Educate For Life With Kevin Conover

It’s in the news almost every day. Another white police officer has shot another young black man. People march through the streets crying for justice. Some even riot, loot and call for the death of cops in retaliation. They are followed by politicians who take a tragic situation and use it to their own political benefit. This is the tangled mess that is racism in America. But is racism the real issue or is there a root cause that needs to be dealt with? Is racism alive and well in America? Join Kevin Conover as he discusses this important issue with three special guests. Glen McKinney, Theo Goodwin (aka. Protege) and Daniel Wigginton are three African American men who have experienced the reality of racism in America. They will reveal how deep the problem goes and practical steps that everyone can take to help solve the issue. They will also discuss the role that the church has to play. For far too long the church has been asleep at the wheel. Sadly, the church has largely remained silent and has failed to re

“In every action we take, we are doing one of two things: we are either helping to create a hell on earth or helping to bring down a foretaste of heaven.”  These are the words of Chuck Colson, and Audrea Taylor, founder of im2moro, has taken them to heart.  In this episode, Audrea and Kevin discuss the crossroads that America has arrived at with the upcoming presidential election, and what millennial voters must do to secure the future of the nation. While performing with her choir in Washington D.C. as a young teen, Audrea heard an event speaker state that the political future of America rests on the next generation.  She suddenly realized that almost no one from this “next generation” was present or showing an interest in politics!  That’s why she and a group of like-minded individuals formed im2moro, an organization devoted to promoting the principles that make America great, as well as encouraging young people to think critically and get involved in politics. You can learn more at

“Once a junkie, always a junkie.”  That’s what Herlindo had been told, and that’s what he believed about himself.  However, even 16 years into his heroin addiction his mother told him something different: “Son, I know that some day you are going to change.  I am praying for you.”  Today Herlindo is San Diego County’s Director of Teen Challenge, the very organization that helped him turn his life around in 1990. In this episode Kevin talks to Herlindo and his assistant director Mike about the impact that Teen Challenge has had on their lives, and the lives of countless others.  The ministry was started by David Wilkinson (author of The Cross and the Switchblade) in 1960, and it is still helping teens and adults step out of drug addiction today.  Teen challenge is not a rehab center, and does not just teach behavior modification.  Instead, it takes those whose lives have been destroyed by drug addiction and introduces them to the one person who can actually help: Jesus Christ.

To many, the chasm between Christianity and homosexuality is insurmountably large. Some people believe that a person can be both a true Christian and openly homosexual. Is it possible to hold this position without compromising the Bible’s teachings? Kevin discusses the issue with Candice Czubernat, a therapist, writer, speaker and professing Christian who is raising two kids with her female spouse. Candice is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor with the State of Washington and an MFTI in the state of California. She has a Masters in Counseling Psychology and has been working in the mental health field for over a decade. Candice grew up in a loving home, but her Christian roots did not provide any context or support for her struggle with the notion of being gay. Kevin and Candice fall on opposite sides of the debate, but come together in spite of their disagreement to express their thoughts in a civil discussion. Tune in to hear Candice explain why she holds the position she does and how she views scripture, as

You probably wouldn’t expect a committed evolutionist with a secular upbringing, who earned multiple graduate degrees in the hard sciences from prestigious universities, to end up being one of the world’s leading creation scientists.  But that’s exactly what happened with Dr. John Baumgardner of the Logos Research Associates, the foremost expert on Noah’s Flood and its significance to Earth’s geology. After completing his BS in electrical engineering at Texas Tech and MS in electrical engineering from Princeton, John began work on his PhD.  Some other students invited him to a Bible study that was covering the gospel of John, and despite his secular background he soon found himself face to face with Jesus.  John gave his life to the Lord, and then had to determine how to best use his life for the Lord, while using his scientific training and also fulfilling his prior commitment to the U. S. Air Force.  John talks with Kevin about his subsequent journey from witnessing with Campus Crusade f

