Insight with Karl Faase

How do you learn to let go of a dream - one that you have prayed for, hoped for and worked towards for more than a decade? Sheridan Voysey's story is marked by dreams - some that came to pass, and others that he had to let go of. As he shares his story with Karl, he speaks of his childhood in Queensland, how he started in radio broadcasting and the life he and his wife Merryn built. He then explores the infertility journey they endured, and what it took for them to walk away from a dream and a future they both so desperately longed for. He shares some of the highlights of his career, the low points of his personal life and how God has used both him and Merryn since their move to Oxford (literally, in life-saving ways)! About Sheridan Voysey Sheridan Voysey is the author of nine books, a presenter on BBC Radio 2's Pause for Thought, and the founder of the Friendship Lab, a charity tackling adult loneliness. Born in Brisbane to English parents, he spent the 1990s and 2000s building a career in Australian Christian radio, eventually hosting the nationally syndicated Open House on Hope 103.2 Sydney to audiences of around 100,000 listeners a week. Key Moments & Highlights Growing up the only child of English parents in Brisbane A secret teenage career as a graffiti artist under cover of night His parents' ten-year, ultimately door-slamming break from the Jehovah's Witnesses, sparked by his mother's search for the true identity of Jesus across three different Bibles A cryptic two-week wait for a letter that led him, almost by accident, to discover the Bible college and the radio station he needed were right next door to each other Marrying Merryn and the ten years of "expectation, disappointment" that followed - special diets, healing prayer, IVF, and a two-year wait for a foster placement that never came The devastating Christmas Eve phone call revealing a pregnancy that never was and the decision to leave Australia's "promised land" for an unknown season in Oxford Five years of quiet grief in the UK, rebuilt around two verses in Ephesians and the realisation that his identity had to be rooted somewhere deeper than his career Merryn's key involvement with develoiping the worlds second COVID vaccine at the height of the Pandemic Founding Friendship Lab after a retreat-room conviction that loneliness needed more than another book - it needed a movement to bring the 25% of adults with no close friends down Find Out More Olive Tree Media: www.olivetreemedia.com.au Watch+ Platform: www.olivetreemedia.com.au/watch Daily Nudge: www.dailynudge.org Special Thanks To Excelsia University College Christian Finance Vision Christian Media

Two days after Glen Scrivener prayed a reckless, bravado-filled prayer — “God, if it means knowing you better, then bring on the suffering” — his girlfriend left him, his UK visa was refused, and a long-hidden family secret that would end his parents’ marriage broke into the open, all in the same week. In this vulnerable and insightful conversation, Glen tells the whole strange, funny and painful story of his life, faith, and ministry, and the times when God came and found him. From praying a Gethsemane-style prayer every day as a teenager, to a cricket career that fell just short of an Oxford Blue, to a father whose long-hidden affairs shaped Glen’s own image of God, and the years he and his wife Emma spent walking through her life-threatening battle with anorexia — Glen’s life has been marked by one recurring, helpful reminder: I am not Jesus. Listener note: this episode discusses eating disorders. Please take care while listening. About Glen Scrivener Glen Scrivener is the CEO of Speak Life, a UK-based evangelistic ministry with roots stretching back to 1952. Raised in Canberra, Glen studied Politics, Philosophy and Economics at Oxford, where he played cricket at a high level before walking away from a faith he says he’d never really understood as a teenager. He returned to faith in his early twenties through a friend’s simple invitation to read Luke’s gospel, and went on to work at All Souls Langham Place in London and study at Oak Hill Theological College. He is the author of The Air We Breathe and lives in the UK with his wife Emma and their two children. Key Moments & Highlights His grandmother, then General Secretary of the NSW Communist Party, walked forward and gave her life to Christ at Billy Graham’s 1959 Sydney crusade Speak Life spent 28 years as “an evangelistic organisation with no evangelist” after founder Eric Hutchings died in 1982, until a legacy left in 2010 funded Glen’s role. As a teenager, Glen prayed to give his life to Jesus “again and again,” checking a bathroom mirror for a halo that never came — a striving he now traces to misreading Gethsemane as a call to copy Jesus rather than be rescued by him. A hidden family crisis — his father’s repeated affairs, uncovered when Glen was seven — shaped a vision of God as distant and unreachable: “you can knock, knock, knock on heaven’s door, nobody’s home.” The moment everything flipped: a friend reading Gethsemane with him said, “Glen, you are not Jesus in this passage — you are Peter,” and Glen realised the gospel was Christ’s life given for him, not his life given to Christ. Two days after praying “God, bring on the suffering” from Philippians 3:10, Glen’s girlfriend left him, his UK visa was refused, and the full extent of his father’s affairs came out — all within the same week. Glen and his wife Emma walked through her life-threatening battle with anorexia in their early marriage, including twelve years of infertility, before welcoming their daughter Ruby and adopting their son JJ. Reflecting on his father’s death eighteen months ago, Glen says that despite everything, his dad “handed on to his kids a better inheritance than he had himself.” Why Glen believes even secular values like human rights and equality are “supernatural” borrowings from the Jesus story — not conclusions nature or reason could reach on their own. Resources Mentioned The Air We Breathe — Glen Scrivener A New Name — Emma Scrivener (memoir on her experience with anorexia) 321 Course — Speak Life’s online gospel course Find Out More: Olive Tree Media: www.olivetreemedia.com.au Watch+ Platform: www.olivetreemedia.com.au/watch Daily Nudge: www.dailynudge.org Special Thanks To: Excelsia University College Christian Finance Vision Christian Media

