UNDISTRACTED with Laura Bennett

Our guest today isn’t an academic, he’s not a public figure, he’s a Sydney truckie and former Navy-man whose lived experience of professional collapse, personal trauma and discovery of Christian faith inspired him to write ‘Mistakes a Like Fertiliser’, a journey into some of history’s biggest mishaps, and how mistakes can grow us not break us.Listen to more from our Hope Podcasts collection at hopepodcasts.com.au. And send the team a message via Hope 103.2’s app, Facebook or Instagram.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today we’re going back into the archives to a chat I had with John Mark Comer about 'The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry'. Released in early 2020 the book pre-empted what became a time of serious reflection about what we filled our days with and how rushed modern life had become. 6 years on the “hurry sickness” John spoke about I would say is even more prevalent, combined with an anxious desire to build security in an uncertain world. John’s ideas – expanded on in his last book 'Practicing the Way' – are grounded in his Christian faith and help us “come to quiet” he says and find the peace we need.Listen to more from our Hope Podcasts collection at hopepodcasts.com.au. And send the team a message via Hope 103.2’s app, Facebook or Instagram.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Our guest today is filmmaker Andrew Erwin. Together with his brother Jon, Andrew has been a part of some of the biggest faith films of the last decade including 'Jesus Revolution', 'I Still Believe' and 'Ordinary Angels'. His latest project, 'I Can Only Imagine 2', is the sequel to the 2018 hit that follows the true story of Christian band MercyMe and the family trauma singer Bart Millard faced alongside their career success. In this conversation, Andrew explains why 'Gilmore Girls' alumni Milo Ventimiglia had to be part of the film, the failures of Christian filming and why the cast want to go to space.Listen to more from our Hope Podcasts collection at hopepodcasts.com.au. And send the team a message via Hope 103.2’s app, Facebook or Instagram.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Author of 'Why Are All My Boyfriends Fictional', Jessica Kate joins Laura to talk about bad flirting, red flags in Christian dating and how - whether for a season or for life - you can find joy in singleness.Listen to more from our Hope Podcasts collection at hopepodcasts.com.au. And send the team a message via Hope 103.2’s app, Facebook or Instagram.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Our guest today is Australian actor George Xanthis, who plays John on 'The Chosen', the global hit series about the life of Jesus and his disciples. The next season is one the biggest as they face the crucifixion of Christ and in this episode, George not only talks about that, but about how a local Sydney boy got this gig, pressure to be a religious icon and how his spirituality has evolved during filming. Listen to more from our Hope Podcasts collection at hopepodcasts.com.au. And send the team a message via Hope 103.2’s app, Facebook or Instagram.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Our guest today, Sita Walker is a high school literature teacher and award-winning writer, whose 20 years’ experience in education frame her debut novel 'In a Common Hour' - The story of a single lunch time that unravels a school community. It prompts discussion about masculinity, truth and difference, and how we shape the world with our words.Listen to more from our Hope Podcasts collection at hopepodcasts.com.au. And send the team a message via Hope 103.2’s app, Facebook or Instagram.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Have you ever woken form a dream and wondered if it meant anything? Was it just your brain processing life, or was God speaking to you? And if He was, what was He trying to say through what you saw?Paige Collins is usually a publicist and filmmaker, but she’s added author to the list with Awaken, a dream journal that explores scriptural dream symbolism, how dreams affect our waking hours, the ones that have defined her career and why God would talk to us while we sleep.Listen to more from our Hope Podcasts collection at hopepodcasts.com.au. And send the team a message via Hope 103.2’s app, Facebook or Instagram.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, Christian educator and identity coach Dr. Eric Moyer explains how our view of God affects our sense of identity, and why he sees a problem with the cultural idea that we can "be who want to be".Pre-order 'Redeeming Identity' and get a 15% discount: https://redeemingidentity.com/product/redeeming-identity-book/Listen to more from our Hope Podcasts collection at hopepodcasts.com.au. And send the team a message via Hope 103.2’s app, Facebook or Instagram.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Our guest today is Dean Keaney. Together with his wife Becky, Dean moved from Ohio in the late 70’s to establish the Australian arm of Christiann aid organisation Open Doors. He was inspired by the organisations founder Brother Andrew who distributed countless Bibles throughout the communist countries of Europe, and spent 47 years helping persecuted Christians in Asia, the Middle East and many locations across the globe. Dean’s book, Who Me Lord? Tracks his journey and how ill-equipped he felt for such a life.Listen to more from our Hope Podcasts collection at hopepodcasts.com.au. And send the team a message via Hope 103.2’s app, Facebook or Instagram.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Newcastle writer and filmmaker Kyle Portbury helps bring epic Biblical musical David to life, detailing how an international team made it happen, how AI is affecting creativity and why he's willing to wait for big breaks.Listen to more from our Hope Podcasts collection at hopepodcasts.com.au. And send the team a message via Hope 103.2’s app, Facebook or Instagram.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.