Love Your City Podcast

Juliet Ballinger, founder and executive officer of Eva's Place, a pregnancy support centre in Queensland, shares her story of establishing the ministry and how volunteers from many different church denominations and theological traditions unite together to carry out the mission of serving pregnant women in their community.

It's always great to hear what Aussies are doing to promote Gospel Movements. Aaron Terry is the LGA Facilitator for Greater West For Christ. Aaron shares his passion and examples of how the church is seeking to impact the communities of Western Sydney.

Rick Prosser interviews Kevin Palau, President and CEO of the Luis Palau Association. Kevin joined LPA in 1985 and began directing the day-to-day operation of the ministry in the late 1990s. Under his leadership, LPA has united tens of thousands of churches in hundreds of cities to love and serve their communities and clearly share the Good News of Jesus. During Kevin’s time at LPA he has also help develop a global network of hundreds of partner evangelists. Kevin helps lead TogetherPDX, a sustainable, united movement of churches in Portland, Oregon. His book, "Unlikely: Setting Aside Our Differences to Live Out the Gospel" describes the ongoing impact of the movement. To learn more see https://citygospelmovements.org/ https://www.togetherpdx.org/ https://www.togetherpdx.org/sharepdx#sharepdx-resources

Loving your city starts with knowing we are loved by God and accepted by him. For many pastors and leaders, mental health struggles can be crippling. In this episode, pastor and author, Peter McHugh shares from his vast experience on cultivating and maintaining mental health. For more resources on mental health for pastors see our recent blog post https://movement.org.au/learn/blog/resources-for-mental-wellbeing.html

Mark Peterkins is Executive Director of Oneway Ministries in Ottawa, Canada. Richard Long leads Love Ottawa, a ministry arm of Oneway. Together they outline the unique strategies the church of Ottawa is employing to bring the Gospel to their city. Check out www.onewayministries.ca for more information.

Chuck Armstrong is the director of the Decadal Plan for Lead.NYC. This bold vision aims to reach one million New Yorkers for Christ over the next ten years. As well as unpacking this vision, Chuck shares his heart for unity and collaboration among the church in New York City.

Steve Buss is Executive Director of One Hope in Eugene, Oregon, USA. Together with his wife Patti, who serves as Program Director, they facilitate unity within the church of their community and coordinate many initiatives to serve the needs in their city. All that they do is driven by a strong prayer culture. For more info, check out their website www.onehopenetwork.org

Ian catches up with Ross Chapman, the president and executive director of For Evansville, an intermediary organisation that helps churches, nonprofits, and community leaders work together to address systemic challenges in our city. Ross shares how God lead him to return to his hometown and how he is now working to bring transformation to his city for the sake of the Gospel. If you want to know more, check out his website: www.forevansville.org

Jonathan Dove is the Senior Pastor of Grace City Church in Aukland NZ. Speaking about Jeremiah 29 he says, “I don’t think there is a more significant verse or passage for me at this point in our history.” This is why he is leading his church to seek the welfare of Aukland and seeking to colaborate with other churches to do the same.

Jeff Pishney is the founder and CEO of Love Our Cities. In this interview Jeff shares on the ground experience of mobilising volunteers to serve the community. He challenges the church to work with likeminded citizens to love their cities in practical ways. Originating in Modesto, California, Love Our Cities now works with cities all over the USA. For more info check out https://www.loveourcities.org

In 2001, the Times newspaper published a survey revealing that Stoke on Trent was the worst place in the UK to live. This was a wake up call to the church of that city to begin to pray together and work together for the good of the community. You'll enjoy this interview with Lloyd Cooke who champions the unity of the church in Stoke.

Tish interviews Chelsea Wilson from Rockingham, WA. Chelsea is a Salvation Army Officer and has worked to found City Women in her town.

Nick Scott, Senior Pastor of Mount Pleasant Baptist Church in Perth shares his journey of discovering the importance of church unity and how the church is now working together in his city.

Jess McLaren is a mother, specialist GP and leader of the newly established City Women Mackay. In this episode Tish interviews Jess about responding to God's call to start City Women in her city.

Ian Shelton chats with Casey Wolverton, a Seventh Day Adventist pastor who describes how he was welcomed by pastors from other denominations and over time made a unique contribution to the Body of Christ is his city. This is a story of unity breaking through the theological barriers that often keep us apart.

Tish chats with Nadine Wright from Hope for Our Children about the massive challenge of children in out of home care. Nadine offers thoughts on how the church can better care for the vulnerable in its city. For more information, visit http://www.citywomen.com.au/ministries/fostering/hope-for-our-children

The Global Youth Culture presents a huge challenge for the church. How can we effectively communicate the Gospel to a generation that is increasingly suspicious of institutions and disengaged from the traditional church? Luke Greenwood from Steiger shares his insights. Luke's book is available at https://www.amazon.com.au/Global-Youth.../dp/B07V58MXGY Also check out https://www.steiger.org

Christians and politics can be a controversial subject. Tish interviews Lyle Shelton about why Christians should engage in the political process that shapes our nation. To purchase Lyle's book head to https://www.lyleshelton.com.au

Tish interviews Paulette Cairns, founder of Rahab, a ministry to sex workers. They discuss the beginnings of Rahab as well as strategies for serving sex workers. For more information about Rahab, see their website https://www.rahab.com.au

Tish interviews Jill Baker. Jill shares her remarkable story of how God has used her to reform the education system in her city. This interview is one of a series that Tish has done on Disruptive City Women. For more interviews like this see our Facebook play list https://www.facebook.com/watch/620754334792016/607980123230815 To purchase Letitia's Disruptive City Women book head to https://citywomen.myshopify.com