Messiah Community Radio Talk Show

Our special guest is Dr. Sam Serio, the author of the book "Sensitive Preaching to the Sexually Hurting." In addition to being a widely sought-after Counselor, Teacher, Preacher, and Communicator - Dr. Sam Serio has written this book to especially help pastors, church staff members, seminaries/colleges, and specialized ministry leaders to communicate much better to those who are sexually wounded or addicted. He actually addresses seven very difficult and delicate sexual topics - using the Scriptures in providing for you actual sermon sentences, ideas and counseling tips. There is no book like it. Pornography. Abortion. Same-Sex Attraction. Casual Sex. Childhood Sexual Abuse/Molestation. Sexless Marriage. Sexual Assault/Rape. All seven are covered. Dr. Serio speaks with warmth and wisdom to empower today's and tomorrow's pastors or counselors to minister more effectively to people who suffer and hurt from sexual sin or pain. Numbers Don't lie, but sometimes they do, especially when it comes to the number

Our special guest is Garry Meeks, a Christian radio consultant and President of Meeks Communications. Founded in 1998, a full service advertising agency based in the Akron, Ohio area. Garry's area of expertise is media placement for radio and television clients. He can leverage media exposure into new clients and customers. His philosophy is to under promise and over deliver. Garry Meeks graduated from the University of Akron in 1977 with a B.A. degree in Mass Media Communications. He served as General Manager at Christian stations in Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Akron and Canton for a total of 17 years. Garry was the past President of the Ohio Association of Evangelicals and the past Chairman of the Board of the Cleveland area Fellowship of Christian Athletes. He is a current board member of the Ohio Christian Alliance.

Our special guest is Dr. Bennet Omalu a Nigerian-American neuropathologist who discovered and named chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) in American football players, other athletes and military veterans. He is the author of the book, TRUTH Doesn't Have a Side: My Alarming Discovery about the Danger of Contact Sports. Dr. Omalu is the chief medical examiner of San Joaquin County, California, and a clinical professor at the University of California, Davis. His story is told in the major motion picture Concussion, starring Will Smith. Bennet and his wife have two children and reside in Sacramento, California. One day in 2002 the fifty-year old body of former Pittsburgh Steeler and hall of famer Mike Webster was laid on a cold table in front of pathologist Dr. Bennet Omalu. Webster’s body looked to Omalu like the body of a much older man, and the circumstances of his behavior prior to his death were clouded in mystery. But when Omalu cut into Webster’s brain, it appeared to be normal. Something didn’t add up.

Our special guest is Dr. Albert Y. Hsu (pronounced "shee"), the author of the book Grieving a Suicide: A loved one's search for comfort, answers and hope. Albert," the neighbor said, "your mom needs you to come home." That's how it began for Albert Hsu when his father died. Anyone who has lost a loved one to suicide experiences tremendous shock and trauma. What follows is a confusing mix of emotions—anger, guilt, grief, and despair. Suicide raises heartrending questions: Why did this happen? Why didn't we see it coming? Could we have done anything to prevent it? How can we go on? Many also wonder if those who choose suicide are doomed to an eternity separated from God and their loved ones. Some may even start asking whether life is worth living at all. After his father's death, Hsu wrestled with the intense emotional and theological questions surrounding suicide. While acknowledging that there are no easy answers, he draws on the resources of the Christian faith to point suicide survivors to the God who offer

Our special guests are Dr. Clifford and Joyce Penner, co-authors of the book Enjoy! The Gift of Sexual Pleasure for Women. Do you want a stronger, more exciting sex life with your husband? As a married woman, you have the power to increase sexual fulfillment for you and your husband—if you aren’t stymied by false assumptions about a wife’s role in sex. In Enjoy: The Gift of Sexual Pleasure for Women, Dr. Clifford and Joyce Penner dispel assumptions that can keep women from accepting and expressing their God-given sexuality in marriage. After more than forty years as sex therapists and educators, the Penners have learned what helps couples build lasting, mutually enjoyable sex in marriage. Their knowledge is culled from the stories of thousands of individuals and couples who sought help with frustrations and have found relief and mutual fulfillment. In this book they share step-by-step, practical ways for wives to move from duty and disappointment to pleasure and fulfillment. Learn how the woman’s biblical ro