Justin Brierley is the man who put doubt, dialogue and debate at the centre of Christian broadcasting with his groundbreaking UK radio show, ‘Unbelievable?’ Justin had the idea for this radio show while working for Premiere Christian Radio. He wanted to invite Christians into conversations that would help them in their real lives by showing good dialogue between non-Christians and believers. Little did he know that he would launch the show right as the New Athiest movement was kicking off and his show became a key place where these ideas could be discussed and a Christian alternative presented. In this conversation, Karl and Justin also discuss why he now believes he's watching something unexpected happen: a quiet, surprising return to faith among a generation raised on New Atheism. Justin Brierley grew up near Northampton in a charismatic evangelical family, and traces his own faith to a single night at a youth camp at age fifteen - a "road to Damascus" moment friends say they could see in him afterward. At Oxford University he studied politics, philosophy and economics, acted and led evangelistic drama, and met his wife Lucy, who went on to be ordained in ministry. After a graduate posting at Premier Christian Radio, Justin created and hosted 'Unbelievable?' for almost twenty years. He is the author of The Surprising Rebirth of Belief in God (2023), and now runs the media company Think Faith, where he hosts a new dialogue show, Uncommon Ground. Key Moments & Highlights Justin traces his faith to a single youth-camp night at fifteen - a "road to Damascus" moment that changed how people around him saw him, even though his wife Lucy's own faith journey was a slow, gradual awakening At Oxford, a friend's crisis of faith — "how do you know this isn't just all in your mind?" — sent Justin looking, for the first time, into the intellectual case for Christianity Justin met Lucy while acting in a student production of Guys and Dolls, where she was doing his stage makeup and, to her lasting exasperation, he didn't recognise her at the cast party afterward The couple spent eight months of their honeymoon on a mission station in northern Namibia, teaching in a school and helping build a Sunday school from scratch The origin story of Unbelievable? — pitched almost as an afterthought to his radio director as a way to help Christians "have better conversations" with the non-Christians in their lives How a 2012 magazine interview with Mark Driscoll spiralled into a public Twitter storm and became the most downloaded episode Justin ever released Why Justin now argues the confident "New Atheism" of Dawkins and Hitchens has given way to a quieter reassessment of faith among public intellectuals like Jordan Peterson and Tom Holland The evidence Justin points to for a genuine, if early, shift: rising Bible sales in the UK, a wave of young men returning to church across Scandinavia, and record numbers of adult converts at France's Easter vigil What happened when the Bible Society's "Quiet Revival" survey data had to be withdrawn and why Justin still believes something real is happening despite the flawed numbers Inside Justin's new show, Uncommon Ground, where he opens every episode by asking guests - including Richard Dawkins and Rowan Williams - to "steel man" each other's position before they debate Resources Mentioned The Surprising Rebirth of Belief in God - Justin Brierley (book) https://www.amazon.com.au/Surprising-Rebirth-Belief-God-Christianity/dp/1496466772 Uncommon Ground - Justin Brierley's current show, produced by Think Faith https://justinbrierley.com/uncommon-ground-podcast/ Find Out More Olive Tree Media: www.olivetreemedia.com.au Watch+ Platform: www.olivetreemedia.com.au/watch Daily Nudge: www.dailynudge.org Special Thanks To Excelsia University College Christian Finance Vision Christian Media

Politics has a way of reducing people to headlines - the speeches, the elections, the controversies, the moments that dominated the nightly news. But behind every public leader is a private person, carrying the weight of decisions, the expectations of millions, and quiet questions about faith, family and purpose. For Scott Morrison, one of those quiet questions came into devastating focus on a February afternoon in 2020, when a mother named Layla Abdallah stood in front of a television camera - twenty-four hours after losing three of her children to a drug-affected driver - and said: "In my heart I know I forgive him." As Prime Minister, Morrison was already carrying the country through the Black Summer bushfires, and would soon face a global pandemic that tested his leadership like nothing before it. Throughout it all, his Christian faith remained central to who he was - sometimes a source of strength, sometimes drawing intense public attention. In this conversation, Scott reflects on the experiences that shaped him long before politics, the unseen cost of leadership, and what forgiveness, uncertainty and faith under pressure have taught him about an identity that's never found in a title. Scott Morrison served as Australia’s 30th Prime Minister from 2018 to 2022, leading the country through the Black Summer bushfires, the COVID-19 pandemic and many other intense and contentious issues. Before politics, he worked as a research economist and later for Bruce Baird, entering Federal Parliament in 2007. Raised in Sydney’s Sutherland Shire in a family shaped by service rather than ambition, Morrison has spoken openly throughout his career about the Christian faith that has underpinned his life and leadership, from a youth camp in Melbourne where he gave his life to the Lord, to the Tuesday-night prayer group he kept running throughout his time as Prime Minister. He is married to Jenny, with two daughters, and today works in business advisory and geopolitics while remaining closely involved with Danny and Leila Abdallah’s 'I Forgive' Foundation. Key Moments & Highlights - The 2020 Sydney crash that killed four children and how Layla Abdallah's on-camera declaration of forgiveness “within 24 hours” stunned Morrison and the nation - Growing up as his father's unpaid “electorate secretary,” fielding constituents' phone calls before he was even a teenager - The fourteen-year fertility journey and ten failed treatments that preceded the births of daughters Abbey and Lily, including “screaming at God in the forest” in Wellington - Why he's never seen himself as belonging to a political “tribe,” and how Bruce Baird and John Anderson showed him it was possible to be a Christian, a husband and a father, and still succeed in politics. - The night he became Prime Minister through a contested leadership spill, and Malcolm Turnbull's differing account of events - Diverting the campaign plane to Tasmania on the eve of the 2019 “miracle election,” and watching both seats come in on the AEC refresh screen. - Tabling the Royal Commission report into institutional child abuse in 2018, and the moment he shut his office door afterward and wept. - Watching hospital footage from northern Italy at the start of the pandemic, and why he tuned out “ideological rubbish” about the virus being a threat to liberty Find Out More Olive Tree Media: www.olivetreemedia.com.au Watch+ Platform: www.olivetreemedia.com.au/watch Daily Nudge: www.dailynudge.org Special Thanks To Excelsia University College Christian Finance Vision Christian Media

