The Reflexio Podcast

Ruth recounts personal miracles, from buying an eight-bedroom house to shelter strangers, to witnessing the healing of women traumatized by displacement with the truths of scripture. She shares behind-the-scenes moments from daring evacuations and secret baptisms to everyday ESL lessons. Along the way, Ruth reveals how her background and training prepared her for the unique challenges of guiding newcomers through loss, stigma, and the ache for belonging. Most of all, Ruth’s story illuminates how faith and compassion can transform not only the lives of refugees, but also the identity and mission of the local church.  This interview covers more than 20 years of Ruth's journey in refugee ministry, including the Afghan evacuation story, practical approaches to engaging with refugees, and theological reflection on God's heart for displaced peoples. This is a call to action for every listener to find their own role in healing—and welcoming—the world’s displaced. Upcoming Episodes: Release every other Wednesday, you won't want to miss interviews with an amazing woman welcoming Afghan refugees in Canada (Ep 8), the incredible story of the courageous leader of the Somalia Bible Society (Ep 9), and more. You'll meet Kenyan leaders with a passion for training biblically informed pastors and another leading pioneer church planting ministry among Muslims, and others from Iran, Australia, Ethiopia, Sudan, the Middle East, and more. Make sure to subscribe and give us a 5-star rating on your favorite podcasting platform. Sign up for our newsletter at reflexio.org/subscribe to receive an email when new episodes drop.  

Russell shares his incredible odyssey: from wrestling with profound questions about Jesus to experiencing persecution, to fleeing home and ultimately finding refuge in New York City. He recounts how his faith deepened through hardship and the miraculous intervention of others.  Throughout this candid conversation you’ll hear of: A mother’s secret faith and final blessing Russell’s early days as a devoted Muslim and the crisis that changed everything The hidden struggles and dangers faced by Muslim-background Christians The heart and strategy behind Vision 2042 (mobilizing digital media to reach millions) The enduring cost—and deep joy—of choosing Christ above all     Now, Russell channels his passion into "Vision 2042": a bold, Spirit-driven movement seeking to see 10% of the 300-million-strong Bengali-speaking world encounter Christ within just one generation. Whether you’re interested in stories of resilience, global missions, or the power of personal transformation, Russell’s journey will challenge and inspire you to see God’s hand even in the hardest seasons. To Support Russell's ministry visit: Global Gates Visit Facebook site: Good News Bangla Visit YouTube site: Good News Bangla Upcoming Episodes: Episode 8 - January 14th: From Hospitality to Hope: Afghan Refugees and the Power of Ordinary Welcome Episode 9 - January 28th: A Somalian Experience of Persecution and Bold Ministry Episode 10 - February 11th: A former high-caste Hindu planting churches among Muslims and Hindus in Kolkatta Make sure to subscribe and give us a 5-star rating on your favorite podcasting platform. Sign up for our newsletter at reflexio.org/subscribe to receive an email when new episodes drop.

Meet two passionate cross-cultural Indian missionaries whose journey spans decades, nations, and whose ministry has impacted countless lives.  In this episode, Chella and Newton share about: Their personal stories of hearing and responding to God’s call as young people in southern Tamil Nadu, India. Starting ministry among unreached and remote tribal groups, and the struggles, surprises, and joys of entering a world so different from their own. Transforming hardship into fruitfulness: how loneliness, rejection, and even midlife crises led to deeper faith and new methods for multiplying disciples. Adapting to the digital age—using social media and digital “filters” to bring the gospel to Muslim communities. Lessons learned from real-life breakthrough stories: mentoring future missionaries, combating deep-rooted social barriers like caste, and raising up healthy, multiplying churches. Practical advice and heartfelt wisdom for anyone stepping into full-time ministry or seeking to obey God’s call in everyday life. Listeners will be encouraged by Chella and Newton’s honesty about setbacks and doubts, moved by their joy in seeing lives transformed, and equipped with proven principles for mission. Whether you’re considering full-time ministry, serving in your local church, or simply looking for inspiration to follow God’s lead, this conversation—rooted in lived experience and biblical truth—will deepen your faith and broaden your vision. Tune in to discover how, no matter the obstacles, faithfulness in the small things and reliance on God brings a harvest. Upcoming Episodes: January 7th: A Bangladeshi’s Journey of Faith, Family, and Mission January 14th: From Hospitality to Hope: Afghan Refugees and the Power of Ordinary Welcome Make sure to subscribe and give us a 5-star rating on your favorite podcasting platform. Sign up for our newsletter at reflexio.org/subscribe to receive an email when new episodes drop.

