The Inspiration Project

Welcome to The Inspiration Project, a podcast designed to inspire the next generation of young people through the real world stories of well-known Christians.

People who have extraordinary stories of faith, life, tragedy and triumph. People that God has used to achieve great things. We want to inspire the next generation to see that by trusting God, they will achieve His purpose in their life and that through Him, all things are possible.

The podcast is hosted by ACC Principal, Mr Brendan Corr, and behind the scenes, ACC Graduate, Jarred Fantom, organises the guests and edits the podcast episodes.

Episodes

The opinions expressed by the podcast guests are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Australian Christian College.

Episode 68 | October 21, 2025

Walt Heyer

Walt Heyer was a husband, father, and corporate executive who underwent so-called “gender reassignment surgery” at the age of 42, identifying as a woman for eight years. Through an encounter with Jesus Christ and the support of a loving church, Walt got his life back (“detransitioned”) and has been restored for over 30 years. Walt Heyer speaks and writes passionately about safeguarding children from experimental intervention (improperly called “gender affirming care”), testifying before legislative bodies, writing 8 books and over 60 articles, addressing audiences around the world, and appearing in countless documentaries, interviews, and podcasts. Walt serves as Senior Fellow at Family Research Council and his latest book, Embracing God’s Design, is co-authored with FRC colleague, Jennifer Bauwens, Ph. D.

Listen to Episode 68

Episode 67 | August 25, 2025

Dr Andrew Browning

Dr Andrew Browning’s memoir ‘A Doctor in Africa’ with the preface by HRH The Princess Royal, Princess Anne, and foreword by Her Excellency, Linda Hurley, Andrew’s book is an inspiring story of his selfless life, from the obstacles he has overcome working in remote, harsh and vastly under-resourced regions, to the compelling stories of the women whose lives he has transformed forever through fistula surgery and access to free maternal healthcare.

Listen to Episode 67

Episode 66 | May 13, 2025

Christina Dent

Christina is an author, TEDx speaker, and perpetual question-asker. She grew up in a conservative, Christian home and earned a degree in Biblical Studies with an emphasis in Christian Ministry from Belhaven University. She founded End It For Good out of her desire to invite others to listen to the voices directly impacted by our drug laws. She hopes that more people will explore the root causes of drug-related harm and consider a different approach. She wrote the book Curious: A Foster Mom’s Discovery of an Unexpected Solution to Drugs and Addiction to share her story and the research and experiences that changed her mind about the best path forward to help people thrive, even in a world where harmful drugs exist.

Listen to Episode 66

Episode 65 | April 02, 2025

Pastor Lucas Miles

Lucas Miles is a trusted voice in the American church who has consistently addressed some of the most challenging topics in theology, politics, and culture. He hosts The Epoch Times’, Church & State with Lucas Miles, which was named the 2023 “Program of the Year” by the National Religious Broadcasters organization. Lucas has been syndicated in articles across both political and religious news outlets, such as Newsmax, The Blaze, FlashPoint, Fox News, The Washington Times, CBN, and The Christian Post. In addition to his newest book, Woke Jesus: The False Messiah Destroying Christianity, Lucas is the author of the best-selling book, The Christian Left: How Liberal Thought Has Hijacked the Church, as well as the critically acclaimed book, Good God: The One We Want to Believe in But Are Afraid to Embrace.

Listen to Episode 65

Episode 64 | December 19, 2024

James Orr

Dr Orr is Associate Professor of Philosophy of Religion at the Faculty of Divinity, a position he took up after four years as McDonald Postdoctoral Fellow in Theology, Ethics, and Public Life at Christ Church, Oxford. He holds a PhD and MPhil in Philosophy of Religion from the University of Cambridge and a BA in Classics from Balliol College, Oxford. Before entering academia, he worked for several years in corporate law at Freshfields and Sullivan & Cromwell.

Listen to Episode 64

Episode 63 | November 13, 2024

Pastor Kelly Lohrke

Pastor Kelly Lohrke and his wife, Esther, began The Cure Church on September 11th, 1993. They were sent from California, having never been to Kansas City, but trusting God throughout their journey. Fast forward thirty years, starting with just a small group of eleven people, they have successfully birthed a thriving network of churches across the nation. What sets these churches apart is that they were planted by individuals who were birthed from within The Cure Church itself, including their pastors.

Listen to Episode 63

Episode 62 | August 07, 2024

Rebecca Crews

Rebecca King Crews is the wife of legendary actor Terry Crews. Rebecca is a wife, mother, actor, writer, producer, Pastor, business woman and musician.

Listen to Episode 62

Episode 61 | July 29, 2024

Doug Wilson

Douglas James Wilson is a conservative Reformed and evangelical theologian, pastor at Christ Church in Moscow, Idaho, faculty member at New Saint Andrews College, and author and speaker. Wilson is known for his writing on classical Christian education, Reformed theology, as well as general cultural commentary.

Listen to Episode 61

Episode 60 | May 13, 2024

Riley Clemmons

Riley Clemmons is an artist who has accumulated over half a billion global streams and over 105 million YouTube video views. After spending years refining her craft in writers’ rooms, Riley sky-rocketed onto the scene with her 2017 Capitol CMG debut single “Broken Prayers,” which has generated over 60 million global streams since its release. Her 2018 self-titled album debut quickly entered the Billboard Heatseekers chart, debuting at No. 13. Riley added to her accomplishments with her well known single “Fighting For Me” being RIAA Gold Certified this year.

