Great Stories Podcast

In 1962, Don and Carol Richardson, along with their seven-month-old baby, traveled to a remote tribe known for treachery, headhunting, and cannibalism. Eventually, after living among the people and learning their language, this tribe came to know Jesus. The dramatic story is captured in the classic “Peace Child” book and movie, but what was it like from the perspective of the Richardsons’ child who saw it firsthand?

On today’s episode of the Great Stories podcast, Steve Richardson, the boy who grew up among the Sawi people, joins David Wollen to share the story behind the story, as well as what it’s like among the Sawi people today—more than a half century later.

Never the Same – Revisiting the Sawi People

50 years after Don and Carol Richardson arrived in the Sawi village where Peace Child takes place, Steve Richardson joins his father, Don, and two brothers, Shannon and Paul, to see how Christ is still at work.

Peace Child (DVD)

Peace Child DVD

Peace Child (DVD) is an extraordinary true missions story that shows how the Gospel can transform lives, even in one of the darkest settings imaginable.

Don and Carol Richardson responded to the call of Christ and traveled to a remote rain forest inhabited by some of the world’s most hard-to-reach people. They lived among them and learned the language, only to be shocked when the story of Judas’ betrayal of Jesus made him a hero to a people whose highest attribute was to be masters of treachery.

When inter-tribal warfare broke out, the battles continued until a warring chief offered his son as a means of bringing lasting peace. “As long as they child lives,” the chief explained, “there will be no more fighting.” After many failed attempts, this is what the Lord used to allow the Gospel to take root.

Part documentary, part reenactment—Peace Child is a classic true missions story that will show you how the Lord conspires to bring all people to Christ. 

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We’ve all been there. Peer pressure, desire for acceptance, fear of rejection. These aren’t just issues for teenagers in the lunchroom. From young adulthood into old age, these struggles are still an issue for many of us. The Bible calls it fear of man and demonstrates it against the backdrop of fear of God.

Ultimately, they cannot coexist.

On today’s episode of the Great Stories podcast, David Wollen is joined by Dr. Ed Welch to discuss these common struggles. Using his book When People are Big and God is Small as a launching pad for the conversation, this episode strives to help you—whether you have been aware of it up until now, or not—to grapple with the tug-of-war between fear of man and fear of God.

When People Are Big and God Is Small

Do you crave people’s love and approval? Do you dread their rejection or mistreatment? Ed Welch uncovers the spiritual dimension of people-pleasing and points the way through a true knowledge of God, ourselves, and others.

All experiences of the fear of man share at least one common feature: people are big. They have grown to idolatrous proportions in our lives. They control us. Since there is no room in our hearts to worship both God and people, whenever people are big, God is not. Therefore the first task in escaping the snare of the fear of man is to know that God is awesome and glorious, not other people.

“Few living writers have helped me more deeply to connect the dots between my heart and my actions than Ed Welch.” —Dane Ortlund

Biblical counselor Edward Welch tackles this struggle head-on in a groundbreaking work that has been substantially updated and revised for this new edition. Discover a fear of the Lord that, in Christ, is filled with gratitude, love, and devotion—freeing you to need others less and love them more.

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What are you ashamed of? If you’re like most people, a blunt question like this has the power to resurface long-ago-buried memories of wrongdoing. It doesn’t even matter whether you were caught or got away with it, shame can stay with us for many years—and yet it is too often ignored and unresolved.

On today’s episode of the Great Stories podcast, David Wollen and his wife, Marci, are joined by author and counselor Heather Davis Nelson. In this conversation, they discuss the destructive force shame can have on the life of a believer, how it is as old as sin itself, and how Jesus ultimately redeems us and rescues us.

For more on how to find freedom from shame, visit haventoday.org to receive a copy of Heather’s book “Unashamed” as our thanks for your gift in support of this podcast ministry.

Unashamed

How do we heal our brokenness and find freedom from shame? “Unashamed” by Heather Davis Nelson explores the chains that bind us and points us to the one who redeems us and makes us new.

Whether it’s related to relationships, body image, work difficulties, or a secret sin, we all experience shame at some point in our lives. While shame can manifest itself in different ways—fear, regret, and anger—it ultimately points us to our most fundamental need as human beings: redemption.

