THINQ Media Podcast

When have you felt moments of freedom in your life? Most of us glimpse this freedom less and less as we pursue other endeavors: achievement, career, family, or success. Author Rebekah Lyons reminds us that God has created us — at the core of who we are — to be someone unique and beautiful, and free. Through sharing her own story and search for freedom, Rebekah will encourage us to uncover who we already are: free in Christ and deeply loved.

Our lives are increasingly complex and so is our modern world. As a result, Christians often struggle to connect what they believe with what they do day by day. Paul Williams and Terry Timm share their vision for how ReFrame provides a Biblical foundation for how God is renewing all of creation. How does our story and day to day life fit into God's story? Learn how Christians can better connect faith with all of life.

Forty-six percent of Americans believe religion is part of the problem in our society. Yet faith is the motivation for many of the critical social services and programs that benefit the most vulnerable populations. Congregations, faith-based businesses, and charities lift people up in times of need in ways that few other institutions or government programs can. In this conversation, you will see the important role faith-based organizations play in renewing civil society.

Listen in as Gabe Lyons shares a conversation with Jason Pamer, filmmaker, producer and writer of the upcoming film, The Heart of Man, releasing in theaters for a one-night only special event on September 14.

The Heart of Man is a story inviting the sons and daughters of God to leave behind our broken, moralistic and religious way of thinking and relating to God and to others. Once we begin to know who God is (and as a result who we are), we have something to invite the world into. Freedom from performance. Freedom from managing our behavior so we appear acceptable to God. Freedom from our addictions, compulsive behaviors, secrecy and double lives. This film tears the veil of confusion over the church's current identity crisis and enables it to invite the rest of the world to the banquet God is throwing all of us.

A study by The Design Council found that companies who emphasize design in their business dealings perform 200 percent better on the Stock Exchange than those who don't. Design isn't just about graphics and colors; it's in the aesthetics of a space. Danae Dougherty speaks from her background in designing spaces that create environments for real connection. She reflects on why beauty and design matter, and why it is so important to use design to foster relationships.

Much of what's happening in the American justice system remains overlooked. America boasts the highest rate of incarceration in the world, but even more alarming are the system's endemic injustices. Minority communities are far more afflicted by the justice system, a reality that affects the psyches of the children who grow up in them. Additionally, our system treats you much better if you're rich and guilty than if you are poor and innocent. Bryan Stevenson believes these realities are fundamentally changing our world, and he's devoted his life's work to finding solutions.

Jackie Hill-Perry knows that a life well lived speaks volumes in a world of contradiction. As individualism becomes common and pursuing your deepest feelings and desires is perceived as heroic, denying one's self is revolutionary. Her story of denying sexual desires to pursue true flourishing gives witness to a better way. A spoken word artist, Jackie will help us think through how self-denial can be what it was always meant to be inside our churches.

Over half of children think their parents check their phone too often, with a quarter of parents agreeing they want to look at their devices less. Yet it's difficult to pry ourselves away from technology, so social media is in large part making us less social. Andy Crouch reflects on these issues in his forthcoming book, The Techwise Family, and will help us think through utilizing tech in a way that contributes to relationships instead of taking away from them.

Drought. Food shortages. Conflict. These are deadly forces that children throughout East Africa are facing. Areas in South Sudan and Somalia are on the brink of catastrophe. Kenya and Ethiopia face severe drought. Tens of thousands of children could starve to death because of food and water shortages.

But this crisis isn't hitting the news as it should. 25.5 million people, our brothers and sisters, are at risk of starvation. This hunger crisis is likely to be the most devastating since we were kids and witnessed Ethiopia's famine.

Rich Stearns (President, World Vision US) and Gabe Lyons share a heartfelt conversation on the details and scope of this hunger crisis and what you can directly do about it today and the days to come.

Want to learn more about the hunger crisis and what you can do?

FAMINE & HUNGER IN AFRICA: WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

MAKE AN IMPACT THROUGH GIVING & SHARING

The very last words of Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew are summed up in The Great Commission, a call for the Church to make disciples. Yet the Church has approached this process in different ways throughout history. How are today's Christians carrying out the Great Commission, and what are the unique challenges to disciple-making in the 21st Century? Ed Stetzer presents new research on this topic as he paints a portrait of the future of discipleship.