Our special guest is Dr. Gordon T. Smith, President of Ambrose University and Seminary in Calgary, Alberta. Christian communities tend to identify with one of these labels over the other two. Evangelical churches emphasize the importance of Scripture and preaching. Sacramental churches emphasize the importance of the eucharistic table. And pentecostal churches emphasize the immediate presence and power of the Holy Spirit. But must we choose between them? Could the church be all three? Drawing on his reading of the New Testament, the witness of Christian history, and years of experience in Christian ministry and leadership, Gordon T. Smith argues that the church not only can be all three, but in fact must be all three in order to truly be the church. As the church navigates the unique global challenges of pluralism, secularism, and fundamentalism, the need for an integrated vision of the community as evangelical, sacramental, and pentecostal becomes ever more pressing. If Jesus and the apostles saw no tension

Our special guest is Michelle Ferrigno Warren, author of The Power of Proximity: Moving Beyond Awareness to Action. Michelle is the advocacy and strategic engagement director for the Christian Community Development Association. She is an immigration, education, and human service policy specialist and is an adjunct faculty member at Denver Seminary. With over twenty years’ experience working in Christian community development, Michelle is a part of the national Evangelical Immigration Table and helps consult for the National Immigration Forum. She is a founding staff member of Open Door Ministries, a large community development corporation. We can see evidence of injustice all around us, whether in continuing incidents of racial inequality or in the systemic forces that disenfranchise people and perpetuate poverty. It's important to learn about the world's inequities and to be a voice for the voiceless any way we can. But in an age of hashtag and armchair activism, merely raising awareness about injustice i

Our special guest is Abu Atallah, the author of From Cairo to Christ. He is also the founder and CEO of European Training Centre and a pastor, professor, and missionary with the Evangelical Presbyterian Church. He was born and raised in Egypt, and after his conversion was involved with Campus Crusade at Cairo University. In 1979 he came to the United States, where he attended the Urbana missions conference and heard God’s call to minister to his people. Atallah founded the Arab American Friendship Center in Dearborn, Michigan, and was a consultant and trainer for Arab World Ministries in London and across Europe. He has ministered in fifty-six countries on six continents. He has a master of divinity from Calvin Theological Seminary and a doctorate of theology from Providence College and Seminary. "If I were to become a Christian, it would mean not only changing my religion but changing my whole identity and bringing shame upon my family. My whole family is Muslim, and my society and culture were Muslim. . .

Our special guest is Kristin Schell, an established speaker and blogger on the subjects of food, faith, and hospitality. Passionate about community, she has served at every level, from grassroots-level work in church and local nonprofits as well our nation’s capital. As founder of the Turquoise Table and Front Yard People movement, Kristin travels the country speaking at conferences and events with an encouraging word on how to open our lives and homes to others. She lives in Austin, Texas, with her husband, Tony, and their four children. Are you consumed with a busy life but unsure how to slow down? Do you desire connection within your community and think, “Absolutely, but I don’t have time for that” or “I can’t create that”? What if there was another way through it all, a way to find those moments of peace and to create a time for honest, comfortable connection? What if meeting neighbors and connecting with friends was as simple as showing up and being available? Desperate for a way to slow down and con

Our special guest is Kelly Flanagan, a psychologist, father, and blogger who is best known for the letters he has written to his children on his blog, one of which landed him on the Today Show with his four-year-old daughter. In his book Loveable, Flanagan answers three fundamental human questions: Am I enough? How do I become unlonely? Do I matter? He shows us how to rediscover our worthiness and remember that we are good enough. He encourages us to shed the false self that keeps us lonely and to find people who accept us as we are. And he inspires us to fully embrace our passions, regardless of how ordinary those passions may be. Reading like an extended love letter to readers, Loveable uncovers three essential truths: you are enough, you are not alone, and you matter. Flanagan invites us to disconnect from the distractions and demands of daily life and to listen more intently for the voice of grace within each of us, so we might fully awaken to the redemptive story we are here to live. Kelly is a license