The issue of homosexuality is a hot button topic in today’s society. For Christians, it is even more so. In regards to the LGBT community, christians and the church are often seen as bigoted, hypocritical, unloving and uncaring. But is there a way for the church to change this perception and come along side this community to minister to them and love them? Guest Patti Height believes there is. She has founded Out of Egypt Ministries to help churches accomplish this goal. Out of Egypt is a non-profit ministry that is dedicated to speaking forth the truth of God’s Word to a generation that has been enslaved by lies. Patti Height knows the destructive bondage that comes as a result of believing and living under this deception, and began this ministry with a desire to help others find the same peace and healing she found, through faith in Jesus Christ. As a teen, Patti turned to alcohol and drugs, and later entered into the world of homosexuality. For many years she believed the lie that there was no hope for cha

If you had to guess the number one belief system in the state of Israel, what would you say? If you said “jewish” you would be right and wrong. The majority of Israelis would say they were jewish simply because it is their nationality. However, the major belief system in Israel is atheism or secularism. Furthermore, the majority do not recognize Jesus as a jew, much less the savior of the world. Many simply do not know who Jesus was or that his name in Hebrew means salvation. Israel is one of the most unreached parts of the world. Today on Educate For Life, Kevin speaks with a man who has made it his mission to reach these people. Guest Dan Sered knows first hand what it is like to have never heard the name of Jesus. Dan Sered was born in Israel on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. His upbringing, like that of many Israelis, was secular, though he was bar mitzvah at age thirteen. Two years later, his family moved to New York where Dan attended Stony Brook University and met Dinah, a Jewish believer in Jesus.

Quick! What type of government does the United States have? Would it shock you to know that we don’t have a democracy? In fact many of our founding fathers and early presidents abhorred democratic government. James Madison once said, “Democracy is the most vile form of government. … democracies have ever been spectacles of turbulence and contention; have ever been found incompatible with personal security or the rights of property: and have in general been as short in their lives as the have been violent in their deaths.” However, the founding fathers realized that certain properties of democracy would benefit America which is why they framed the United States as a democratic republic. They also recognized that a democratic republic would only be stable as long as God was at the center. Today’s political atmosphere has shifted. Democratic socialism has become popular to some and to others it is still a taboo. Join Kevin Conover to dissect these often confusing political terms. What is democratic socialism and

The debate over the existence of God and the presence of evil is ages old. The greek philosopher Epicurus pondered this seeming contradiction. He wrote, “Is God willing to prevent evil but not able? Then he is not omnipotent. Is he able but not willing? Then he is malevolent. Is he both able and willing? Then whence cometh evil? Is he neither able nor willing? Then why call him God?” In the modern age, this debate landed in a court of law. In 2007, a state senator sought an injunction against God for His many malicious acts. In his lawsuit, the senator claimed God has caused “widespread death, destruction and terrorization of millions upon millions of the Earth’s inhabitants.” The judge eventually dismissed the case because the Almighty could not be properly notified of the lawsuit because of his unlisted home address. Today, that debate continues on Kevin Conover’s Educate For Life radio show. He is joined by guests Clay Jones and Sean Taylor. Clay Jones is a professor at Biola university and is writing

What if your son came home one day and told you he was locked in a room for an hour and forced to pray to Jesus. In today’s politically correct world you might think this would never happened, but in fact it has. The young boy’s parents were so outraged they sought to get all christian clubs banned from the school. The school fearing a lawsuit prevented the club from reforming for months. Join Kevin as he talks with guest Nate Landis, who is here to tell you how this club fought back and eventually earned reinstatement. Nate Landis is President and founder of Urban Youth Collaborative. His passion is to share how Jesus brings hope, healing, and purpose into hurting lives. He is an ordained minister and evangelist in the Presbyterian Church (USA) who speaks often at churches, schools, and conferences. He has a B.A. in Sociology and Youth Ministry, M.Div. in Urban Ministry Emphasis, and a Ph.D. in Religion & Ethics. Learn how you can get involved with Urban Youth Collaborative in your community or public sc