Heather Davis Nelson invites us to not only be healed of our own shame but also be a part of healing for others—after all, shame never disappears in solitude. In this book, Nelson shines the life-giving light of the gospel on the things that leave us feeling worthless and rejected. Through the gospel, we discover the only real and lasting antidote to shame: exchanging our shame for the righteousness of Christ alongside others on this same journey.

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“Weakness on one side, fatigue all around.” Charles Morris was 18 months old when he contracted polio. And while the Lord spared him the most debilitating parts of the disease, he’s had to live with the effects ever since. Those effects only become more amplified with age.

On a special episode of the great stories podcast, David Wollen speaks with Charles Morris about what his everyday life is like with post-polio and how it reminds him of the Lord’s strength when he is feeling weak. No matter what troubles and weaknesses you may be facing today, this episode will keep you looking to Jesus.

More from Charles Morris

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It all started on an early foggy morning in 1934, when Paul Myers, a former Los Angeles radio personality and station manager of leading radio stations woke up near a wharf in San Diego. Hungover, he heard the sound of a ship’s bell ring out eight times at 4:00 a.m., signaling “all’s well.”

Only one month later, Myers would be back on the radio, but this time, sharing his newfound faith in Jesus. What happened in between is the extraordinary story of how Myers would go on to found a Christian radio program that continues till this day. At that point, it was called “Haven of Rest,” and Paul Myers would endearingly become known as First Mate Bob. Now, 90 years later, that ministry is called Haven Today — the very same ministry publishing this podcast.

Hear Paul Myers tell this story in his own words. It’s also our story here at Haven Ministries. We pray this episode will serve as a reminder that the Lord is in the business of redeeming sinners and using them to go on to do great things for the Kingdom.

More Related to First Mate Bob

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God speaks powerfully through the books of the Bible. This is especially true in the Psalms. Not only does it include words to help us express our deepest thoughts and emotions to the Lord, it can also direct our worship and draw us nearer to Jesus.

On today’s episode of the Great Stories podcast, David Wollen is joined by one of his good friends and mentors, Dr. David Sunday. After serving 30 years as a pastor, Dr. Sunday is now the president of WordPartners, a ministry that exists to train pastors to teach God’s Word with God’s heart.

In this conversation, Dr. Sunday shares how the Psalms teach us to lament, repent, praise, and thank—all while pointing to Jesus and giving us a path to flee to Him for refuge.

FURTHER RESOURCES

Christ In All The Scriptures

Haven is excited to announce their newly published book! It was written to help you read and pray through all of Scripture — with the eyes of your heart fixed on Jesus!

Christ in All the Scriptures: Reading and Praying Through the Bible in a Year is a 264-page resource written with you in mind and is the first of its kind from Haven. This easy‑to‑navigate book contains overviews of each book in the Bible and prayers centered on each reading. It helps you see more of Jesus on every page of your Bible … and that, in turn, will help draw you nearer to Christ as you engage with Him through the Word.

  • 66 Contextual Book Summaries
  • Guided Prayers
  • 365 Daily Readings
  • Ribbon Bookmark
  • Clothbound

You can use it to help you read the Bible in a year — with a reading for each week — or as a reference to pray through the Scriptures at whatever pace and place in Scripture you are reading God’s Word.

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How can all the Bible be all about Jesus when His name doesn’t explicitly appear till the New Testament? From Genesis to Leviticus to Esther, it may be hard to see Jesus on the surface of every page, but he’s there—in profound and subtle ways.

Dr. Dennis Johnson is a scholar and one of the founding faculty members of Westminster Seminary in California. Today, he joins David Wollen to discuss a christocentric approach to reading and studying God’s Word.

If you are new to this way of reading the Bible, we encourage you to be patient. It may take some time to learn to see Jesus on every page, but it’s important and worth the effort. Because this is not merely a hermeneutical trick of smoke and mirrors … it’s the way Jesus himself taught his disciples to study and teach the Scriptures.

Further Resources

Christ In All The Scriptures

Haven is excited to announce their newly published book! It was written to help you read and pray through all of Scripture — with the eyes of your heart fixed on Jesus!

Christ in All the Scriptures: Reading and Praying Through the Bible in a Year is a 264-page resource written with you in mind and is the first of its kind from Haven. This easy‑to‑navigate book contains overviews of each book in the Bible and prayers centered on each reading. It helps you see more of Jesus on every page of your Bible … and that, in turn, will help draw you nearer to Christ as you engage with Him through the Word.

