To the Nations

In this episode of To the Nations: You may not relate to preferring the street to your own bed or sniffing glue to deaden the pain, but every human knows difficulty in life and longs for love. You will find yourself thinking deeply about the meaning of love after hearing from Becca.

When everything around you changes in an instant and any hope in what you see disappears, what next? Mary's friend realized that she had been asleep but now she's awake to an invisible, but very solid, Hope.

Evan thought he was going to Moldova to help seminary leaders strategize their institutional development, but soon he was walking alongside those Ukrainian educational leaders as they began responding to the terror of war. You'll hear how God has enlisted the Body of Christ to exercise new muscles in Eastern Europe. 

In this episode of To the Nations: Sudden unrest came to Almaty earlier this year catching citizens completely off-guard at the ferocity on both sides-protesters and police. Marina and family never expected to see such a thing so close to home. She unknowingly foreshadowed the war over Ukraine.

Jesus told us to do it. We want to do it. Churches struggle to do it. Jim loves the Church,  education, and spiritual development. He exhorts the Church to not forget her responsibility to raise up disciples who disciple others.

To the Nations is celebrating one year with a montage of interview snippets from 2021. Try this sampler to get taste of God's activity that is never inhibited by difficulties that often consume us.

While the Paz team tries to save the suicidal with the real purpose of life, the enemy attacks. Facing personal pain and seeing so much hopelessness and loneliness in the culture, what will get them through? John has and is running that course; his “coaching” may encourage you.

“God's sense of humor” brought George from a poor, broken family to speak at the United Nations to confront old paradigms of helping. He reminds us of how God sees every human being, including you.

Believers, God doesn't need you to perform, do, or accomplish to be His child, you just are. Hear from a high-capacity, entrepreneurial, experienced, cross-cultural, missions-mobilizer this reminder of your true identity.

“It doesn't make sense” and “it probably seems crazy” were phrases Matt used during this discussion of service in Haiti. We do serve a God whose thoughts are not our thoughts and haven't our Fathers of Faith been called the “men who turned the world upside down”?

If you knew the government thought your neighbor could be a terrorist and one day the neighbor disappears, what could you and what would you do? From a safer distance, millions of us should speak up and not wait.

How remarkable would it be if your pastor came to your house, gave great advice on your business, taught you theology, AND helped you solve a medical problem?! Emmanuel ignores the sacred/secular divide as he ministers in over 10 African countries.

From his porch, Emmanuel saw Mount Nyragongo's volcanic eruption. He, other Christians, and the Church quickly laid out the welcome mat and inspired others to aid the 1,000s of refugees. Generous hospitality of heart is a beautiful, contagious thing.

Do you ever wonder what Christians in other countries think of the Church in America? You'll likely chuckle and then find yourself thinking long after hearing Tsegaab's frank assessment of the Church in America.

If anyone knows you, it's your army buddies. In this episode of To the Nations, Wheaton College Graduate School alumnus Alexander Macris reflects on the trials and blessings of his mandatory military service including the one-of-a-kind relationship-building he experienced. You may not go enlist in the military, but there are places where your life intersects and influences others.

Ginny prayed for a way to reach a special group of people with the truths of the Gospel and God led her to a very unique method. Her joy in the Lord is contagious; let her inspire you to consider what gifts and talents you can use to love your neighbor.

“God is for you!” is one of the uplifting messages from experienced missionary, educator, counselor, and all-around encourager, Margery Dickinson. Even if you feel like a limp celery stalk, you'll find resiliency tips to help you keep going and maybe even laugh along the way.

There are a lot of bad and sad stories coming from Chicago, but those aren't the only stories. To find them though, we probably have to look at little harder. You may feel that to be the case in your life as you look back on 2020. The difficult things jump off the page, but when you look again, you find the blessings. Pastor Keith Gordon will introduce a long-term initiative in Chicago that will invest in youth, expand their opportunities and allow for a more abundant life.

How are you feeling about your spiritual life and growth? Are you like a tree yielding fruit in season and not withering? Maybe you're feeling like drought is upon you or can't sense the Lord at all. Lisa Anderson-Umaña has been soaking up the Word of God and then overflowing tocampers and recreation facilitators in Latin America for many years. Watch out, you may get wet!

We have all probably been disappointed in spiritual leaders, so our discussion will be relevant as we hear Dambudzo Mushambi's (WCGS '18) insights into the Shepherd Bushiri story in the news. Bushiri is a self-proclaimed prophet and miracle-worker who reports over 6 million people joining live broadcasts. After being charged with fraud, he fled both charges and the country. This story from South Africa will prompt us to think through our own biblical discernment.

What kind of people kidnap a stranger on a bumpy road in Nigeria? Mike Van der Dyke's (WCGS '03) personal story is surprising in several ways. The world needs Jesus followers with foundations built on the rock of Christ. Allow Mike's testimony to help strengthen your commitment to Jesus.

The time is right for us to dig deep in our faith to build a foundation that will stand when persecution comes our way. An American missionary was rescued by Navy Seals October 31, 2020, but abductions that don't end this way are too common in Nigeria. Mike Van der Dyke (WCGS '03) knows from personal experience. Grow in your discipleship from hearing about the persevering Church in Nigeria.

Seventy million people in our world are hearing impaired. Bringing an accurate Bible translation to these populations in their heart language is one of the goals of the Center for Deaf Scriptures (CDS) in Israel. Our guest is Adam Van Goor (WCGS '15), who is the acting director at CDS. He shares his heart for this often-overlooked group of people. You'll be sensitized and be more aware of how the hearing impaired can augment your understanding of the Scriptures after this episode.

April McLaughlin, Billy Graham Scholarship Program Coordinator, talks with Dr. Scott Moreau, the Academic Dean of the Wheaton College Graduate School and Professor of Intercultural Studies, to lay a foundation of topics for To the Nations. They touch on the grad school today, the legacy of the scholarship program, and cross-cultural and global Church issues.