Listen to Episode 60

Episode 59 | May 07, 2024

Mark Varughese

Mark is the founder and Senior Leader of Kingdomcity – a growing, vibrant church in multiple locations around the world. With his wife Jemima and a rising, gifted team of passionate pastors and strategic leaders in multiple nations, Kingdomcity is quickly expanding into a global movement with seeds now in Africa, the Middle East, Europe, Asia and Australia – in first-world and developing world settings. His journey began in 2003 when he left his legal career to pursue full-time ministry in a local church in Perth, Australia. In 2005, he had a personal encounter with God in what he describes as “his burning bush” experience. In response to what he believed God told him, he left Australia, bought a one-way ticket to Malaysia, and planted what is now Kingdomcity, in April 2006. Mark authored his first book “Ready, Fire! Aim”, which captures his personal journey and Kingdomcity story on paper. It is an inspiring life story interwoven with a common thread of faith and risk. If not preaching on stage, you would often find Mark on the piano. He works closely with the worship team and has written multiple songs that continue to give powerful and passionate musical expression to God-centred worship in Kingdomcity.

Listen to Episode 59

Episode 58 | April 29, 2024

Derrick Kinney

Derrick Kinney is changing how you feel about money. He believes money is not bad and good people should have more of it. After applying his proven principles with thousands of clients, Kinney sold his multimillion-dollar business to teach these success steps to you. As CEO of Good Money Framework and host of the popular Good Money podcast, Kinney visits with influential business and thought leaders to inspire you to make more money and use it for good. Known for making complex financial topics easy to understand, Kinney is a sought- after guest on local and national media where he has been interviewed on CNBC, FOX News, CNN, FOX Business, PBS, Cheddar News, and The Wall Street Journal, among others.

Listen to Episode 58

Episode 57 | April 19, 2024

Martyn Iles

Martyn Iles is an Australian lawyer, commentator, and preacher living in the USA. He is the Executive CEO at Answers in Genesis, a large Christian apologetics and education ministry well-known for its famous Ark Encounter and Creation Museum attractions in Northern Kentucky which are visited by 1.5 million people each year. Between 2018–2023, Martyn was Managing Director of the Australian Christian Lobby, one of Australia’s largest political movements. In that role, he produced a popular vlog called The Truth of It and has appeared frequently in the media, including on programs such as The Project, Sunrise, 60 Minutes, Today, Sky, The National Press Club, ABC Q+A, and every major TV network, newspaper, and radio station in the country. Martyn holds bachelors and masters degrees in law.

Listen to Episode 57

Episode 56 | February 07, 2024

Rumbi Mabambe

Rumbi Mabambe is the Executive Officer of the Chain Reaction Foundation and Mt Druitt Learning Ground.

Listen to Episode 56

Episode 55 | December 20, 2023

Dr. Owen Strachan

Dr. Owen Strachan is Provost and Research Professor of Theology at Grace Bible Theological Seminary. Before coming to GBTS he served as Associate Professor of Christian Theology and Director of the Residency Ph.D Program at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. He earned his Ph.D from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, his M.Div from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, and his AB from Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine. He is married and the father of three children. Strachan has authored numerous books, including Reenchanting Humanity: A Theology of Mankind, The Pastor as Public Theologian: Reclaiming a Lost Vision (with Kevin Vanhoozer) and Christianity and Wokeness: How the Social Justice Movement is Hijacking the Gospel – and the Way to Stop it (2021). Strachan is the former president of the Council on Biblical Manhood & Womanhood, the former director of The Center for Public Theology at MBTS and is the President of Reformanda Ministries.
His latest book is titled: The War on Men: Why Society Hates Them and Why We Need Them

Listen to Episode 55

Episode 54 | December 11, 2023

Mike Baird

Michael Bruce Baird AO (Mike Baird) is an Australian investment banker and former politician who was the 44th Premier of New South Wales, the Minister for Infrastructure, the Minister for Western Sydney, and the Leader of the New South Wales Liberal Party from April 2014 to January 2017.
Baird represented the electoral district of Manly in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly for the Liberal Party from 2007 to 2017. Before becoming Premier, he was the Treasurer of New South Wales in the O'Farrell government between 2011 and 2014. On 19 January 2017, Baird announced his intention to step down and on 23 January he resigned as Premier and member for Manly.
He now works as the CEO of HammondCare.

Listen to Episode 54

Episode 53 | November 28, 2023

Chris Watkin

Christopher Watkin (PhD, University of Cambridge) is senior lecturer in French studies at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia. He is a scholar with an international reputation in the area of modern and contemporary European thought, atheism, and the relationship between the Bible and philosophy. His published work runs the spectrum from academic monographs on contemporary philosophy to books written for general readers, both Christian and secular, and include Difficult Atheism, From Plato to Postmodernism, Great Thinkers: Jacques Derrida, and others.

Listen to Episode 53

Episode 52 | November 22, 2023

Paul Mergard

Paul Mergard is the CEO of Destiny Rescue. He works tirelessly to combat the Human Trafficking epidemic in our world today. He chose to leave behind a promising career as an accountant with KPMG, and began leading programs with International NGO’s, including The Salvation Army, Compassion Australia, Red Frogs and Destiny Rescue Australia, engaging Australians to be at the forefront of impacting lives for the better.

Listen to Episode 52

Episode 51 | November 16, 2023

Nigel Biggar

Nigel Biggar is Regius Professor of Moral and Pastoral Theology, and Director of the McDonald Centre for Theology, Ethics, and Public Life, University of Oxford.