  • 66 Contextual Book Summaries
  • Guided Prayers
  • 365 Daily Readings
  • Ribbon Bookmark
  • Clothbound

You can use it to help you read the Bible in a year — with a reading for each week — or as a reference to pray through the Scriptures at whatever pace and place in Scripture you are reading God’s Word.

You can also find the podcast on …

If you liked what you heard, please write a review and help new listeners discover the show!

Sign up for the Great Stories Podcast newsletter to get a weekly update on new episodes each Wednesday. 

The data is clear. Our world and culture are shaping our kids in ways that are often difficult to detect. For parents and grandparents, the natural reaction might be to shield them from danger—but this tactic in isolation may end up doing more harm than good. So, what’s a well-meaning caregiver to do?

On today’s episode of the Great Stories podcast, David Wollen speaks with Julie Lowe. A licensed professional counselor (LPC) and a registered play therapist supervisor, Julie has over 20 years of experience helping children, teens, and families work through difficult issues. In this conversation, she provides practical, biblical help that, in many ways, runs counter-intuitive to the culture we live in. For many, this episode may serve as a wake up call regarding the types of dangers and issues children and young people are facing every day.

As a thank you for your support of this podcast by Haven Today, we’d love to send you a copy of Julie’s recently published book Safeguards: Shielding Our Homes and Equipping Our Kids.

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Safeguards: Shielding Our Homes and Equipping Our Kids

“Safeguards” by Julie Lowe empowers parents and caregivers to protect children from modern dangers through biblical wisdom and practical safety skills.

Drawing on over 20 years of experience as a family counselor, Lowe provides guidance on equipping children to assess people and situations, teaching them how to live by faith in a world with real threats. This essential resource covers age-appropriate safety skills for preschoolers to college-bound teens, addressing issues like bullying, cyber-crimes, sexting, and abuse.

Safeguards: Shielding Our Homes and Equipping Our Kids helps parents grow in understanding, instill confidence in their children, and navigate unsafe situations with biblical conviction. Ensure your child’s safety with this invaluable guide.

A lot has been said about C.S. Lewis the writer, the professor, the theologian, the apologist. But what about C.S. Lewis the friend? Joseph Kohm has written extensively about the surprising, yet tragic, friendship between Lewis and his childhood pal, Arthur Greeves.

On today’s episode of the Great Stories podcast, Kohm joins David Wollen to discuss how Lewis considered friendship to be the chief source of happiness—and his friendship with Greeves lasted for half a century. This conversation also covers Lewis’ life story, the unique approach he took to defending Christianity, and how his words continue to speak to us in our modern world.

Whether you are a longtime fan of Lewis’ writing or you’re just wanting to learn more about his life and work, this conversation will likely shed new light on one of Christianity’s most beloved writers.

More Related to C.S. Lewis

  • LISTEN: Last week, David Wollen spoke with Max McLean on the experience of embodying C.S. Lewis as an actor. Listen to the episode.
  • WATCH: Experience C.S. Lewis’ profound journey from vigorous debunker of Christianity to become, as he said, “the most reluctant convert in all England.” Receive your copy of the DVD as our thanks for your gift to haven.
  • READ: As an apologist, Lewis went to great lengths to share his conversion story and defend the truth of the Christian faith. Read more in this article.
  • READ: Joseph Kohm’s book delves deeper into the surprising friendship of Lewis and Arthur Greeves. Learn more.

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The Most Reluctant Convert (DVD)

Experience C.S. Lewis’ profound journey from vigorous debunker of Christianity to become, as he said, “the most reluctant convert in all England.”The Most Reluctant Convert

Through Max McLean’s detailed and masterful performance, Lewis’ story of grief, loss and redemption comes to life on screen in his own magnificent words. Whether you are young in your faith or have been following Jesus most of your life, The Most Reluctant Convert is a much needed reminder that the Gospel never stops working.

Charles Morris took over as speaker and president of the historic Haven of Rest radio broadcast at the turn of the millennium. For a quarter century, Charles has often quoted Ray Ortlund in likening the production of a daily program to a freight train — it doesn’t stop until you get off.

On today’s episode of the Great Stories podcast, David Wollen shares the recording of Charles Morris’ final day on the air. In a conversation between friends, we pay tribute to Charles as he crosses the finish line with one final program to say “well done” to our good friend and brother.

More on Charles Morris

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