Our special guest is Adam McHugh, author of Introverts in the Church. Adam shows how introverts can live and minister in ways consistent with their personalities. He explains how introverts and extroverts process information and approach relationships differently and how introverts can practice Christian spirituality in ways that fit who they are. With practical illustrations from church and parachurch contexts, McHugh offers ways for introverts to serve, lead, worship, and even evangelize effectively. Introverts have gifts for the church and the world. But many churches tend to be extroverted places where introverts are marginalized. Some Christians end up feeling like it's not as faithful to be an introvert. Introverts in the Church is essential reading for any introvert who has ever felt out of place, as well as for church leaders who want to make their churches more welcoming to introverts. This expanded edition has been revised throughout and includes new research on the neuroscience of introversion an

Our special guest is Joni Eareckson Tada, the Founder and CEO of Joni and Friends International Disability Center, an international advocate for people with disabilities. A diving accident in 1967 left Joni Eareckson, then 17, a quadriplegic in a wheelchair, without the use of her hands. After two years of rehabilitation, she emerged with new skills and a fresh determination to help others in similar situations. Visit her website at www.joniandfriends.org During her rehabilitation, Joni spent long months learning how to paint with a brush between her teeth. Her high-detail fine art paintings and prints are sought-after and collected. Her best-selling autobiography Joni and the feature film of the same name have been translated into many languages, introducing her to people around the world. Mrs. Tada has also visited more than 47 countries, several many times. Mrs. Tada has served on the National Council on Disability and on the Disability Advisory Committee to the U.S. State Department. She has served as

Ken Sande is the founder of Peacemaker Ministries and Relational Wisdom 360. Trained as an engineer, lawyer, and mediator, Ken has conciliated hundreds of family, business, church, and legal conflicts. As president of RW360, he now focuses on teaching people how to build strong relationships in the family, church, and workplace. He teaches internationally and is the author of numerous books, articles, and training resources, including The Peacemaker, which has been translated into seventeen languages. He is a Certified Christian Conciliator, an Editorial Advisor for Christianity Today, a Certified Relational Wisdom Instructor, and an Emotional Intelligence Certified Instructor. He and his wife, Corlette, have two adult children and a grandson, and love to hike and ski in the mountains near their home in Billings, Montana. Visit his website at www.rw360.org.

Our special guest is Dr. N.T. Wright, a prolific writer of both scholarly and popular books. N. T. Wright has written over thirty books, including Simply Christian, The Original Jesus, What Saint Paul Really Said, The Challenge of Jesus, The Meaning of Jesus, Jesus and the Victory of God, and the magisterial Paul and the Faithfulness of God. His N. T. Wright For Everyone Series includes commentaries covering the entire New Testament. Formerly bishop of Durham in England, Wright is research professor of New Testament and early Christianity at the University of St Andrews in Scotland. He was formerly canon theologian of Westminster Abbey and dean of Lichfield Cathedral. He also taught New Testament studies for twenty years at Cambridge, McGill, and Oxford Universities. He has been a visiting professor at Harvard Divinity School, Hebrew University in Jerusalem, Gregorian University in Rome, and many other institutions around the world. In addition to his many books, Wright reaches a broad audience through his fr

Our special guest is Jeff Crosby, the publisher of InterVarsity Press (IVP). InterVarsity Press began right before World War II as a small service branch of the InterVarsity Christian Fellowship (IVCF) campus ministry. Today, after years of development and growth, IVP has nearly one hundred staff, working together to publish books, Bible studies, and booklets every year that equip, edify, and challenge people in every generation. Crosby got his start in the Christian book industry as the owner with his wife, Cindy, of a Logos bookstore in Bloomington, Indiana, from 1983 to 1993. He went on to become the executive director of the Association of Logos Bookstores from 1993 to 1996 and was in executive sales and marketing roles with the Christian divisions of Ingram Book Company for two years before he started at IVP. “InterVarsity Press books challenged, stimulated and nourished my faith in Christ and my understanding of Christian theology and spirituality long before I came to work with its people in Downers G