Listen to Episode 51

Episode 50 | October 03, 2023

Dr. Vishal Mangalwadi

Vishal Mangalwadi, founder-president of BOMI/Revelation Movement, is an Indian philosopher and social reformer. Vishal has lectured in more than 40 countries, published 17 books, and contributed chapters to many more. From November 2013, Vishal has also served as the Honorary Professor of Applied Theology in the Gospel and Plough Faculty of Theology at the Sam Higginbottom Institute of Agriculture, Technology, and Sciences.

Listen to Episode 50

Episode 49 | August 25, 2023

Georgia Purdom

Dr Georgia Purdom received a PhD in molecular genetics from Ohio State University in 2000. Dr Purdom said that “the creation and evolution issue is so important because it is foundational to biblical authority, a Christian worldview and to the whole of Christianity. Therefore, it is necessary to have a solid understanding of the issue of origins.” Dr Purdom became a Christian when she attended a youth camp when she was eight years old. Six years later at a Christian youth conference, she dedicated her life to serving the Lord. Dr Purdom’s professional accomplishments include the winning of a variety of honours, research presentations at national conferences and the completion of five years of teaching at Mt Vernon Nazarene University (Ohio). She has published papers in the Journal of Neuroscience, the Journal of Bone and Mineral Research and the Journal of Leukocyte Biology. She is also a member of the Creation Research Society, American Society for Microbiology, and American Society for Cell Biology and a peer reviewer for Creation Research Science Quarterly. Dr Purdom’s main area of specialty is cell and molecular biology. Her graduate work focused on genetic regulation of factors important for bone remodelling. Her particular interest is in the role of mutations and horizontal gene transfer in microbial populations (and other organisms) in natural selection.

Listen to Episode 49

Episode 48 | April 24, 2023

Eric Agyeman

A victim of racial bullying in primary school, Eric had first-hand experience of being bullied. Being the only African in his school, he experienced constant teasing, isolation and fear which led to him missing many days of school. The bullying led to anger and other emotions he didn’t know how to identify or navigate at the time. This would lead to 4 suspensions by Year 8. From being a gang member in High School and labeled ‘at risk’, two decades later Eric was awarded the African Australian Community Impact award in 2014 for his work both locally and in Africa. An author of 3 best-selling books, Eric is passionate about young people and their future. His resilience in overcoming mental health challenges, suicidal thoughts, teen gangs positions him as a great example to young people, that no matter your background, mistakes and challenges, you can still get back up and make your life count!

Listen to Episode 48

Episode 47 | February 23, 2023

Kiran Skariah

Reverend Kiran Skariah, also known as PastorSKAR online, is an ordained minister with a passion to see the next generation be all they can be. Based in Sydney and having graduated from William Carey Christian School as School Captain in 2009, Kiran studied at Morling Theological College where he completed his Bachelor of Ministry and started working at his local Church as a Youth Pastor. After gaining a decade of Youth Ministry experience at his local Church and serving full time as Associate Pastor there, Kiran realised the huge need for a safe, welcoming space for all in the online world, where honest faith conversations can spark and people can be themselves, ask questions and connect in a way that was previously unimaginable. With a goal to impact the world, Kiran started livestreaming on the world's largest streaming platform, Twitch.tv and over weeks, months and years, dedicated himself to building a free, accepting, family-friendly community where gamers and non-gamers alike can gather and share a laugh, have some fun, and for those that were interested, talk about their faith. Today this Ministry is run very similarly to a local Youth Group, but is open for all and digitised to meet the demographic. This includes interactive games with the community, regular prayer time, a weekly message, and all the laughs and craziness you could imagine - and lives are being impacted all over the world!

Listen to Episode 47

Episode 46 | January 23, 2023

Sheridan Voysey

Sheridan Voysey is a writer, speaker, and broadcaster on faith and spirituality. His books include Resurrection Year: Turning Broken Dreams into New Beginnings, Resilient and the award-winning Unseen Footprints. Sheridan is a regular contributor to BBC Radio 2 and other international networks, and has featured on BBC Breakfast, BBC News, Day of Discovery, Moody Radio, and publications like The Sunday Telegraph. He is married to Merryn and lives and travels from Oxford, United Kingdom.

Listen to Episode 46

Episode 45 | December 08, 2022

Jason Perini

Jason Perini is a director, writer and actor. In 2012 Jason co-wrote and acted in the short film 'A Little Bit Behind'. He was awarded 'Best Actor' at the International 48 hour Short Film Awards in the USA. The film screened at the 2012 Cannes Film Festival shorts corner. In 2016 he wrote and directed his short film 'The New Empress'. The film starred Maggie Gyllenhaal and was produced by Dana Brunetti. The film had its premiere at Paramount Studios (Los Angeles) as part of the Jameson First Shot project. In 2018, Jason acted in and co-wrote the online Wallabies campaign for ASICS 'The Travelling Salesman', which was co-produced with LADbible. The campaign has had over 3 million views online and was the winner of the Mumbrella Sports Marketing Awards 'Social Campaign of the Year'. Jason's directorial feature film debut 'Chasing Comets' had its national cinema release in August 2018. The film played in over 90 cinemas across Australia. Jason was nominated for an ADG award for 'Best Director in a Feature Film' (Under $1mil) in 2019. The film is currently streaming on Stan.