When Stephen Driscoll's laptop started acting up, he asked an AI agent to take a look - twenty minutes later it had tracked down and fixed a problem that had been quietly running in the background for six months. It's a small, almost funny story, but Stephen uses it to make a much bigger point: AI has moved from mimicking us to genuinely acting on its own initiative, and the theological and ethical questions are moving just as fast. In this wide-ranging conversation, Karl Faase and Stephen dig into AI-directed drone strikes, the Pope's recent encyclical, transhumanism, campus culture, and Stephen's own decade-long wrestle with doubt. About Stephen Driscoll: Stephen Driscoll is a university minister and self-described “tech realist” who tries to avoid both blind optimism and fear-driven doomism about artificial intelligence. He won the 2025 Australian Christian Book of the Year Award for his book Made in Our Image: God, Artificial Intelligence and You. Before moving into ministry, Stephen worked on a trading floor in finance, and has been fascinated by AI since his undergraduate years. Get a copy of Stephen Driscoll's book here: Made in Our Image: God, Artificial Intelligence and You Key Moments & Highlights Stephen's four-point framework for what modern AI actually is: brain-inspired, trained rather than designed, prediction-based, and radically general-purpose “Move 37”- the AlphaGo move against world champion Lee Sedol so unconventional it stunned commentators and convinced many that AI could be genuinely creative How reinforcement learning turns AI from a “debauched” mirror of the whole internet into a corporate “people-pleaser” with a morality borrowed from whichever company built it The Pope's AI encyclical and its warning, drawn from the Tower of Babel, about the danger of human unity turned toward evil The unsettling real-world stakes: AI-selected drone strikes, twelve-second human decision windows, and a strike on an Iranian school that killed around 100 children Why Stephen is less afraid of profit-driven AI companies than of AI controlled by authoritarian governments A working test for transhumanism: are we moving toward God's created order (like glasses or cochlear implants) or away from it (like losing our embodiment in a metaverse)? Stephen's own faith story: growing up in an Indonesian immigrant church, drifting through doubt reading the “new atheists” in his twenties, and finding his way back by actually reading the Bible Walking away from a trading floor career for full-time campus ministry and what convinced him within a week that he'd made the right call His read on why hostility to Christianity on university campuses peaked around 2022, and why he's now seeing more openness - especially among young men Find Out More Olive Tree Media: www.olivetreemedia.com.au Watch+ Platform: www.olivetreemedia.com.au/watch Daily Nudge: www.dailynudge.org Special Thanks To Excelsia University College Christian Finance Vision Christian Media

"You can have Daniel and Lyndall for five hundred dollars." That’s the sentence Dan Lyons’ mother used when his father tried to gain custody of him and his sister - the price she put on her own children. In this raw and confronting conversation, Dan takes Karl Faase back through years of alcohol-fuelled domestic violence, a mother who turned her own pain into abuse against her son, and the homeless, drug-affected years that followed - before two schoolmates and a four-word prayer changed the course of his life. This is a story about the long, unglamorous work of healing, and what it looks like to lead, parent, and forgive when you never had a template for any of it. Dan Lyons is the Director of Missional Culture and Leadership at Carinity, the care arm of Queensland Baptists, where he leads a team of pastors and around 100–125 chaplains serving in hospitals, prisons, aged care facilities, and schools across Queensland. He has been married to his wife Anita for 28 years, they have four adult children, and he recently became a grandfather for the first time. Behind that role is a childhood marked by extreme domestic violence and abuse, teenage homelessness, and a decades-long journey of faith and healing - which he shares candidly in this episode. Listener note: this episode discusses childhood abuse, family violence and suicide. Please take care while listening. Key Moments & Highlights Dan’s current role tethering Carinity’s ~2,000 staff and 100+ chaplains back to "the person of Jesus," and what "mission drift" really means for faith-based organisations Growing up moving across Queensland with his mother and three sisters, and the Friday-night ritual of alcohol-fuelled, rage-filled domestic violence between his mum and her partners The abuse turned personal: being interrogated, beaten, burned, and stabbed with a fork by his own mother The one adult - his boss at a butcher shop - who noticed the bruises and dared to intervene The night Dan finally pushed his mother off him and ran through the rain, hand-in-hand with his sister Lyndall, to find safety with his biological father His mother’s chilling offer to give up her own children for $500 Becoming homeless at fifteen, sliding into drugs and self-loathing, and a suicide attempt interrupted at the last second The four-word prayer: "God, please help me" and how two Christian classmates befriended him days later with no idea what he’d been through A physical, overwhelming encounter with God while reading the Bible for the first time, which Dan marks as the start of thirty years of healing A prayer-counselling breakthrough years later that helped him recognise where Jesus had actually been present in his worst childhood memories — and his candid advice for anyone currently in an abusive relationship Find Out More Olive Tree Media: www.olivetreemedia.com.au Watch+ Platform: www.olivetreemedia.com.au/watch Daily Nudge: www.dailynudge.org Special Thanks To Excelsia University College Christian Finance Vision Christian Media

