The Unfolding

Tarn Cross believes God has hard-wired us for adventure.   When Tarn and her husband Matt had a young family in Australia, they began to grow restless.  Their church experience seemed more like dry religion than a relationship with the Creator of the Universe. That’s when God led them to their first mission experience in Uganda.  Within days of arriving, they realized what they thought would be an adventure was actually going to require radical faith and trust.  Today Tarn is a leader who has traveled the world speaking and helping people discover their God-given identity and purpose. 

As co-founder of She Reads Truth, Amanda Bible Williams has helped women around the world read God’s Word every day.  She believes in the power of the Bible to transform lives and sustain us through difficult times. A few years after launching She Reads Truth, Amanda and her husband David began the process of adopting their son Toby, who was born with a heart defect.  That journey has included both amazing miracles and exhausting suffering, and seeing how God is close through it all. 

When Cedric Hardimon faced tragedy as a teenager, his friends challenged him.  Would he walk away from his faith or would that experience solidify what he believed?  A common thread throughout Cedric’s life has been seeing how God uses it ALL – the successes, the things that look like failures, the mountain tops, and the desert experiences.  Somehow God can work all of it together for good.  Today Cedric is a pastor at Life Church East Kansas City and he serves as the chaplain for the Oklahoma City Thunder. But the road to these two dream opportunities wasn’t easy. It was a journey filled with opportunities to choose to trust God. 

When police knocked on Pastor Monte Gannon’s door, he never could have imagined it was the start of something beautiful.  Everything his church-owned was packed in a trailer that had been stolen and burned to the ground. As Monte prayed, he remembered two things- desperate people do desperate things, and God can take what was meant for evil and turn it for good. In a video that went viral, Monte reached out to whoever was responsible for the crime saying, “You are valuable.  God has hope for you.  You are invited to Meadows Church.”  He had no idea how those words would come true. 

For years there has been a stigma around issues of mental health, including in the Church.  For many of us, we assume depression and anxiety are issues we can fix, if we just read the Bible or pray more.  Lydia Laird knew God was calling her to write and perform music about her faith, but she was struggling with depression, anxiety and panic attacks.  For much of her life she carried shame because she just couldn’t fix it. 

The Outpouring at Asbury University began with a small group of students who stayed after chapel to worship and pray.  Over the course of the next 2 weeks, some estimate as many as 50,000 people came to Wilmore, Kentucky to be a part of it.  On February 23rd, the university officially stopped hosting public services.  If you weren’t among the 50,000 who experienced it, today’s show will give you a glimpse.  In this episode, we talk with people who came from hundreds and thousands of miles to visit Asbury.  Why did they go?  What were they hoping for? Guests from Ohio to Ontario share their stories.  

On February 8, 2023, a normal chapel service for students at Asbury University turned into something extraordinary. A small group of students stayed afterward and began sharing struggles, confessing sin, and praying for each other.  From those humble beginnings, an outpouring of God’s love and presence began and within days thousands had traveled from across the U.S. and beyond to experience it.  Host Meridith Foster traveled to Wilmore, Kentucky to hear about it from the students themselves.   

Jeremy Camp is a singer and songwriter whose story has been told in music and in a movie about his life. One of his most well-known songs is a simple but powerful declaration of faith. "I Still Believe" was written in a time of deep heartache and grief. As a young man, he had to make a choice. Would he trust that God is good even when life is not or walk away from his faith? That heartbreaking season forged a faith that is the foundation of Jeremy’s life. 

Ryan Otto wanted the fairytale marriage and family that he missed out on as a child. But there was one problem- he was paralyzed by the fear of choosing the wrong person or repeating his parents’ mistakes.  Mary Jane was confident of one thing- she would never marry a pastor.  It seemed to be an impossible situation, but it was actually an only-God-could-do-this kind of love story. 

After experiencing dysfunction and hurt, Tasha Layton left church and set out on a search for truth. That journey led her back to Jesus and a call to use her musical talents.  As a gifted worship leader, God opened doors in music but not what Tasha had imagined.  She found herself on American Idol and touring the world as a backup singer for Katy Perry, before finding her home writing worship songs and books to help others experience the freedom she found.