Listen to Episode 45

Episode 44 | December 01, 2022

Mark Hadley

Mark Hadley has been writing professionally for 30 years. He has been a journalist for most of that time, employed by a range of prominent radio, television and web publications including the ABC.
For the past 20 years he has scripted and produced television series and documentaries all over the world for the BBC, PBS, and SBS as well as Australian broadcasters the Seven, Nine and Ten Networks. His award-winning The Christ Files and The Life of Jesus, were shot in eight countries and are now available in major markets around the world.
In addition, Mark has been reviewing films, television programs and children’s books for the past 15 years for Australian papers and magazines, nationally syndicated radio programs and internationally read web sites. He is the co-host of Hope 103.2 FM's The Big Picture, a weekly radio show / podcast / vodcast of film, TV and cultural productions from a Christian perspective. For five years he edited the repeat winner for Australia’s ‘Best Religious Website’, Sydneyanglicans.net and he continues to consult on web community and content development for a number of organisations.

Listen to Episode 44

Episode 43 | November 07, 2022

Stephen O'Doherty

Stephen is a broadcaster and commentator with an extensive background in media, public policy, education and the arts. He has significant experience in not for profit leadership and governance. He joined the Board of Hope Media Limited in 2003, succeeding Roger Climpson as Chair in 2005.
Stephen began as a broadcast journalist, working in both radio and TV for commercial stations and the ABC. From 1992 – 2002 he served as a Member of the NSW Parliament and was a member of the Shadow Cabinet with portfolios including Education, Disability and Community Services, and Treasury. Stephen was the inaugural CEO of Christian Schools Australia from 2002 – 2017, a role which involved advocacy and support for a growing movement of schools.
Stephen chairs the board of Brisbane’s Family Radio Limited (96five) and is a Director of the sector’s peak organisation, Christian Media and Arts Australia (CMAA). Stephen has a passion to see Christian radio continue to thrive as a significant part of Australia’s community broadcasting sector. He represents CMAA on the Community Broadcasting Roundtable.
Stephen is a regular panellist on the ABC’s The Drum and Weekend Breakfast and has also appeared on Q&A. An active musician, he is currently Musical Director of the Golden Kangaroos Hornsby Concert Band. Stephen is the Principal of a consultancy providing strategic communications and music services.

Listen to Episode 43

Episode 42 | October 11, 2022

Chris Mulherin

Rev. Dr Chris Mulherin is an Anglican minister with a background in engineering, philosophy, and theology. Chris’s doctorate in philosophical theology and philosophy of science dealt with the relationship between scientific and other knowledge claims such as those of theology.
Chris has published articles and book chapters in the media and in academic works. His book Science and Christianity: Understanding the Conflict Myth, designed for use in schools and churches, is available from ISCAST. He has also produced ABC Radio National programs, and he blogged on the Global Atheist Convention for ABC RN. When he is not working for ISCAST, he teaches and tutors at various universities in Melbourne in philosophy, history of science, Christian apologetics, and climate change. He is currently co-supervising a PhD candidate working on Husserl, Heidegger, Gadamer, and the question of whether all human understanding is linguistic.

Listen to Episode 42

Episode 41 | September 20, 2022

Rory Darkins

Rory Darkins, is a positive psychology researcher, speaker and high performance coach who is passionate about well-being and peak-performance. Rory has a diverse sporting background, having spent several years travelling the world pursuing professional cricket before settling in Sydney where he is now based. Rory is also a competitive runner and has competed internationally in Surf Lifesaving 2km beach run events and trained with national and olympic-level runners. Since 2014, Rory has worked with elite, professional and Olympic athletes from numerous sports in his role as a high performance conditioning coach with Jock Athletic. This pursuit of personal excellence is what first sparked Rory’s interest in the mental side of sport. Like many athletes, he wanted to know how to get the best out of himself so he took a keen interest in the stories of successful athletes and completed his Psychology degrees whilst travelling with sport.

Listen to Episode 41

Episode 40 | August 04, 2022

Daniel Widdowson

Daniel Widdowson is an Australian of the Year finalist, Australian Playwright finalist, recipient of Best Director at the Florence Film Awards, and Best Screenplay at the New York Film Awards. He serves as an Ambassador for the Jane Austen Literacy Foundation, received the Collins Booksellers Arts Award, and is the Artistic Director of Salt House Creative. He hosted and segment produced popular children’s television program Saturday Disney from 2000-2007. This afforded him the opportunity to report on the opening of Disney’s California Adventure, the launch of 20th Century Fox’s Ice Age 2 in London, represent Australia at the Millennium Dreamer’s Global Summit, and report on the opening of Hong Kong Disneyland 2005. Whilst at Network Seven, Daniel also joined the writing team for Home & Away, presented backyard renovation show Ground Force, and performed at both the Melbourne and Perth annual Telethons.

Listen to Episode 40

Episode 39 | July 04, 2022

Sue Bartho

It was during first year medicine in 1981, that Sue realised that she was “more interested in something more intrinsic to a person than their bodies!” She transferred to the Bachelor of Science in Psychology degree at UNSW, completing this with Honours 2:1 in 1985. Sue then travelled and worked in the United Kingdom for 5 years with adolescent and university students. Returning to Sydney in 1992, she completed a Masters in Clinical Psychology at Macquarie University, with a postgraduate scholarship while working as a tutor at Robert Menzies College and as a staff-worker for Trinity Chapel Macquarie. Sue worked in the rehabilitation sector, in private rehabilitation practices and at Mt Wilga Private Hospital, for 10 years before venturing out into private practice. She spent 20 years working as a contractor for the Anglican Professional Standards Unit, dealing with sexual misconduct. She has now been running her own private practice in Hornsby for over 20 years, and enjoys offering seminars and talks to community and church groups. She is married and has 3 adult children. She has been Director of the Brunswick Heads Beach Mission team (Scripture Union) since 2019, and has been teaching Scripture at Cheltenham Girls High School since 2016.