Tim Kelly grew up on a dairy farm in northern NSW, learning to ride poddy calves at five years old and by his late teens he was riding saddle bronc and bulls professionally, competing at the Calgary Stampede and winning the Saddle Bronc Junior World Championship. But behind the trophies, and the hard-partying rodeo lifestyle was a persistent emptiness Tim couldn't shake. In this episode of Insight, Tim shares his journey from rodeo arenas across Australia and Canada to a life-changing encounter at a "million dollar rodeo" in 1982, the fear that nearly ended his career, the devastating breakdown of his marriage, and how faith reshaped his identity, and continues to reshape the lives of the bull riders he now mentors through his own riding schools. About Tim Kelly Tim Kelly is a former professional bull and saddle bronc rider from Tenterfield, NSW, who competed internationally through the late 1970s and 80s, including at the Calgary Stampede and Canada's rodeo circuit, and won the Saddle Bronc Junior World Championship. After coming to faith at a major rodeo event in 1982, Tim went on to run bull riding schools for over 40 years, training riders from across Australia while sharing his testimony with the next generation of the sport. He has walked through both the highs of competitive success and the deep personal cost of a marriage breakdown, and now speaks openly about failure, forgiveness, and restoration. Tim is married to Laura and continues to mentor riders and share his story of faith found in an unlikely place. Key Moments & Highlights - The five-year-old's dream - Growing up in the middle of seven kids - Tim represented Australia at one of the world's biggest rodeos, competing in front of 70,000 people. - After what he calls one of the best rides of his life, Tim was disqualified on a technicality at the "million dollar rodeo" - the moment he decided to find out what other Christian riders "had that he didn't." - Giving his life to Christ — A bikie's testimony at a rodeo chapel service in 1982 became the turning point that led Tim to commit his life to God. - Tim recounts the terrifying accident that later triggered crippling fear, and watching another rider suffer a near-fatal version of the same fall. - How memorising and speaking out verses on fear allowed Tim to get back on a horse and keep riding. - Marriage breakdown and restoration - 40 years of bull riding schools Find Out More Olive Tree Media: www.olivetreemedia.com.au Watch+ Platform: www.olivetreemedia.com.au/watch Daily Nudge: www.dailynudge.org Special Thanks To Excelsia University College Christian Finance Vision Christian Media

If life were a film, most of us can point to the moment everything changed. For Graham Clarke, that moment came as a phone call from a radiologist about his wife, Christy - a call that changed everything that came after. In this raw and moving conversation, Graham shares the story of walking with Christy through a terminal cancer diagnosis, parenting three young kids through unimaginable loss, and discovering that faith doesn't mean pretending everything is fine - it means bringing your honest grief to God and waiting for Him to meet you there. This is a conversation about lament, Shalom, single parenting, and the surprising, hard-won hope that things really can be okay again!! About Graham Clarke Graham Clarke spent most of his adult life in local church ministry as a senior pastor, most recently having stepped out of that role and looking toward a return to education - his first career, as a PE teacher and school chaplain. Raised in the Uniting Church in Brisbane, Graham met his wife Christy on the set of a Christian children's TV show in his late teens. They married young, had three children, and spent almost a decade leading a church in Geelong before returning to Brisbane. Key Moments & Takeaways - Early days and meeting his wife, Christy. - Christy's first breast cancer diagnosis came early and was treated as a full recovery - The phone call from the radiographer became Graham's own "sliding doors" moment - Graham and Christy independently sensed the same words in that moment: "it's gonna be okay" - a promise not about the outcome, but about the presence of God in the midst of it. - Graham unpacks the biblical idea of Shalom - Facing an eleven, ten, and seven-year-old, Graham and Christy chose honesty over shielding their kids. - A pastor's advice - "That's our job. You look after your kids" - freed Graham from having to hold the family's faith and its parenting at once. - Graham reflects candidly on "solo parenting" and the exhausting kindness of a grieving community. - He closes with the spirituality of lament - honesty with God in the middle of pain, and the hopeful expectation that mercy is renewed every morning. Find Out More Olive Tree Media: www.olivetreemedia.com.au Watch+ Platform: www.olivetreemedia.com.au/watch Daily Nudge: www.dailynudge.org Special Thanks To Excelsia University College Christian Finance Vision Christian Media