Our special guest is Dr. Casey Tygrett, author of the book Becoming Curious: A Spiritual Practice of Asking Questions. Curiosity is essential to growth. A little curiosity moves us deeper into the lives of the people around us. It leads to opportunities we never knew existed. A little curiosity helps us understand our own strange emotions. If it is focused on Jesus, it will make us more like Him. Pastor and spiritual director Casey Tygrett loves to ask questions. "There's a difficult line to walk between what we need to know and what falls into the realm of mystery," he writes. "Walking that line often wears on our nerves and causes incredible tension, and so we settle for easy answers. We stop asking questions. We give up. We begin to lose the one thing that fiercely energizes the transformation of our souls—something beautiful, poetic, joyful, and happily disruptive. When we make curiosity a spiritual practice, we open up to new ways of knowing God and knowing ourselves as well. Come and discover the power

Our special guest is Brian Bird, a 30-year veteran of the Hollywood film and television business. He is the co-producer and screenwriter of the hit Christian film The Case for Christ, a movie about the life of Lee Strobel. Brian Bird's mission as a writer, producer and media professional is to create high-caliber life-affirming, uplifting entertainment projects. Brian is co-founder and partner with Michael Landon, Jr., of Believe Pictures, specializing in life-and-faith-affirming films and television. His most recent writing and executive-producing credits include the 2015 Paramount feature films, "Captive," "The Ultimate Life" (2013) for 20th Century Fox, along with the TV film, "Beverly Lewis' The Reckoning" for the Hallmark Channel (2015). Additionally, he serves as executive producer and head writer of the Hallmark original series, "When Calls the Heart," (2014-15). Prior to that, he wrote and produced "Beverly Lewis' The Confession" (2013) and "The Shunning" (2011), both for Hallmark; "Gametime" for NBC

Our special guest is Dr. Terry Linhart, author of the book The Self-Aware Leader: Discovering Your Blind Spots to Reach Your Ministry Potential. You've studied what you think you need to know before entering a career in ministry. Is there anything that is more important than knowing about hermeneutics, homiletics, theology, exegesis, and everything else you have likely learned in seminary and church ministry so far? Yes, there is. How well do you know yourself? You need to build your ministry career on the right foundation of an objective understanding of self. If you don't comprehend your strengths and weaknesses, then you won't be fully prepared to enter the crucible of ministry. Serving as a pastor is one of the toughest calls there is. But it can also be one of the most fulfilling and rewarding, especially if you have taken the time to examine both your gifts and vulnerabilities. The church needs leaders who have the clear-eyed courage to pursue the hardest part of the ministry journey: seeing yourself.

Our special guest is Dr. Tim Muehlhoff, co-author of the book God Conversation: Using Stories and Illustrations to Explain Your Faith. Our beliefs are challenged from many directions. Every day it seems more difficult to explain to our friends, families and neighbors what we believe and why. When our ideas and arguments fail to persuade them, what then? Is there another approach we can take? In The God Conversation veteran apologists and communicators J. P. Moreland and Tim Muehlhoff say that often the best way to win over others is with a good story. Stories have the ability to get behind our preconceptions and defenses. They can connect both emotionally and intellectually, appealing to the whole person rather than just to the mind. How do we defend belief in a good God in the face of terrorist attacks or natural disasters? What can we say to show we are not arrogant to believe that Jesus is the only way with so many sincere people following other world religions? What if they think we are naive to say Jesu

Our special guest is Mark Anderson, author of The Qur'an in Context: A Christian Exploration. For most Westerners, the Qur'an is a deeply foreign book. Christians who venture within this sacred scripture of Islam encounter a world where echoes of biblical figures and themes resound. But the Qur'an speaks in accents and forms that defy our expectations. For it captures an oral recitation of an open-ended drama, one rooted in seventh-century Arabia. Its context of people, events and ideas strikes us not only as poetically allusive but as enigmatic. And yet the Qur'an and its contested interpretations scroll in shadowed text between the headlines of our daily news. In The Qur'an in Context Mark Anderson offers a gateway into the original world and worldview of the Qur'an. With keen attention to the Qur'an's character, reception and theology, he opens up a hermeneutical space for Christians and others to engage its fabric of religious claims. The Qur'an's theology, anthropology, soteriology, spirituality as well