Listen to Episode 39

Episode 38 | December 17, 2021

Andrew Farley

Dr. Andrew Farley is a bestselling author of nine books including The Naked Gospel and Twisted Scripture. He serves as president of The Grace Message – a nonprofit Christian media ministry dedicated to proclaiming the love and grace of God with boldness and clarity. Andrew hosts The Grace Message with Dr. Andrew Farley – a live, call-in radio program – every weeknight on stations across North America. He is also the lead pastor of The Grace Church and has been recognized with several awards for his excellence in teaching. Andrew lives in Texas with his wife Katharine and their son Gavin.

Listen to Episode 38

Episode 37 | September 21, 2021

Kim Oates

Kim Oates is an Emeritus Professor of Paediatrics, a former CEO of the Children's Hospital at Westmead, a former President of the International Society for Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect and an elected Founding Member of the International Academy of Quality and Safety.

Listen to Episode 37

Episode 36 | September 14, 2021

Darlene Zschech

Australian Darlene Zschech is acclaimed all over the world as a composer, worship leader, pastor, author and speaker, and became most well known for her involvement in the worship team at Hillsong Church, Sydney, Australia over many years. Although she has achieved numerous gold albums and her songs are sung in many nations of the world, Darlene’s success simply stands as a testimony to her life’s passion for serving God and people with all her heart. Alongside her husband Mark, they are the Senior Pastors of Hope Unlimited Church (HopeUC) on the Central Coast of New South Wales, Australia, which has now grown into India and the USA.

Listen to Episode 36

Episode 35 | August 27, 2021

Claire Rogers

Claire Rogers is a globally experienced strategic leader with deep expertise in driving growth, innovation, and transformation across a broad range of financial services and for purpose entities. She has achieved market leading performances through a clear understanding of business and customer context and executing at pace by developing and inspiring teams, shaping culture for purpose with agility. Previously chief executive of World Vision Australia, the country’s largest not-for-profit organisation, and with extensive global and local experience in financial services, Claire is able to lead organisations to deliver on their purpose and commercial potential delivering above market performance. A social innovator with entrepreneurial skills, she has successfully led large and small organisations to achieve growth through digital platforms. Claire is currently the CEO of Oho, which is a purpose-led social venture, established to meet the growing need for continuous monitoring of workers and volunteers who are responsible for vulnerable people.

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Episode 34 | August 17, 2021

Michael Adams

Professor Michael Adams is an internationally recognised specialist in corporate law, governance, securities markets regulation, and legal education (especially e-learning). Michael has been writing, teaching and regularly presenting on all these topics for over 20 years. He is a Fellow of the Australian College of Educators (FACE), as well as the Australian Academy of Law (FAAL), and is also a Fellow of the Governance Institute of Australia (FGIA & UK FCIS). Professor Adams has been the former President of the Australasian Law Teachers Association, the Corporate Law Teachers Association and Chartered Secretaries Australia (now Governance Institute of Australia). He is the co-author of ten books and 30 chapters, 50 articles and over 250 conference/seminar presentations. In 2000 he was the recipient of the Australian University Teacher of the Year, for Law and Legal Studies, as well as 2005 CSA President's Award.

Listen to Episode 34

Episode 33 | August 09, 2021

Brooke Prentis

Brooke Prentis is an Aboriginal Christian Leader from the Wakka Wakka peoples. Brooke became the CEO of Common Grace in February 2020. Previously Brooke had been volunteering as the Aboriginal spokesperson for Common Grace and is the Coordinator of the Grasstree Gathering. Brooke works ecumenically speaking on issues of justice affecting Australia and sharing a message of reconciliation as friendship. Brooke has co-written and written a number of theological papers over the last two years that have been presented both nationally and internationally. Brooke is a founding board member of NAIITS Australia and is currently studying a Masters of Theology, as well as being a scholar of the Australian Centre for Christianity and Culture. Brooke is a much sought after speaker and writer who has a vision 'to build an Australia built on truth, justice, love and hope'.

Listen to Episode 33

Episode 32 | June 29, 2021

Eloise Wellings

Eloise’s dream to become an Olympic athlete started at a young age. Holding the Under 6’s record in shot put at Little Athletics, she began to show promise as a middle and long distance runner at the age of 10 and moved her focus. Watching the Barcelona Olympics inspired her, and she decided that she wanted to one day compete for Australia.
Having qualified for the 2000 Sydney Olympics at just 16 years old, it seemed that her dream had come true. However she suffered a heartbreaking stress fracture, her first of 11, and was unable to compete at the Olympics in her own backyard.
She didn’t give up on her dream, and despite missing out on the Athens Olympics, and again on the Beijing Olympics due to injury, her dream finally came to fruition in 2012 where she represented Australia at the London Olympics in the 10,000m and 5,000m and track events; placing 21st and 23rd respectively.
Other career highlights include a gold medal in the 5000m University Games in 2003, 4th in the 5000m at the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne in 2004, and 6th at the Delhi Commonwealth games in the 10,000m in 2010.
Most recently at the Rio Olympics, Eloise was the highest placing Australian Athlete in the history of the 10,000m finishing 10th in a personal best time. She followed her career best result with a 9th place finish in the 5,000m final.
Eloise has taken on a leadership role amongst other female distance runners and acts a mentor and an inspiration to many young and upcoming athletes.