He was taken from his family before he could walk, told for years he'd had polio when it was actually malnutrition, and labelled "dumb" by a school system that never diagnosed his dyslexia. Decades later, Rev. Dr. Rex Rigby became the first Indigenous Australian to lead a national denomination. In this honest conversation, Rex sits down with Karl Faase to talk about childhood abuse, being removed from his family as a toddler, and the shame he carried for years - and how those wounds became the foundation for a life devoted to reconciliation, empathy, and the gospel. Rex shares his story from an abusive home in Holland Park, to a stint as a chef on Brisbane's first luxury yacht, to twelve years as General Superintendent of the Wesleyan Methodist Church, to a doctorate exploring how Western culture has often been tangled up with the gospel message delivered to Indigenous people. Along the way, he shares hard truths about the church's mixed legacy in Indigenous communities and a hopeful, hard-won vision for what an intercultural church could look like. Rev. Dr. Rex Rigby was the first Indigenous person to serve as national head of a denomination in Australia, spending twelve years as General Superintendent of the Wesleyan Methodist Church - the longest tenure in that role. He is an elder of both the Kamilaroi and Bigambul peoples. Before entering ministry, Rex trained and worked as a chef, including a stint as the first chef aboard Brisbane's first luxury yacht. He holds a doctorate for his thesis "Social Cohesion Through the Eyes of an Indigenous Elder for the Application of the Intercultural Church," and today continues to teach at several Bible colleges. Key Moments & Takeaways - Rex Rigby was the first Indigenous Australian to lead a national denomination, serving 12 years as General Superintendent of the Wesleyan Methodist Church. - He is an elder of both the Kamilaroi and Bigambul peoples, with ancestral ties on both sides of the Queensland/NSW border. - Removed from his family as a toddler due to abuse and neglect in the home, Rex spent three years in a home for children with disabilities - an experience that left him with a lasting sense of being unloved. - For years Rex was told he'd had polio; it wasn't until his late teens he learned his leg braces were actually the result of childhood malnutrition. - Undiagnosed dyslexia and an unstable home life meant school was a constant struggle - but Rex found his footing as an apprentice chef, eventually cooking for Brisbane's elite and serving as the first chef aboard the city's first luxury yacht. - A deep sense of calling pulled Rex out of the kitchen and into ministry, despite a rocky start in high-demand inner-city pastoral work that nearly burned him out early on. - His doctoral thesis examined how the gospel was often delivered wrapped in Western cultural assumptions - creating unnecessary shame for Indigenous believers. - Rex speaks candidly about the mixed legacy of mission work in Australia, while insisting Indigenous spirituality and Christian faith are not at odds. - He points to empathy and truth-telling as essential to reconciliation, urging people to look past the symptom to understand the cause. - Despite two bouts of cancer and a recent fall, Rex remains hopeful - still teaching, mentoring young Indigenous leaders, and working toward his vision of a genuinely intercultural church. Find Out More Olive Tree Media: www.olivetreemedia.com.au Watch+ Platform: www.olivetreemedia.com.au/watch Daily Nudge: www.dailynudge.org Special Thanks To Excelsia University College Christian Finance Vision Christian Media

"I live in Africa - waiting is never an issue." That was Melanie Downes' response when a string of technical hiccups left her and her husband Tim sitting patiently in the studio long past schedule. It's a small window into a life shaped by nearly two decades as a missionary in Malawi - a life of nine-hour queues, two-day border crossings, and a faith forged in a place most of us will never see. In this episode, Karl Faase speaks with Melanie about the road that took a "goofy" Rockhampton girl to a remote Yao village with a two- and four-year-old in tow. She reflects on her father's overnight conversion, her own childhood call to mission, and the enormous cost of obedience during cyclones, a critically ill baby, and the humbling task of asking others to "hold the rope." Melanie speaks with honesty about being a woman in an Islamic community (where it took eighteen months just to be seen as "not dangerous"), what the Yao have taught her about reading the Bible, and why she and Tim have spent years deliberately working themselves out of a job. It's a conversation about courage, contextual mission, the spirit world, and the quiet power of simply staying. Key Moments & Highlights - A "wild boy" dad meets Jesus at a crusade and changes almost overnight and a young Melanie watches her whole family transform - Her own clear moment of call as a little girl - Growing up around mission in remote Aboriginal communities and deciding, as a teenager, that missionary life was "not for us" - Backpacking the world after 9/11, landing in Malawi, and falling for the "warm heart of Africa" - Counting the cost to actually go: a critically ill newborn, Cyclone Larry, financial strain, and grieving parents - Taking a two- and four-year-old to a Yao village, and the years of language and culture learning that followed - The challenge of being an Australian woman in an Islamic community - Why relationship with the women was the "secret weapon" that opened the whole community - Rethinking the missionary: not "great white saviours," but "accepted outsiders" handing leadership to the local church - Her two books, Jump and Spirit, the Camino, and the bittersweet homecoming Find Out More Olive Tree Media: www.olivetreemedia.com.au Watch+ Platform: www.olivetreemedia.com.au/watch Daily Nudge: www.dailynudge.org Special Thanks To Excelsia University College Christian Finance Vision Christian Media

