The Every Voice Now Podcast

Pastor and speaker Sean Palmer understands firsthand the challenges of communicating effectively with those who have a variety of backgrounds, personalities, and perspectives. Throughout the different seasons of his life living in Mississippi, Georgia, and Texas, Sean learned how to navigate a multitude of new cultures and people groups. Many of those relationships and experiences proved to be costly, and yet, he found a great call...

When Jay Kim was four years old, he and his mother moved from Korea to the Silicon Valley. During his upbringing in this new environment, he struggled with feelings of confusion, isolation, and rootlessness that define many immigrant experiences. Despite these challenging seasons—or perhaps even through them—Jay eventually came to deeply internalize what it means to be seen, to be known, and to belong.

The seed of faith planted in J...

Mekdes Haddis is a sought-after millennial African missiologist whose voice challenges Western individuals, churches, and organizations to rethink their missional approach.

In this episode, Mekdes shares about her upbringing in Ethiopia and the challenges she experienced after moving to the United States to pursue her studies, eventually leading her to write a postcolonial critique of Western mission. Her book, A Just Mission, is a ...

Born and raised in Atlanta, Pastor Darrell Hall has been preaching since he was 17. At a young age, he realized the gift of the Holy Spirit’s ability to move and speak through him. His strong calling to evangelism and communication is evident in his ability to connect with people of all ages, races, and backgrounds. His book, Speaking Across Generations, is a timely and much-needed resource addressing the need to build bridges betw...

Daniel Yang is a second-generation Hmong American missiologist whose rich experiences coming from an ethnic minority group fueled his passion for the American church to recenter its focus on the kingdom of God and to learn from the global church and other marginalized voices.

In this conversation, Daniel shares insights into his experience writing the book, Inalienable, with his co-authors, Eric Costanzo and Matthew Soerens. Through...

With decades of experience in the field of psychology, therapist and writer Sheila Wise Rowe answered God’s special calling by writing her book, Healing Racial Trauma, and thereafter witnessed how the Lord opened doors for the fulfillment of her dreams—to offer hope and healing, and to lead people unto the Lord’s feet.

Collecting her life experiences, the stories of those she interviewed, and her family’s testimonies, she wrote this...

How we worship is central to the life and vitality of the church. The form, content, and style of our worship can either create or hinder meaningful encounters with God.

This episode focuses on the experience of Christian worship, drawing upon many varieties of worshiping contexts. Our guest, Glenn Packiam, uses his own experience as a songwriter to discuss both the impacts of worship, as well as the way that music can shape our fai...

A man firmly committed to his faith, Bishop Claude R. Alexander Jr. is passionate about helping Christians understand what it means to be a true follower of Christ.

Having grown up in Jackson, Mississippi, Bishop Alexander was aware of racial tensions in his community. Amid these challenges, he drew inspiration from his mother's faith and example, which helped him develop his own spiritual convictions and become an important voi...

Right on the heels of the pandemic, InterVarsity Press emerged from a time of upheaval alongside the rest of the world only to enter into another unexpected moment in its nearly 75-year history: finding its next publisher and president. This is the story of Terumi Echols's journey to becoming IVP's top leader, a historic choice and not the first time she has experienced being a difference-maker as a voice from the margins. ...

Growing up as a mixed-ethnicity "third culture kid" on multiple continents gave Dan Stringer a unique perspective on many things in life, including the Christian evangelical space. On his unexpected (and perhaps, reluctant) journey to eventually author Struggling with Evangelicalism, he began to process the complicated nature of evangelical Christianity's influence, in large part through his personal writing. What final...

Have you ever wondered how long it takes authors to write their books? In the case of Felicia Wu Song, the journey was not day, or months, but decades. In this first of three special narrative-style episodes, we're featuring unique stories of authors and leaders as they follow the paths through which God has led them, their long obedience resulting in outcomes they did not predict or imagine. And you'll hear how even amidst...

In 2005, Skip McDonald's book, And She Lived Happily Ever After, offered women a refreshing perspective on singleness. Unlike many books on the topic from that time, it didn't provide tips for finding a husband or offer advice on whether or not to kiss dating goodbye—instead, it empowered single women to live vibrant lives of grace and fulfillment right then and there. Then in 2020, Skip's Anxiety LifeGuide Bible Study ...

From growing up in an all-white neighborhood in Springfield, Massachusetts, to visiting the vibrant island of Puerto Rico, to attending a life-altering Urbana Missions Conference, Orlando Crespo shares the key life moments that revealed his clear call to be a minister to Latino people. Unbeknownst to him at the time, it wouldn’t involve being a missionary to Mexico or Central America, but rather, to a place far closer and more fami...

In this special bonus episode celebrating IVP's 75th anniversary, authors Jeanette Yep and Greg Jao share the origin story of the historic IVP book, Following Jesus Without Dishonoring Your Parents, written by a diverse Asian American team that also included Peter Cha, Susan Cho Van Riesen, and Paul Tokunaga. Originally published in 1998, this book guided readers through challenging topics from various Asian American perspectiv...

Raised by strangers in Chicago’s Cabrini-Green neighborhood, MelindaJoy Mingo’s life journey began with unthinkable challenges that continued into adulthood as she later lost several close family members—including her husband—and eventually found herself living out of her car in a Walmart parking lot. 

But along the way, she encountered selfless love in unexpected places that led her to realize her pain had a purpose attached to it—...

Lamar Hardwick experienced a revelation at age 36 when he was first diagnosed with autism. That watershed moment opened so many doors for him to understand how he related to and communicated with other people and led to his being able to use his writing to raise awareness for the disability community, the largest minority community group in the world. Yet it continues to also be a marginalized group in the church. In this prophetic...

With all the books that have been published in the world, sometimes it's easy to forget that behind the writing of each book there is a story of an author who has to overcome her or his personal struggles to make it to the finish line. For Peace Amadi, despite years of experience with writing and in academia, the book publishing process triggered emotions and insecurities that she wasn't expecting and had to address alongsi...

If you had asked Chloe Sun as a girl in Hong Kong what she expected her life would be like when she grew up, she probably would not have imagined that she would end up in the US for college, become a Christian, and then serve as the catalyst for her whole family embracing the gospel. She also could not have imagined that she would fall in love with Hebrew and the Old Testament, leading to her becoming a biblical scholar and a semin...

Dorena Williamson's journey to becoming a writer was an unexpected one and began when she as a mom noticed a dearth of literature that offered the representation for her Black children. And if she did find books that featured characters of color, the faith element was missing. So she began praying, "God, how can you use me to have an impact in this area of addressing race and colorblindness?" The answer to this prayer w...