Listen to Episode 32

Episode 31 | March 02, 2021

Tim Mannah

Tim Mannah is a former Lebanon international rugby league footballer who played as a prop for the Parramatta Eels in the NRL. He played for City NSW, New South Wales in the State of Origin series and the Prime Minister's XIII. Mannah played his entire NRL career with Parramatta, attaining the club's captaincy.

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Episode 30 | February 04, 2021

Mike Gore

Mike Gore is the CEO of Open Doors Australia and New Zealand and has been with the ministry for more 10 years. Mike lives in Sydney with his wife and two daughters. He has travelled extensively to meet persecuted Christians around the world.

Listen to Episode 30

Episode 29 | December 03, 2020

Peter Cousens

Peter Cousens is an actor, singer, director, producer and teacher of the performing arts. A graduate of NIDA, Peter worked for many years in television, on stage and as a featured artist in musical theatre, including playing the Phantom in London's West End production of The Phantom of the Opera in 1986. He was more recently the director of a Hollywood film, Freedom, which was produced in conjunction with Cuba Gooding Jr. and William Sadler in 2014. Peter's current project is a new Australian feature film, Where is Daniel.

Listen to Episode 29

Episode 28 | October 15, 2020

Elissa Deenick

Associate Professor Elissa Deenick is an immunologist with a PhD from the University of Sydney. Following her PhD she moved to Canada to take up a postdoctoral position at the University of Toronto looking at the signalling pathways controlling T cell activation and tolerance. In 2007, Elissa returned to Sydney to work at the Garvan Institute, where she is currently a Lab Head in immunity and inflammation.

Listen to Episode 28

Episode 27 | October 14, 2020

Kate Bracks

Kate Bracks won the third series of MasterChef Australia and was thrust into the reality TV spotlight. Kate is a mother of three children and has returned to school teaching after the whirlwind of celebrity appearances after MasterChef. Kate lives with her family in Orange, New South Wales, and attends Orange Evangelical Church.

Listen to Episode 27

Episode 26 | October 12, 2020

Ken Ham

Ken Ham is an Australian born Christian, young-earth creationist and apologist, living in the United States. He is the founder and CEO of Answers in Genesis, a creationist apologetics organisation that operates the Creation Museum and the Ark Encounter in Kentucky. Collectively, these organisations form the world’s largest apologetic enterprise. Ken is married to Mally and they have five adult children.

Listen to Episode 26

Episode 25 | October 11, 2020

Claire Madden

Claire Madden is a leading voice internationally on Generation Z. She is an author, social researcher, keynote speaker, and media commentator. Claire is in high demand as an expert in interpreting social trends, demographics, and implications of generational change.

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Episode 24 | September 11, 2020

John Ford

John is a marketing innovation and brand expert. He's worked with some of the leading companies around the world, including Audi, American Express, Accor Hotels, McDonald's, Coca Cola, Woolworths is a renowned international speaker was listed in AdNews Under 40 as a rising star in the world of marketing. And currently, John is the CEO of The One Centre, situated in Sydney.

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Episode 23 | September 10, 2020

Mark McCrindle

Mark is the Chief Director of McCrindle Research, founded that company 15 years ago after having done some studies in some social sciences through his university. McCrindle Research has become an award-winning social research company. Mark is a best-selling author, he's often invited to give comment on strategy and tactics to boards, executives, and even the Government. Regularly featured on some of the television shows where we're trying to analyse and understand exactly what's going on with our society and our world around us.

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Episode 22 | July 08, 2020

Nick Farr-Jones

Nick Farr-Jones was captain of the Wallabies that won the Rugby Union World Cup in 1991, the Bledisloe Cup in 1992 and defeated the Springboks in 1992. He was capped 63 times for Australia, including 36 as captain. Nick completed a Law degree at the University of Sydney before practicing law while pursuing his amateur rugby career. In 1992, he became a Member of the Order of Australia, in 1999 was inducted into the International Rugby Hall of Fame and in 2001 was awarded a Centenary Medal for service to Australian society through Rugby Union. After hanging up his boots, Nick has worked in investment banking and funds management for Societe Generale and Taurus Funds Management, respectively.

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Episode 21 | July 03, 2020

Michael Spence

Dr Michael Spence is the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Sydney. Under his leadership, the University has risen to 1st in Australia and 4th in the world for graduate employability. An alumnus of the University, Dr Spence has a BA with first-class honours in English, Italian and Law. He is recognised internationally as a leader in the field of intellectual property theory and holds a Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Oxford. In 2017, Dr Spence was awarded a Companion of the Order of Australia in the Australia Day Honours List for leadership of the tertiary education sector and to the Anglican Church of Australia. He was ordained an Anglican priest in 2007.

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Episode 20 | July 03, 2020

Clare Steele

Originally from the Blue Mountains, Clare studied a Bachelor of Engineering in Mechatronics, Robotics, and Automation Engineering at the University of Western Sydney before also earning her Master of Divinity from Sydney Missionary & Bible College. She had a diverse career working in corporates like Accenture and Macquarie Bank as well as in local preschools and churches before starting as the CEO of Compassion Australia in 2020. Immediately before taking up the position with Compassion, Clare was the Chief Operating Officer of Anglican Deaconess Ministries, a role she held for three and a half years. Clare is married with three children.