You've seen the Red Frogs at Schoolies, festivals and uni O-Week - the crew handing out lollies, walking people home, being the calm in the chaos. You might even know that Taylor Swift's team has called them in for support, or that Allen's donates 24 tonnes of frogs to the cause. What you don't see is the story behind one of the people who's helped build it and why he spends his life helping teens! In this episode, Karl Faase sits down with Steve Davies, whose childhood was, in his own words, a "trainwreck life." Steve speaks with raw honesty about a home marked by violence and fear, the grief of losing the men who made him feel safe, the discovery that his biological father had taken his own life, and the years he spent trying to numb a broken heart. It's also a story of an almost unthinkable forgiveness - of a stepfather, a mother, and ultimately himself! What's remarkable is that it was a Bible courageously thrown across a room that set all of this in motion. This is a powerful conversation about pain, faith, and what it really takes to re-build a life after hurt. Listener note: this episode discusses childhood abuse, family violence and suicide. Please take care while listening. Steve Davies is the General Manager of Red Frogs Australia - a national charity working to safeguard a generation by providing peer-to-peer support. He has also worked in business, ministry and politics. Key moments & highlights Red Frogs today: 27 years on, from Schoolies and O-Week to concerts - plus the Taylor Swift call and Allen's 24-tonne lolly donation A childhood of conflict, gambling and never feeling safe Losing his father, then his beloved "Pop" and retreating into himself Longing for a dad when everyone else had one Stepfather Bob: favouritism, rage, violence, and being a "second-class son" Praying in a cupboard and the dark turn into becoming a bully Discovering his biological father had died by suicide Self-destruction at 17, and fleeing to Townsville after a near-fatal fight A Bible thrown at him, reading Mark then John, and "Father, forgive them" 2am at a church door: "Lord, if you're real…" and a picture of his heart being mended "I forgive you" - the call to Bob, Bob's conversion, and Steve baptising him Officiating Bob's funeral; forgiving his mother His own marriage nearly ending and a dog's death that unlocked a buried memory How Schoolies went from the "wild west" to far safer, and Red Frogs' work with the QLD Government Find Out More Olive Tree Media: www.olivetreemedia.com.au Watch+ Platform: www.olivetreemedia.com.au/watch Daily Nudge: www.dailynudge.org Special Thanks To Excelsia University College Christian Finance Vision Christian Media

In many of our churches, there's an unspoken script: grow up, find someone, get married, have kids. And if that doesn't happen - or hasn't happened yet - it can leave people quietly wondering: Is there something wrong with me? Is this just a waiting room? Dr Dani Treweek has spent over a decade thinking, writing, and living these questions. In this episode of Insight with Karl Faase, she shares her journey of growing up in Sydney's eastern suburbs, studying at Moore Theological College, and completing a PhD that became the book The Meaning of Singleness. Along the way, she's wrestled personally and academically with what it truly means to be single in the Christian life. Whether you're single, married, widowed, divorced, or leading a church community, this conversation has something important to offer. As Dani shares, the Bible's vision for singleness is far more expansive and far more hopeful than most of us have been taught. Key Moments and Takeaways: - The "disenfranchised grief" of singleness - mourning something you've never had - The moment in a Moore College ethics lecture that changed how Dani read the Bible - What Jesus's words in Matthew 22 reveal about the eternal significance of singleness - How the Reformation accidentally devalued singleness in Protestant churches - The problems with dating apps and the deeper disembodiment crisis behind them - What Paul actually means (and doesn't mean) by the so-called "gift of singleness" - Why the church needs its single members as much as single members need the church Resources mentioned: The Meaning of Singleness — Dani Treweek (IVP Academic) Single Ever After — Dani Treweek (IVP) Cross Related Ministry "On Sitting Alone in Church" — article by Dani Treweek Find Out More Olive Tree Media: www.olivetreemedia.com.au Watch+ Platform: www.olivetreemedia.com.au/watch Daily Nudge: www.dailynudge.org Special Thanks To Excelsia University College Christian Finance Vision Christian Media

What does it take to raise a good man in a culture that can't decide whether masculinity is a problem to be solved or a strength to be celebrated? In this episode of Insight, Karl Faase sits down with Simon Smart - a teacher, writer and Director of the Centre for Public Christianity (CPX). This is a wide-ranging, deeply personal conversation about boys, bullying, fatherlessness, the manosphere, and what it actually means to be a good man. Drawing on his own brutal boarding-school years and his book The End of Men, Simon makes the case for a richer, more compassionate model of masculinity - one rooted in the example of Jesus. Simon Smart is a teacher, writer and the Director of the Centre for Public Christianity (CPX), a media organisation working to promote a thoughtful, generous understanding of the Christian faith in Australian public life. Before CPX, Simon spent a decade teaching English and history in boys' schools, an experience that, alongside his own childhood in a tough country boarding environment, shaped his recent book The End of Men. He lives on Sydney's Northern Beaches with his wife and two adult children, and is, in his own words, "an average but enthusiastic surfer." Key Moments and Takeaways: Simon's education in masculinity and the moment everything shifted. His slow road to faith. An unplanned path to CPX. The case for writing The End of Men. Untangling "toxic masculinity." Fatherlessness and the algorithm. What actually makes a good man. Find Out More Olive Tree Media: www.olivetreemedia.com.au Watch+ Platform: www.olivetreemedia.com.au/watch Daily Nudge: www.dailynudge.org Special Thanks To Excelsia University College Christian Finance Vision Christian Media

