Empowered Life Podcast

What does it truly mean to lay down your life and follow God when life takes an unexpected, life-altering turn?In this powerful episode of the Empowered Life Podcast, Meredith sits down with author and worship leader Shannon Alford to discuss what it takes to move our faith from a routine to a daily reality. When Shannon and her husband Simon suddenly lost her brother and sister-in-law, they went from a family of five to a family o...

DO GOOD, Y'ALL! AND STOP WAITING TO BE READY!You don’t need to clean your whole life up before God can use you to make a real impact.In this special episode, Kristy Serfass, Volunteer Coordinator and Warehouse Manager at Allies in Youth Development, an organization dedicated to rescuing orphans and vulnerable youth around the world through life-giving mentorship and humanitarian aid, shares her powerful story of how God met h...

What if the pressure you’re carrying was never yours to carry?

So many of us are striving to do everything perfectly: trying to control outcomes, carry every burden, and make everything work. But what if God never asked us to carry that weight in the first place?

In this episode of The Empowered Life Podcast, I sit down with speaker, entrepreneur, and business coach Jenn Kleiber to explore what it truly means to faithfully stew...

What happens when a single yes turns into a movement?

In this special anniversary episode of the Empowered Life Podcast, Meredith Murray sits down with Chris Burgin, Founder and CEO of Allies in Youth Development, to celebrate one full year of the show: 1.7 million views, over 1,000 hours of watch time, and listeners in 26 states and more than a dozen countries.

Together, Meredith and Chris revisit the moments that defined the year: ...

What happens when you stop keeping score and start living fully surrendered to God’s plan?

In this episode of the Empowered Life Podcast, host Meredith Murray sits down with Chip Roop, the President and CEO of the Roop Family Foundation, songwriter, and musician.

Chip shares his incredible journey from a small coal town in eastern Kentucky to seminary, and how God took his dream of being a youth pastor and multiplied it into a ...

What does it look like when someone who spent decades furious at God finally lets Him in? In this powerful episode of The Empowered Life Podcast, we sit down with Lisa "Sunshine" Jennett, an unconventional, unapologetic, and radically authentic author and entrepreneur. Her life is living proof that where you start does not define where you finish. Born into a violent home in West Texas, Sunshine learned early that the only way out ...

What would hope say if it could speak directly into your darkest moment? Chaplain Desmond Haye has spent 20 years walking into the hardest places, and he wrote the book on it. Literally.

Chaplain Desmond Haye is the Director of Pastoral Care and Ethics at Texas Health Hospital in Mansfield, Texas. Born in Jamaica as the 12th child, and orphaned of his father before he was even born… he has spent his life turning pain into pur...

1 in 7 adolescents around the world are struggling. Dr. Josh Roberts reveals how tending to the soul creates the internal foundation every child needs to survive the storm.

Every child, regardless of where they live, what they have, or what they've been through, is searching for the same three things: a sense of worth, a connection to others, and something bigger than themselves.

That's not a theory. That's what the research shows.

Dr...

Are you helping, or are you unintentionally creating dependency?In this episode of the Empowered Life Podcast, Meredith sits down with Stacia Miller (Director of Development at the Mansfield Mission Center) to discuss the thin line between compassion that restores and compassion that accidentally keeps people stuck.🌍 JOIN OUR MISSION: We believe lasting change happens when we equip people to stand on their own feet. Empower an orp...

He had seen the world. Over 50 nations. Thousands of lives impacted. But even then, he still had to ask himself one question:

“Are you dead yet?”

Not physically, but spiritually. Because the truth is, we can do a lot for God… without ever fully surrendering to Him.

Johnny’s story is a powerful reminder that burnout doesn’t come from doing too little. It often comes from doing too much in our own strength...

Less than 1% of orphans make it to college. We are changing that statistic today. 🎓When an orphan ages out without an education, the cycle of poverty repeats. But what happens when you give them a professional tutor and a mentor? You get doctors, engineers, and leaders.🌟 HELP FUND A TUTOR TODAY: https://alliesyouth.org/give.aspx🌍 LEARN MORE ABOUT THE MISSION: https://alliesyouth.org💡 INSIDE THIS EPISODEIn this episode, Meredith...

⚠️ SENSITIVE CONTENT: 

The following conversation contains honest accounts of human trafficking, sexual abuse, and suicide attempts. We share this to EQUIP you with the knowledge to step in and MINIMIZE these vulnerabilities for the next generation. 

Viewer discretion is advised. 

30 years old. That is the average life expectancy of an orphaned child without intervention, due to trafficking, suicide, or substance abuse....

When a single decision cost him everything, Shawn Serfass found himself at rock bottom.

Facing the reality of broken choices, lost direction, and the weight of consequence. 

But through mentorship, faith, and grace, Shawn’s story became one of redemption, purpose, and second chances.

Now the founder of Second Chance Mentors, Shawn is passionate about helping young men rewrite their stories, discover their worth, and step in...

Are you loving God with your whole life… or just the parts that are convenient? 🌿

Pastor Erik Erby joins Meredith to break down the Shema—the ancient blueprint for an empowered life. Discover how loving God with all your heart, soul, and strength naturally overflows into serving others with contagious joy.

👉 Join the Mission: https://alliesyouth.org

At [50:00], Pastor Erik discusses “True Religion”—the...

What really happens when someone chooses to protect the vulnerable instead of looking away?

In this powerful episode of The Empowered Life Podcast, we sit down with Tarrant County Sheriff Bill Waybourn, a man who has spent decades on the front lines fighting for those who cannot fight for themselves.

This conversation pulls back the curtain on the realities of human trafficking, not as something that happens “somewhere else,&rd...

Learn more or sponsor a child today at:

https://alliesyouth.org 

What happens when the pursuit of success is interrupted by a call to something deeper?

In this raw and moving episode, we sit down with Mollie Lupinacci, a former global marketing executive turned child advocate, whose journey has taken her from Tokyo boardrooms to the mountains of Peru. Molly opens up about what it means to say yes to God before you feel ready and ...

What You’ll Hear in this Episode:

0:00 – Intro: How Chris Burgin’s “yes” sparked a global orphan movement

0:28 – Meet Chris Burgin, founder of Allies in Youth Development

1:41 – From one burden to 74 countries & 25,000 mentored kids

4:28 – The baby house that Chris could never unsee

8:47 – What really happens when orphans age out of the system

12:44 – Leaving a steady pastor...

Most people want to live a life of purpose…but somewhere between the daily grind and real responsibility, that purpose can feel out of reach.

The Empowered Life Podcast exists to change that.

This show is about more than inspiration. It’s about action.Real stories. Real people. Real impact.

Powered by Allies in Youth Development, we’re bringing you conversations from leaders, mentors, and world changers who are step...