The Hope Files
God is the ultimate source of hope. In this ten-episode series, George Penk unpacks some Christian beliefs which help us find hope. This podcast is for anyone who wants to explore life-giving ideas about God. It’s for anyone who’s interested in hearing some good news. It’s for anyone who’s looking for hope.
Episodes
Sometimes life is really hard, and things don’t make a lot of sense. In the first episode we talk about God’s presence in difficult times. We look at the way he is with us, even in the pain.
Read Pete Greig’s book 'God on Mute'. www.zondervan.com/9780310114635/god-on-mute
Watch Amy Orr-Ewing answer the question ‘Did Jesus really experience pain and suffering?’ www.youtube.com/watch?v=IZ3Q3ZECy6Q
Connect with Frank Ritchie www.franc...
Christians believe that Jesus was a man, but that he was also God. So, if we want to know what God is like, we can look at Jesus. The way he treated people tells us a lot about God’s character – and it’s really good news.
Read Thomas Christianson’s book The Unreasonable Jesus
www.amazon.com/Unreasonable-Jesus-Becoming-Person-Made/dp/1470748630
Connect with the ELEVATE Christian Disability Trust
Check out...
When we come to God, confessing our sins, he welcomes us with open arms. And he not only forgives us, he invites us to a new, a healthier, a fuller way of living. This week we look at what it means to find freedom from our mistakes.
Listen to Bishop Barron’s sermon on the Prodigal Son
www.wordonfire.org/resources/homily/the-prodigal-son/994
Follow Thomas Christianson’s writing
Watch Amy Orr-Ewing’s ...
Last week we talked about being forgiven by God. In this week’s episode we chat about forgiving other people. We look at how to extend grace when others let us down.
Check out Shane Pruitt’s website for some great resources
Read Brant Hansen’s book Unoffendable
www.amazon.com/Unoffendable-Just-Change-Make-Better/dp/0529123851
Support The Hope Files: https://donate.rhemamedia.co.nz/?utm_source=omnystudio&utm_m...
God works through people to make the world a better place. In this episode we hear the stories of three amazing people who have served others in extraordinary ways. Each has made an incredible impact and their lives have a lot to teach us.
Check out Shane Claiborne’s book The Irresistible Revolution www.amazon.com/Irresistible-Revolution-Updated-Expanded-Ordinary/dp/0310343704
Watch Mother Teresa pray the Prayer of St Francis www.y...
If we're talking about ideas which give hope, then this is a really important one. In this week's episode we see how the Resurrection of Christ changed everything – and how it's a vision of hope for the future.
Watch NT Wright answer the question "Why does Resurrection matter?"
www.youtube.com/watch?v=MgiGB21LWmM
Listen to Bishop Barron's sermon on the Resurrection
www.youtube.com/watch?v=oU44CfXulNI
Read Dale Campbell's arti...
Episode 7 - Communicating With God
If God is the ultimate source of hope, then communicating with him is a significant part of living a hope-filled life. This week we talk about what prayer is and how to pray.
Read Thomas Christianson’s book The Unreasonable Jesus www.amazon.com/Unreasonable-Jesus-Becoming-Person-Made/dp/1470748630
Check out George Herbert’s poem about prayer www.interestingliterature.com/2017/12/a-short-analysis-o...
If we want to know the God of hope, then engaging with his word is really important. In this episode we talk about how to read the Bible. We also look at the big picture – we see how the whole Bible points to Jesus.
Connect with Frank Ritchie www.francis-ritchie.com
Read Shane Pruitt’s book 9 Common Lies Christians Believe www.amazon.com/Common-Lies-Christians-Believe-Infinitely/dp/0735291578
Check out the Apostles’ Creed www.churc...
God is in the business of changing lives. This week’s episode focuses on transformation. We hear about three different people whose lives have been transformed by the grace of God.
Check out a short bio of John Newton
www.christianitytoday.com/history/people/pastorsandpreachers/john-newton.html
Read about the church which the Membreys pastor
www.nzherald.co.nz/northern-advocate/news/pastor-trent-membrey-went-from-drug-dealer-to...
The idea that God is love underpins all Christian belief. It’s the starting point for all good theology. We wrap up the series by talking about the unconditional love of God.
