23 Apr 2018

michelle van loon – episode 128

Michelle Van Loon returns to Faith Conversations to talk about what happens when a church leader’s sin has been revealed. The #MeToo movement dominated headlines for months. Now the #ChurchToo hashtag has taken a turn in the spotlight—and it’s heartbreaking.

Check out the blog post that Michelle wrote on the topic here. If this is a topic that has affected you, we’d love to hear from you. You can email me at producer@anitalustrea.com.

Follow Michelle on Twitter @michellevanloon.

Find her on Facebook here.

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16 Apr 2018

John Lustrea-episode 127

John Lustrea is back with me on the podcast to discuss a movie that both he and I watched. We had such an overwhelmingly positive response to the last movie we discussed, The Way, that we decided to do it again.

This time we tackle Queen of Katwe. If you’ve not watched it, we highly recommend it. Some great themes present themselves and we model on the podcast how to discuss a movie or a TV episode or a book, with at least one other friend—maybe more! We also encourage you to shoot us an email about what you thought or with other movie, TV or book suggestions.  Email us at producer@anitalustrea.com.

John also introduces the spiritual practice called Havruta.

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09 Apr 2018

Brian Allain-episode 126

Brian Allain is an entrepreneur. He’s an IT guy who made the leap to the literary world—first by becoming the Founding Director of the Frederick Buechner Center and then as Producer of Writing for Your Life. Allain grew Mr. Buechner’s online presence from zero to over 2 million Facebook fans and over 300,000 Twitter followers. Needless to say, he is a marketing genius who also founded Enliven Your Tribe.

On this week’s podcast, we focus on how to become a published author as we talk about a variety of conferences Brian holds around the country under the monikers Publishing in Color and Writing for Your Life as well as online webinars that are available through Writing for Your Life.

Follow Brian on Twitter: @writing4urlife, @publishincolor, and @brian_allain

Find him on Facebook: facebook.com/spiritualwritingfor…Read More

02 Apr 2018

Gregory Thornbury-episode 125

Gregory Alan Thornbury, Chancellor of The King’s College and Vice President of New York Academy of Art, joins me on the podcast to talk about Larry Norman, “father of Christian Rock.”

In the recently released biography on Larry Norman, titled Why Should the Devil Have All the Good Music?, Thornbury talks about Larry Norman and the perils of Christian Rock. Larry was the one who helped launch a billion-dollar industry that has become something Larry probably wouldn’t like or recognize today.

I grew up during the Jesus movement and can still sing many of Norman’s songs from memory. Billboard called Norman “the most important songwriter since Paul Simon,” and his music went on to inspire members of bands such as U2, the Pixies, and Guns N’ Roses. Larry was a thorn in the religious establishment’s side. The book is fascin…Read More

26 Mar 2018

Michelle Van Loon-episode 124

Good friend, Michelle Van Loon, joins me on the podcast sitting across from me at my kitchen table. Nice having her on my home turf and not via Skype!

It was a bit of a Millrose program as we went from topic to topic. Michelle and her friend Amanda Cleary Eastep founded a wonderful blog called The Perennial Gen which addresses the audience of those in midlife and beyond. It is a worthy blog to read. We also mentioned Michelle’s new book, to be released July 3, 2018, but can be pre-ordered, titled Born to Wander.

On the heels of The Perennial Gen we addressed the topic of end of life issues and why they are difficult to discuss. Then related to that, we talked about legacy creation and what that might look like. Michelle and I began talking about telling stories and passing on legacy through recipes. Check out Miche…Read More

19 Mar 2018

Adam Hamilton-episode 123

Adam Hamilton is senior pastor of the 20,000 member Church of the Resurrection in Kansas City. He is a prolific author with 25 books to his credit. Making Sense of the Bible is a favorite of mine.

On the podcast we talk about his latest, which is Unafraid: Living with Courage and Hope in Uncertain Times. A leaders guide for group study is also available here. Adam mentions that there are a variety of supplemental resources for Unafraid. You can find those here.

Adam addresses some of the most prevalent fears in our society and talks about how to counter fear through using helpful psychology and biblical texts.

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12 Mar 2018

Elaine Storkey-episode 122

Elaine Storkey is known for her work as a scholar, author, speaker, and journalist. She has been a tireless advocate for the marginalized. Most recently she was the President of Tearfund. On the podcast, Elaine and I talk about the global pandemic of violence against women. She recently penned a book titled Scars Across Humanity: Understanding and Overcoming Violence Against Women.

This book was the culmination of 8 years of research and writing. It is a tremendous resource if you are seeking to elevate your own knowledge on this topic or broaden the knowledge of your church or your friendships groups.

Follow Elaine @elainestorkey

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05 Mar 2018

John Lustrea-episode 121

John Lustrea joins me this week on Faith Conversations to discuss a movie. The focus of the podcast is The Way, a movie starring Martin Sheen, which takes viewers on a 500-mile trek across Spain called the Camino de Santiago.

John leads us through a spiritual practice as we discuss the movie through the lens of ‘growth’ and then pick a passage to do Lectio Divina with.

An interesting discussion and we’d love to hear your thoughts. Email us at producer@anitalustrea.com.

Also mentioned, again, is the book I’m reading, again, The Soul of a Pilgrim by Christine Vaulters Paintner.

You can also contribute to the podcast on PayPal using that same email address, or mail a check to Anita Lustrea, 8 White Oak Terrace, Sarasota, FL 34237.

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26 Feb 2018

mike murphy-episode 120

My husband, Mike Murphy, joins me on this episode of Faith Conversations.

We discussed a conference we recently attended which focused on the work of Breakthrough Urban Ministries, an inner-city ministry on the west side of Chicago in the East Garfield Park neighborhood. Through the message given by a variety of presenters, all in attendance, including Mike and me, took a look at our life purpose.

The comedy of Michael Jr. surprised me. He had some potent serious moments peppered throughout the comedy.

Also mentioned was Mike’s Friday Rumblings on Facebook.

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19 Feb 2018

Sandra Glahn-episode 119

Sandra Glahn joins me on Faith Conversations this week to talk about Vindicating the Vixens: Revisiting Sexualized, Vilified, and Marginalized Women of the Bible. Sandra is general editor on this project that looks at some familiar female biblical characters in a new light. The variety of voices that Sandra brought together for this project makes it well worth reading, and it makes for a fascinating podcast.

If you’re unfamiliar with Sandra Glahn, she is associate professor of Media Arts and Worship at Dallas Theological Seminary where she teaches courses on the arts, gender, and human sexuality. She is author or co-author of more than twenty books, and this current offering really lights her fire.

Follow her on Twitter @sandraglahn and on Facebook.

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