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Episode 19 | June 29, 2020

Brett + Kate Ryan

Brett began his career as a registered nurse where he served in ICU and Accident Emergency at various hospitals around Melbourne for 14 years. He then moved into full-time ministry, working as the Children and Family Pastor for CityLife Church for 12 years before commencing as CEO for Focus on the Family Australia in 2013. Brett is an accomplished public speaker on relationships, parenting, mental health, suicide, sexuality, addictions and work-life balance. Brett and Kate have been married for three decades and have raised 3 adult sons. Kate works alongside Brett in Focus on the Family, regularly co-presenting marriage and family workshops.

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Episode 18 | June 25, 2020

Ben Price

Comedian Ben Price is a national talent who performs at an international level. Ben has performed his 200+ impersonations on television networks around the world and at functions for corporate clients such as Telstra, AMP, Commonwealth Bank, Mercedes Benz, McDonald’s, Microsoft, Cadbury. He was also a finalist on Australia’s Got Talent in 2011. As well as live performance, Ben has also acted in several television commercials and featured in 4 feature length films. He first discovered his talent for impersonating voices when he was at primary school where he used his talent to entertain and prank classmates.

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Episode 17 | June 22, 2020

Luke Barnes

Dr Luke Barnes is a John Templeton Fellow at Western Sydney University. With a PhD in astronomy from the University of Cambridge, he has published papers in the fields of galaxy formation, the fine-tuning of the Universe for life and the philosophy of science. Luke is the co-author of 'A Fortunate Universe: Life in a Finely Tuned Cosmos' and the recently released 'The Cosmic Revolutionary's Handbook'. Luke is an accomplished public speaker and also a committed Christian who believes that the fine-tuning in our universe points to a Creator God.

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Episode 16 | June 16, 2020

Andrew Scipione

Andrew Scipione is a former police officer who served for 10 years as Commissioner of the New South Wales Police Force. He was born in London and his family immigrated to Australia when he was an infant. Upon leaving school after his father’s death, Andrew commenced work as an electrician's apprentice to help with household expenses. He shifted to policing in 1980 and worked his way up through the ranks. Andrew holds a master's degree in management and is known for his leadership skills. For his service to policing, Andrew received the Australian Police Medal in 2003 and an Officer of the Order of Australia in 2016.

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Episode 15 | June 15, 2020

Sally Irwin

Sally Irwin founded The Freedom Hub in 2014, a business dedicated to ending modern slavery in Australia. Sally is committed to raising awareness of modern slavery, helping people escape the injustice of slavery, rehabilitating people who have survived slavery and inviting others to help fight this crime. With over 10 years experience working with survivors of human trafficking in Australia and Europe, Sally has expanded The Freedom Hub to include a survivor school for victims of slavery, an ethical cafe and event venue and ethical business services. In 2017 Inside Small Business listed Sally as one of Australia's Top 50 Small Business Leaders.

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Episode 14 | June 15, 2020

Cindy McGarvie

Cindy McGarvie has been the CEO of Youth for Christ Australia since 2015. She has a long history working with Christian non-profit organisations. For 12 years she and her husband served in Uganda and Tanzania with SIL International in the work of Bible translation and language development among marginalised people groups. On returning to Australia in 2010, Cindy worked as Missions Director at Nexus Church. Cindy serves on the board of Wycliffe Australia. Beyond her professional responsibilities, Cindy loves the great outdoors. She and her family reside in the northern suburbs of Brisbane. Cindy has published two books: #JESUSREVOLUTION and Lost Boys.

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Episode 06 | June 15, 2020

John Anderson

John Anderson was the Deputy Prime Minister of Australia and leader of the National Party from 1999 to 2005. He was a member of the House of Representatives from 1989 to 2007, serving as Minister for Primary Industries & Energy (1996–1998) and Minister for Transport & Regional Development (1998–2005) in the Howard Government. In 2011, Mr Anderson was named an Officer of the Order of Australia for distinguished service to the Parliament of Australia. Having retired from formal politics before the 2007 election, he now hosts the popular podcast ‘Conversations’.

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Episode 13 | June 12, 2020

Margaret Court

Margaret Court is a retired world No. 1 tennis player. Margaret won 24 Grand Slam singles titles in her career, which is more than any other player in history. She is also the only player to have won all 12 Grand Slam events at least twice and to have won the Grand Slam in both singles and mixed doubles. Margaret is a Member of the Order of the British Empire, an Officer of the Order of Australia and an inductee into the International Tennis Hall of Fame. Margaret is the senior pastor of Victory Life Centre, Perth.

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Episode 12 | June 02, 2020

Brian Pickering

Brian Pickering grew up on the Mid North Coast of NSW in Wingham. After school Brian started a career in banking, where he progressed through the ranks to become a senior executive with NAB. At about 40 years of age while working in banking, Brian knew God was calling him to a ministry of intercessory prayer. He is now the National Coordinator of the Australian Prayer Network (APN), which facilitates, trains and encourages as many as 100,000 intercessors to pray for Australia. APN has thousands of registered members, representing churches of all denominations. He also coordinates the National Day of Thanks.

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Episode 11 | May 11, 2020

Roger Corbett

Roger Corbett has more than 50 years experience in retailing, rising from unloading trucks at Grace Brothers to the position of CEO of Woolworths (which he held from 1999 to 2006). Roger graduated with a Bachelor of Commerce from UNSW and in 2008 was promoted to an officer of the Order of Australia (AO) for service to business, particularly through leadership roles in the retail sector. Roger remains actively involved in the business world as the chairman of several boards. He was previously on the boards of Fairfax Media, the RBA, Wal-Mart and the Salvation Army Advisory Board.

