube content ridiculing God, convinced that science had all the answers. But one book, on quantum physics and consciousness, began to dismantle his worldview, forcing him to ask deeper questions about truth, meaning, and the existence of God.

Guest Bio:

Caleb Ball is a former atheist turned passionate Christian communicator. Once a vocal critic of Christianity, known online as “Crazy Caleb” during his atheist YouTube years, he now uses his platform to share testimonies of skeptics who found faith in Jesus. Through his YouTube channel Aspiring Christian, he curates conversion stories and apologetics content to help others wrestle honestly with life’s biggest questions. Caleb holds a degree in history and is pursuing a Master’s in Biblical Studies at Colorado Christian University. He and his wife live in Montana, where they are active in their local church and community.

Resources Mentioned:

America’s Christian Credit Union (ACCU): AmericasChristianCU.com/Jana

YouTube: Aspiring Christian, https://www.youtube.com/@AspiringChristian

Substack: https://substack.com/@aspiringchristian

Quantum Physics, Near Death Experiences, Eternal Consciousness, Religion, and the Human Soul: William Joseph Bray: 9781478176435: Amazon.com: Books

•        Book: Ecclesiastes (from the Bible)

•        Book: A Grief Observed, C.S. Lewis

•        YouTube: Daily Dose of Wisdom, https://www.youtube.com/@Daily_Dose_Of_Wisdom

•        YouTube: Sean McDowell, https://www.youtube.com/@SeanMcDowell

•        Book: Seeing is Believing, Michael Guillen

•        Michael Guillen’s interview on eX-skeptic: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UWW3JbYZSQI&t=1s

•        Author: John Lennox

•        Book: More than a Carpenter, Josh and Sean McDowell

•        MIT Professor: Rosalind Picard

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