Our guest today, Colorado native Jen Oshman, grew up in a broken and chaotic home. During her college years she discovered God’s healing as he walked with her in a very dark season of life. Jen surrendered her heart completely to him, happily accepting his call to serve overseas. The Lord led Jen and her husband first to Japan and then to the Czech Republic, raising four daughters along the way. Their long-term church planting dreams were undone, however, when they made the difficult decision to return to Colorado to care for Jen’s ailing father.  There, in the suburbs of Denver– the last place Jen wanted to be– her family applied their overseas methods of relational church planting to their new stateside ministry: invite people to dinner and ask them if they’d like to study the bible. People said yes, and a church was planted!   Jen’s ministry has expanded over the years through her writing and speaking gifts. She is the author of several books, including Welcome: Loving Your Church and Making Space for Everyone. She has also written about the good and necessary role that women have as co-laborers with their brothers on mission together. She encourages all to fully participate in his kingdom plans because all are welcome and needed. jenoshman.com Books by Jen Oshman redemptionparker.org

Our guest for this episode is Nigerian missionary theologian Uchenna Anyanwu. His story is one of God being faithful as he followed the Spirit’s leading – a journey that took him to graduate studies in the US, and to the writing of his book arguing for a cross-centered approach to peace building. We hear about Uchenna’s call from West Africa to North Africa, and then of the change that led to seminary studies in the States, and of his development of a theology of the cross as the basis for peacemaking amidst the Islamist violence in Nigeria. He challenges the global church to follow the example of Jesus’ response to suffering, evil, and violence as a model for Christians today.  Uchenna shares how God has provided for himself and his family as he continues to die daily to himself, live by faith, and choose the way of the kingdom of heaven.  Uchenna’s enthusiasm and joy in trusting God are an inspiration for us as we seek to reach the unreached. Get his book here: Pathways to Peacebuilding by Uchenna Anyanwu  Upcoming Episodes: December 3rd: A Hard Obedience in Different Directions December 17th: Indian Missionaries Experience Unexpected Changes Make sure to subscribe and give us a 5-star rating on your favorite podcasting platform. Sign up for our newsletter at reflexio.org/subscribe to receive an email when new episodes drop.

Growing up in a Muslim nation in SE Asia, with a nominal Catholic mother and a secular agnostic father, Paul had little meaning in life. As a college student in the UK he joined his fellow students taking drugs and living a wild life. After a visit to India while a university student, in which he got very sick as he visited Hindu ashrams, he began a drug-hazed search for truth, which he thought he could somehow find in the mountains.  So, after college, he travelled to and in the mountains of South America, spent many months traveling, doing drugs with other young people from around the world, and seeking wisdom and truth high up in the Andes.  After nearly dying from a genetic condition that he hadn’t known about, he eventually returned home to SE Asia a wreck. There, Jesus met him and delivered him from spiritual bondage, and his life of desperation when he was at a very low point.  Following his dramatic rescue by Christ, God led him to YWAM, then Bible school, then into ministry and he has served more than 25 years in church planting in a neighboring SE Asian country.  Don and Paul then discuss the ministry of deliverance, and discuss various approaches to church planting including Paul’s increasing experience-based disillusionment with church planting movement approaches.  It’s quite a story of grace, and of faithfulness in ministry in some very tough places, both in life and in ministry. Upcoming Episodes: November 19th: A Nigerian Cross-Centered Response to Islamic Violence December 3rd: A Hard Obedience in Different Directions Make sure to subscribe and give us a 5-star rating on your favorite podcasting platform. Sign up for our newsletter at reflexio.org/subscribe to receive an email when new episodes drop.

In this episode, Don and Jenn follow the challenging and painful journey of Ivan, an Iraqi refugee who escaped his country during the reign of Saddam Hussein. Along with physical challenges of transitions from the Middle East to Europe and long periods of separation from his family, Ivan also shares the cultural and religious issues that led him from communism, to atheism, to the ultimate joy of a heavenly citizenship with Christ.   Listen with our hosts to Ivan’s fascinating and inspiring story that takes us through his stages of personal doubts and struggles with God, to the existential crisis that ultimately led to his deep faith in Jesus as his Savior. Ivan uses his skills in media and film coupled with his heart for discipleship of believers from a Muslim background in helping create programs that encourage Muslims in their search for a relationship with the Triune God. Learn from Ivan how we can come alongside our former Muslim brothers and sisters in their walk of faith with Jesus. Upcoming Episodes: November 5th: Transformed from a drug-fueled searcher for truth into a church planter November 19th: A Nigerian Cross-Centered Response to Islamic Violence Make sure to subscribe and give us a 5-star rating on your favorite podcasting platform. Sign up for our newsletter at reflexio.org/subscribe to receive an email when new episodes drop.

This episode of Reflexio features Sabine, a faithful German Christian whose physical movements since childhood have been limited by a wheelchair, but whose Kingdom influence knows no bounds! Reflexio’s hosts Don Little and Jenn Chen talk with Sabine about the ways God has used her over the decades: first in France, and then in North Africa for 26 years - and counting.  Listen in on their conversation and hear how God has used Sabine and discover what He has taught her over the decades. She lets us in on the highs as well as the lows of life as a disabled person serving in ministry. Along the way she imparts her wisdom about perseverance in cross-cultural ministry through loss, betrayal and unexpected changes in ministry assignments. Through it all she’s convinced that relationships – not programs and strategies – are the key to reaching the unreached. Upcoming Episodes: October 22nd: The Incredible Journey of an Iraqi Refugee November 5th: Transformed from a drug-fueled searcher for truth into a church planter November 19th: A Nigerian Cross-Centered Response to Islamic Violence Make sure to subscribe and give us a 5-star rating on your favorite podcasting platform. Sign up for our newsletter at reflexio.org/subscribe to receive an email when new episodes drop.