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Episode 10 | May 07, 2020

Tim Costello

Rev Tim Costello is an Australian Baptist minister, qualified lawyer, current Executive Director of Micah Australian and Chief Advocate of World Vision Australia (where he formerly served as CEO from 2004 to 2016). Tim studied at Monash University, graduating with a Bachelor of Laws in 1978. From 1981, Tim studied theology at the International Baptist Seminary in Switzerland, graduating with a Bachelor of Divinity before returning to Australia to become the minister of St Kilda Baptist Church, and later Collins Street Baptist. He was made an officer of the Order of Australia in June 2005.

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Episode 09 | May 06, 2020

Duncan Armstrong

Duncan Armstrong is an Olympic champion swimmer and former world record holder. He is most fondly remembered by the Australian public for winning a gold and a silver medal at the 1988 Seoul Olympics under the coaching of Laurie Lawrence. For his service to swimming, Duncan received a Medal of the Order of Australia in 1989. Since retiring from competitive swimming, Duncan has worked as a swimming commentator for Channel Nine and Fox Sports. He is currently employed by Telstra as an Executive Coach.

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Episode 08 | May 05, 2020

Ian Harper

Ian Harper is the Dean of Melbourne Business School at The University of Melbourne and also Co-Dean of the University’s Faculty of Business and Economics. In 2016 he was appointed to the Board of the Reserve Bank. Ian was a Partner of Deloitte Access Economics from 2011 to 2016 and from March 2014 to March 2015 chaired the Australian Government's Competition Policy Review. He authored “Economics for Life”, which won the Australian Christian Book of the Year Award, and “Confessions of a Meddlesome Economist”. Ian’s career has spanned academe, government and business.

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Episode 07 | May 04, 2020

Wendy Simpson

Wendy is an experienced business leader and entrepreneur. She received a Medal of the Order of Australia in 2013 for service to the community through a range of women's and youth organisations. That same year, Wendy was inducted into the Australian Businesswomen’s Hall of Fame and named as one of the Australian Financial Review’s 100 Women of Influence. She has also held global leadership roles with QBE Insurance, Alcatel and TNT International. Wendy is on the organising committee of the annual Sydney Prayer Breakfast and the board of World Vision Australia.

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Episode 05 | April 28, 2020

Patricia Weerakoon

Patricia Weerakoon is a Sexologist, sex educator and writer with a Christ-focussed, Biblical framework. Petricia trained in medicine in the University of Sri Lanka and did a postgraduate study in Sexology at the University of Hawaii. Petricia spent 25 years as an academic at the University of Sydney, during which time she was the director of an internationally recognised postgraduate program in sexual health. Petricia is now retired and continues to follow her passion to educate people of all ages on good holistic sexual health by speaking and writing.

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Episode 04 | March 18, 2020

Jim Penman

Founder of Jim's Mowing, Jim Penman started a part-time gardening business while earning his PhD in history at Latrobe University. He launched a full-time mowing business in 1982 with a $24 investment. He originally aimed only at taking on subcontractors, but his business grew and he gradually began to specialise in the building up and selling of lawn mowing rounds. By 1989 he franchised his business, and since then Jim’s Mowing has become the largest franchise chain in Australian and the largest and best-known lawn mowing business in the world. Jim’s Cleaning was launched in 1994, followed by more than 50 other divisions which now operate in Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the United Kingdom. Jim’s Group now has over 3,800 Franchisees and a turnover of approximately $500 million.

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Episode 03 | February 05, 2020

Peter Irvine

As Co-founder of Gloria Jean's Coffees in Australia and as one of the team members who helped launch McDonald's in Australia, Peter Irvine has over 40 years' experience in building businesses to phenomenal levels of success. Today he is a sought-after keynote speaker and business consultant who travels the world challenging audiences to dream bigger and to achieve greater success in life and in business. He is the author of two business books and a regular speaker at industry forums and events, including Franchise Council of Australia events, the National Retailers Convention and the BRW Franchising Round Table. He and his wife live in New South Wales.

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Episode 02 | January 25, 2020

David Robertson

Rev. David Robertson is a Scottish minister who was Minister of St. Peter's Free Church in Dundee, Scotland. He graduated from both the University of Edinburgh with a degree in History and from Free Church College (now Edinburgh Theological Seminary) with a degree in Theology. He was also a former club chaplain of Dundee F.C. In 2019, David left St Peters to become the Director of Third Space, a new evangelism initiative of City Bible Forum. In 2014, 2015, and 2016, David was voted as one of the 100 most influential Christians in the UK on Archbishop Cranmer's Top 100 List. He has authored several books and regularly debates atheists on various topics related to God.

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Episode 01 | January 10, 2020

JD

Jonathon Douglass or ‘JD’ (as he is known by his childhood nickname) is one of Hillsong Church’s foremost worship leaders and Creative Pastors, and has been a part of the UNITED team since its beginning. He credits the love and encouragement he experienced growing up at Hillsong, as playing a vital role in the development of his passions – the greatest of which is a firm belief in the power of a healthy local church in seeing God’s Kingdom established across the earth. His wife Lauren partners him in ministry, and his two beautiful daughters Indie Bo and Sailor Rose are always along for the ride. When JD is not leading worship in church or somewhere else on the globe, or discipling others pastorally, you can find him with his family at the beach or cycling.

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