What happens when the church's greatest virtue becomes its greatest blind spot? In one of the most important conversations on faith and institutional responsibility you'll hear, Karl Faase sits down with Roderick Best - a Sydney lawyer who spent decades at the coalface of child protection, and ultimately served as Senior Solicitor for Australia's Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. Rod brings rare insight: the legal mind and perspective of someone who shaped national reform, and the honest thoughts of a committed Christian wrestling with what the church got wrong. This is not an easy conversation at times, but it's a necessary one. Roderick Best is a Sydney-based lawyer with over four decades of experience across private practice and government. He served as the longest-tenured senior child protection lawyer in New South Wales before being appointed Senior Solicitor to the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse (est. 2013) — one of the most significant public inquiries in Australian history. A note before you listen: This conversation touches on child sexual abuse and the findings of Australia's Royal Commission. Rod speaks with care and without graphic detail, but if this is a sensitive topic for you, please be aware before listening. Key Moments and Takeaways The Royal Commission was deliberately scoped to institutional abuse — roughly 20% of all child abuse — because it was actionable. Family-based abuse, the larger problem, is far harder to legislate. Rod was not surprised by the scale of abuse uncovered — but was surprised by the diversity across denominations, and by research showing celibacy made no statistical difference to abuse rates. The key risk factor wasn't theology — it was vulnerability. Institutions working with the most vulnerable children had the highest rates of abuse. The church's instinct to "move people on" rather than report was compounded by disbelief, reputational concern, and over-powerful old-boy networks in church governance. Professor Patrick Parkinson identified the core theological error: the church drew the wrong line on forgiveness, treating it as a substitute for accountability rather than something that must coexist with structural safeguards. Rod's framework for the failure is theological: the church forgot it was operating in a post-Fall world. Forgiveness doesn't reset human nature — it requires structures that account for ongoing human frailty. Working with Children checks, introduced in the lead-up to the Commission, are already showing statistical results — particularly in reducing institutional sexual abuse. The biggest ongoing child protection issue isn't sexual abuse — it's poverty and neglect, which remain largely unaddressed. Rod still fields questions from former colleagues who say they "never understood why you go to church." Reputational damage is real and ongoing. The church's greatest asset in a fragmented, anxious society is community — but it must normalize belonging and be seen as a safe, ordinary place for ordinary people. Find Out More Olive Tree Media: www.olivetreemedia.com.au Watch+ Platform: www.olivetreemedia.com.au/watch Daily Nudge: www.dailynudge.org Special Thanks To Excelsia University College Christian Finance Vision Christian Media

This episode features Simon Hood, a passionate advocate for children's ministry and faith-based creativity, sharing his journey from a puppeteer in Hornsby to a global influencer in children's evangelism. However, alongside growing a global ministry, he and his wife travelled a long road through infertility, IVF, international adoption, and living through the joys and challenges of neurodiversity. During some of the most painful years, Simon felt God continue to ask him: "Will you trust me, even when you don't know what I am doing?" This conversation is powerful, emotional, and a helpful reminder about how to show up for people who are in grief and difficulty. Simon Hood is the founding director of Logosdor - a global ministry serving kids worldwide. He is a professional puppeteer and creative innovator in sharing the gospel with kids through media. Key Moments and Takeaways: - The power of creative evangelism through puppetry and media - Personal journey through infertility, adoption, and international ministry - Navigating neurodiversity, mental health, and faith in family life - The importance of movement thinking and multiplying Kingdom work - Lessons on trust, lament, and resilience in suffering Find Out More Olive Tree Media: www.olivetreemedia.com.au Watch+ Platform: www.olivetreemedia.com.au/watch Daily Nudge: www.dailynudge.org Special Thanks To Excelsia University College Christian Finance Vision Christian Media

Professor Louise Baur has spent decades helping children and families navigate the complex realities of obesity, body image, and health. In this episode of Insight, host Karl Faase explores the deeply personal and often misunderstood challenges surrounding childhood obesity - from biology and mental health to social media pressure and stigma. As both a leading pediatrician and a Christian, Louise shares how her faith shapes the way she approaches medicine, compassion, and care for vulnerable families. Together, Karl and Louise unpack the growing global obesity crisis, the impact of shame and judgment, and why Christians should lead with grace, empathy, and understanding when discussing health and body image. They also explore the rise of medications like Ozempic and the cultural pressures young people face online today. Louise also reflects on her calling to paediatric medicine, sharing how her Christian faith shapes the way she lives, works, and engages in both the workplace and the public square. This is a thoughtful and compassionate conversation about health, identity, faith, and what it means to truly care for others. Key Moments and Takeaways The biological and environmental factors contributing to obesity across the globe The psychological and health impacts of high body weight in children The influence of social media on body image and eating disorders The importance of compassionate, stigma-free support for families The potential and challenges of medications like Ozempic and bariatric surgery The role of faith and how Christians can advocate for body positivity and health Louise's story of faith and the challenge of not being able to start a family The role of Louise's Christian faith in her work The future and next steps Find Out More Olive Tree Media: www.olivetreemedia.com.au Watch+ Platform: www.olivetreemedia.com.au/watch Daily Nudge: www.dailynudge.org Special Thanks To Excelsia University College Christian Finance Vision Christian Media

