Life Issues

Do you know what a Sustainable Development Goal is? It’s a commitment to ensure that no one is left behind as the world develops. Yet despite support from global leaders, we’re falling short on achieving the goals set for 2030. So, what can we do, why should we care and how does the reality of our faith call us to model a better way? It’s the Life Issues conversation this week with Paul Hammond and his guests Paul Cook and Elizabeth Myendo from Tearfund.

Questioning our beliefs is healthy right? Yet a trend for ‘deconstructing’ faith to the point of some even deny the name “Christian” is emerging. So, what has created this tide of disillusionment and what can we do to protect people from falling away from the truth? Alisa Childers shares her insights on ‘progressive’ Christianity in this week’s Life Issues. 

We are exploring a widely misunderstood mental health condition that is often shrouded in secrecy and shame - Eating Disorders. They affect around 1 in 50 of us in the UK. Di Archer from the Eating Disorder charity Taste Life UK is joining Helen Lea for a frank and personal conversation in this week’s Life Issues podcast: Why eating disorders aren't about food…

Family dynamics these days can be confusing things, with the traditional image of the “nuclear family” no longer really covering it. So, in this week’s Life Issues Paul Hammond discusses the importance of our wider relational networks with Care for the Family’s Claire Burton, asking “How far does my family extend?” 

What is life like with a severe mental illness? And what stigma generated by news headlines might you still face?

Sharon Hastings qualified as a doctor, but lives with a psychotic illness. In this week’s Life Issues with Paul Hammond, she challenges the misconceptions around psychosis and shares what we can do to help.

Do you know the value of your attention? In an age where various forms of media compete to get it, Helen Lea asks Speak Life’s Nate Morgan Locke about the rise of the “attention economy” in this week’s Life Issues.

We believe in a God who can do miracles – who can heal, re-create and restore. But where does that leave us if “the healing never comes”? In Life Issues this week, author Paul Mallard discusses chronic illness with Paul Hammond.

Success - do we define it too narrowly and therefore set ourselves up for ‘failure’? And how do we 'dream big' when life is full of disappointments and unmet expectations?

British Olympian Abigail Irozuru shares her wisdom on the subject with Helen Price in this week’s Life Issues.

Beachy Head is a stunning location, but sadly is often less associated with its beauty than it is with people who die from suicide. So, this week we’re asking what drives people to that decision and what we can do to step in?

Gus Pickett from Beachy Head Chaplaincy Team speaks with Paul Hammond.

If you are affected by the conversation please call the Samaritans on 116 123.

What stops you believing in God? Maybe unanswered questions? But what if doubt and the mystery of God is part of what makes faith so powerful? 

Helping Helen Price explore how we can embrace the unknown is Zach Bolen, lead singer of Indie-Rock group Citizens, in this week’s Life Issues.