Listen to Audrey Assad singing ‘Oh the deep, deep love of Jesus’ www.youtube.com/watch?v=1vUhwyjdk8A
Check out Nicky Gumbel’s Bible in One Year www.bibleinoneyear.org/en
Read Thomas Christianson’s article ‘The Worst Part of Religion’ www.thomaschristianson.com...
Hello, I’m George Penk. And it’s so good to be back for a second season of The Hope Files! I believe that God is the ultimate source of hope. And so therefore ideas about God - what we might call ‘theology’ - those ideas help point us to hope. Good theology contains a lot of good news.The idea behind this podcast is to make Christian theology really accessible. Each episode is about 20 ...
We can sum up the story of the whole Bible by talking about the kingship of Christ. In this episode, we explore what it means for Jesus to be king, and why it’s an idea that gives a lot of hope.
Watch NT Wright talk about Jesus and the Kingdom
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hXgLCK5ogOo
Listen to Bishop Barron’s sermon about Christ the King
https://www.wordonfire.org/videos/sermons/march-in-the-army-of-the-true-king/
Read Susa...
When we’re faced with problems, we can be real and honest with God about them. This week we look at three common struggles and see how, through them, we can find some hope.
Check out Rebecca Rene Jones’ book ‘Broken for Good’
https://www.amazon.com/Broken-Good-Grief-Awoke-Greatest/dp/1455538078
Read Aaron’s Loy’s article ‘Confessions of a Depressed Pastor’
https://relevantmagazine.com/faith/church/confessions-depressed-pastor/
...The Lord’s Prayer is not only a prayer, it’s also a summary of Christianity. That means there’s a lot of good news in it, because the Christian message is one of hope.
Read Rowan Williams’ reflections on the Lord’s Prayer
https://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/christianity/prayer/lordsprayer_1.shtml
Watch Bishop Barron talking about the Our Father
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w2ysPSuz7_U
Check out Meda Stamper’s article o...
We can’t ignore the Old Testament, because Jesus certainly didn’t. In fact, it provided the background and context to everything he did. This week we’re looking for hope in the Hebrew scriptures.
Watch Glen Scrivener’s video about Abraham
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N2em1M6fJWI&t=28s
See Glen’s video on the sacrifice of Isaac
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gYcPfySl-y8
Watch Amy Orr-Ewing’s ‘Good Friday Reflections’
...
God uses people for good. Throughout the Bible, the Lord involves people in his work, and he does so in surprising ways. These stories give hope that he’ll use us, too.
Check out Nicky Gumbel’s ‘How Your Life Can Make a Difference’ commentary
https://bibleinoneyear.org/en/classic/246/
Watch Bishop Barron talking about the Woman at the Well
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N862lyF8KtU
Read Stephanie Jane Judd’s article about wom...
Sometimes it’s really hard to trust God. But even when life makes it difficult, we can always trust him. This week we look at some reasons why.
Watch Trillia Newbell’s ‘A Moment of Steadfast Hope’ video
https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/video/romans-8-a-moment-of-steadfast-hope
Read Thomas Christianson’s book ‘The Unreasonable Jesus’
www.amazon.com/Unreasonable-Jesus-Becoming-Person-Made/dp/1470748630
Check out Shane Pruitt’...
In this episode we look at the concept that our identity is ultimately defined by God. Who we are in his sight is who we really are.
Connect with ELEVATE Christian Disability Trust
Read Ellery Sadler’s article about calling and identity
https://relevantmagazine.com/life5/your-calling-doesnt-define-you
Support The Hope Files: https://donate.rhemamedia.co.nz/?utm_source=omnystudio&utm_medium=link
See omnystud...
Jesus Christ is the Light of the World, and his followers are called to reflect that light. This week we hear stories of people who have done so in amazing ways.
Listen to Nicky Gumbel’s ‘Money: A Blessing or a Curse?’ commentary
https://bibleinoneyear.org/en/classic/220
Check out Daneen Akers’ profile of Florence Nightingale
https://www.holytroublemakers.com/florence
Read Lynne McDonald’s article about Nightingale’s faith
ht...
This week we’re talking about the Cross of Christ. Because when it comes to Christian hope, we can’t really overstate the significance of the Crucifixion.
Watch NT Wright teaching about the Cross
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GGJ7M1CDhBU
Read Andrew Wilson’s article about Barabbas
https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2021/april/andrew-wilson-barabbas-story-prisoner-swap.html
Check out Amy Orr-Ewing’s ‘Good Friday Reflections...
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