How does a gay man find faith in Jesus? David Bennett's story is a must listen to. In this episode of Insight, Karl hears David share his story, which journeys from coming out as gay when he is a teenager in a Sydney private school - to studying and living in Oxford. The turning point of the story is when David meets someone in a pub who doesn't try to convince him that Jesus is the truth, but instead, embodies the compassion, presence and love of God. As she prays for him, something life-changing happens as David experiences the love of God not as words - but as an encounter. David Bennett is a now a Christian, a theologian, and a writer who works at Oxford University. He also identifies as gay - a reality that once felt completely incompatible with his faith. His story isn’t a simple one, and it doesn’t offer easy answers - but it does invite us into a deeper conversation about belonging, and the cost and beauty of following Christ. Key Moments and Takeaways - Faith Through Doubt: Explore how genuine faith is built through questioning and vulnerability. - The Power of Presence: Discover the impact of empathy and presence in conveying love. - Redemptive Suffering: Understand how hardship and rejection play a role in transformation. - Trust in Scripture: Learn the importance of surrendering control and trusting divine authority. - Identity in Divine Love: See how rooting identity in love offers stability beyond societal labels. Find Out More Olive Tree Media: www.olivetreemedia.com.au Watch+ Platform: www.olivetreemedia.com.au/watch Daily Nudge: www.dailynudge.org Special Thanks To Excelsia University College Christian Finance Vision Christian Media

What does theology have to do with winemaking? In this fascinating conversation, Tim Kirk from Clonakilla Wines shares how faith, creativity, craftsmanship and the landscape itself all shape the wines he creates. From the cool climate to the spiritual symbolism of wine throughout the Bible, Tim offers a unique perspective on what makes great wine truly memorable. Karl unpacks his story, his faith, his perspective on ministry and how he returned to the family business of making wine. Tim has such a passion for wine and understanding creativity as an expression of our faith - you'll love this conversation. Key Moments and Takeaways: How landscape and terroir shape flavour The story behind Clonakilla Wines Why craftsmanship matters in winemaking His journey from theology to wine The spiritual significance of wine and creation Building a reputation for quality and excellence Find Out More Olive Tree Media: www.olivetreemedia.com.au Watch+ Platform: www.olivetreemedia.com.au/watch Daily Nudge: www.dailynudge.org Special Thanks To Excelsia University College Christian Finance Vision Christian Media

Most people only see the surface of a life filled with trauma, adventure, and profound faith. Greg Low’s story reveals how even in the darkest moments - plane crashes, the loss of his mother, and dangerous war zones - there's a remarkable thread of hope, purpose, and discovery. In this episode of Insight, Greg shares stories from decades of filming in the world's most volatile regions - from Rwanda to Somalia, Ethiopia to Mozambique - and how he’s confronted death firsthand more times than he can count. Greg’s courageous stories aren't just about danger; they’re about finding good in the chaos and God’s presence in unexpected places. Karl's guest, Greg Low, is an accomplished cameraman and author, whose career spans filming across war zones, natural disasters, and humanitarian crises around the globe. His experiences have shaped a life dedicated to capturing truth and living it with faith, despite the chaos. His story is a reminder that light and hope can be found in the darkest places! Buy Greg's book here: https://www.gdu.com.au/book Key Moments and Takeaways: - Greg's early career in media and how he transitioned from student to cameraman for major political moments in Australia. - Experiences filming in war zones like Rwanda, Somalia, and Ethiopia, including close encounters with danger and death. - The story of losing his mother and how that tragedy shaped his faith and outlook on life. - Greg’s reflections on faith, how God met him through a Supertramp song, and his evolving relationship with spirituality. - Personal stories of family, adoption, and balancing a life of danger with raising children. Find Out More Olive Tree Media: www.olivetreemedia.com.au Watch+ Platform: www.olivetreemedia.com.au/watch Daily Nudge: www.dailynudge.org Special Thanks To Excelsia University College Christian Finance Vision Christian Media

Phil Cave is the Principal and Partner at private equity firm, Anchorage. In this conversation, Phil shares about his career running and turning around major businesses and what it takes to succeed in business. But, Karl and Phil also talk about the time he considered a career change and moving into ministry. He’ll share why he didn’t make the change and how God has used him exactly where he is. Phil Cave’s insights remind us that whether in ministry or business, understanding our strengths and limitations is essential for fulfillment and success. By surrounding ourselves with supportive people and recognizing where we can best serve, we can avoid burnout and enhance our contributions. As Phil aptly puts it, "Let's maximise our skills." Key Takeaways: - Burnout often stems from working outside one’s strengths. - Faith can grow in unexpected places, such as sports. - Leadership is rooted in effective people management. - It’s crucial to empower others and avoid micromanagement. - Recognizing and maximizing our skills leads to fulfillment. Find Out More Olive Tree Media: www.olivetreemedia.com.au Watch+ Platform: www.olivetreemedia.com.au/watch Daily Nudge: www.dailynudge.org Special Thanks To Excelsia University College Christian Finance Vision Christian Media