Born the son of a Muslim cleric and raised in Mogadishu, Somalia, Aweis Ali shares his remarkable journey of faith in one of the most dangerous countries for Christians. From the impact of a radio ministry, to his isolation as an underground believer, to his leadership of a house church eventually devastated by persecution and loss, Aweis details the story of how God developed him into a national ministry leader and the founder of the Somali Bible Society. Show Notes: Within one of the world’s most hostile environments Aweis describes his search for spiritual truth, his discovery of Christ, and the profound isolation of being a believer in a context where his faith would cost him everything. Aweis recounts how he eventually found community in an underground house church as well as the challenges of practicing faith without formal theological training.  Amidst the rising tensions that emerged as the tiny house church grew, Aweis shares personal experiences of persecution, prophetic visions, leadership transitions, and the devastating human cost of religious extremism. He also discusses the remarkable faithfulness and spiritual resolve demonstrated by his church community despite increasing danger. Themes of divine providence, spiritual resilience, and faithful witness emerge as Aweis reflects on how his faith sustained him through extraordinary trials. The interview concludes with his reflections on how the Somali church is growing and maturing in the midst of—and because of—intense persecution. Check out these links to explore more Dr. Aweis Ali's ministry: Aweis Ali's personal website The Somali Bible Society An-Nour Academy Upcoming Episodes You won't want to miss the inspiring story of Carol, the Kenyan woman leading a ministry equipping rural pastors (Ep 10), or Professor Anwar, a convert from a strong Muslim family in Ethiopia who is now the dean of a leading seminary who runs a Master's degree program equipping men and women in ministry to Muslims (Ep 11). In upcoming episodes you'll also meet a Kenyan leader with a passion for training biblically informed pastors and another Kenyan leading pioneer church planting ministry among Muslims. You'll also meet others from Iran, Australia, South Asia, Sudan, the Middle East, and beyond.  

Listen in as Don talks with Anwar, an Ethiopian brother, and discovers how dreams, Bible study, persecution and perseverance shaped Anwar’s conversion and discipleship journey. His quest for truth led him to study deeply both the Qur’an and the Bible, discovering that in Jesus, the Truth is found. Deciding to follow Jesus set him free– but also led to intense difficulties. He shares how he navigated family rejection, discrimination, and economic hardship after his conversion. In his early years of ministry, despite these difficulties, Anwar shared the Gospel boldly with his family and friends, challenging them to discover what he did: new life in Christ. The miraculous healing of a friend led to many more coming to faith, and ultimately to Anwar’s decision to leave a lucrative job in order to serve God in ministry full-time. In time God blessed him with his wife from a solid and supportive Christian family. Over the past 20 years, Anwar has taught, discipled and mobilized dozens of people to reach Muslims in the Horn of Africa.  Don’t miss this story of conviction, resilience, and hope in the face of adversity! Upcoming Episodes Episode 12: In this episode, you'll meet Partha, a young high-caste Hindu convert to Christ who is now leading church planting teams ministering in Kolkatta, India, among both Hindus and Muslims. Episode 13: While visiting Nairobi last September, Don sat down with Dr. Nelson Makanda, Vice Chancellor of Africa International University. Nelson shared about his faith journey, his vision for the church in Kenya and some personal stories of hardship and faith. Visit: The Evangelical Theological College

In this episode, Carol shares about her upbringing in a Christian home, her early faith experiences, and the profound impact of losing her mother at fourteen. This deep loss led to a season of wrestling with God, but also solidified her commitment to serving him. She describes the transition from being a vibrant participant in university Christian Unions to stepping into formal ministry roles. While at times facing resistance as a woman in leadership, she found her path through mentorship, theological training, and obedience to her calling. Her professional journey includes working with student ministries, adult training in churches, peace and reconciliation projects in conflict zones, and ultimately, leadership in Africa Rural Trainers. Through ART she has overseen the training of hundreds of rural pastors who often lack access to formal theological education. ART’s programs are highly contextual, gathering pastors of various denominations for learning in local languages, enabling them to remain embedded in their communities during the multi-year training. This conversation highlights the importance of mentorship and the changing landscape of church leadership in Kenya, including greater inclusion of women. Carol also discusses the challenges and joys of ministry life, as well as marriage and parenting in the midst of demanding travel schedules. She also offers practical wisdom for young people discerning their callings, the necessity of godly counsel and supportive peers, the centrality of drawing daily spiritual encouragement from scripture, and the vital experience of the presence and faithfulness of God. The ministry that Carol now leads: https://africaruraltrainers.org/ Upcoming Episodes Episode 11: You won't want to miss the inspiring story of Professor Anwar, a convert from a strong Muslim family in Ethiopia who is now the dean of a leading seminary who runs a Master's degree program equipping men and women in ministry to Muslims. Episode 12: In this episode, you'll meet Partha, a young high-caste Hindu convert to Christ who is now leading church planting teams ministering in Kolkatta, India, among both Hindus and Muslims.