In this unaired bonus episode of Educate For Life with Kevin Conover, Kevin speaks with Dumisani Washington. Dumisani is the founder of the IBSI (Institute for Black Solidarity with Israel) and author of Zionism & the Black Church: Why Standing With Israel Will Be a Defining Issue for Christians of Color in the 21st Century. He presents his views on why it is important for all American Christians to support the modern state of Israel, and the Black church in particular. Kevin and Dumisani talk about some of the misinformation that the enemies of Israel have circulated in their attempts to delegitimize it as a state, especially the idea that zionism is equivalent to racism. Dumisani explains why the black church can identify with the people of Israel, and why all Christians must defend the only safe place for the Gospel of Jesus Christ in the Middle East. To learn more about Dumisani and his book Zionism and the Black Church, visit IBSI-now.org.  You can learn more about how US Christians can support

Not long ago, the debate between creation and evolution was almost entirely one-sided—at least in the scientific sense. Although Christians long opposed the evolutionary explanation of life on Scriptural grounds, they had no answers to any of the scientific arguments. That is, until Dr. Henry Morris published The Genesis Flood in 1961. This book became, as Dr. Steven Jay Gould commented, the “founding document of creationism,” and Dr. Morris the founder of the modern scientific creationist movement. In this episode Kevin talks with Dr. Morris’ son, Dr. Henry Morris III, about his father’s legacy, the ongoing success of the Institute for Creation Research, and other issues relating to creationism. They discuss current creation research projects, the future and challenges of creationism in the church, and more. In addition to the many free resources they offer on ICR.org, the Institute for Creation Research provides creationism training at special conference events.  One such event will take plac

A 13 year old boy told a school counselor that he felt he should not have to go to church three times a week with his parents.  The counselor called for an “emergency removal” of the boy from his home.  At a subsequent hearing the judge mandated that his parents only take him to church once a week to retain custody of their son. This scenario occurred not under a communist regime or in a George Orwell novel, but in modern-day America.  It is just one example (albeit an extreme one) of the government undermining parental rights.  This week Kevin talks with Michael Farris, President of ParentalRights.org and Chairman of the Home School Legal Defense Association.  Michael is a constitutional lawyer (and the litigator on the above case) devoted to the issue of parental rights.  He explains how the government has given itself the ability to take rights away even from responsible, non-abusive parents, and what we must do to correct this injustice. When our nation was founded,

Ultimately, it’s not up to a church, youth pastor, Christian school, or anyone else to make sure that your kids are strong enough in their faith to face the world’s challenges: it is your responsibility. Many parents feel that when it comes to teaching their children to answer the faith’s more difficult questions, either they don’t have time, or they don’t know how to bring up the topic, or they don’t feel up to the task themselves. That’s why Natasha Crain, a Christian mom and blogger turned apologist, wrote her book “Keeping Your Kids on God’s Side: 40 Conversations to Help Them Build a Lasting Faith.” In this episode of Educate For Life with Kevin Conover, Natasha and Kevin discuss her book and the importance of parents training up their children in the ways of God. “Keeping Your Kids on God’s Side” can help any Christian parent introduce some of the most difficult topics to their children, from the problem of evil to slavery in the Bible. Check out Natasha’s website, ChristianMomThoughts.com, to buy the b

This week Kevin talks to psychologist Dr. Julie Hayden, Dean of the Graduate School of Behavior Sciences at Southern California Seminary.  Julie is trained not only in psychology, but also in religious studies (in which she has both a Bachelor’s and Master’s).  This dual focus enables her to approach psychology from a Biblical perspective, in order to best understand how God has designed humans to function.  It also allows her to understand how certain behaviors, such as pornography abuse, are harmful to both individuals and families. Maintaining a family is never easy, but it’s much harder when a member struggles with something like addiction (whether drugs or pornography), PTSD, or infidelity.  However, as traumatic as they are, even these issues can be overcome: with the proper methods, there can be healing.  But how do you confront a loved one about something so sensitive, and how can you be sure that they will make a las

One of the most dreaded responsibilities of any parent is that of talking to their child about sex.  Aside from the general awkwardness of the topic, it feels as though bringing it up will spoil a child’s innocence.  However, if parents aren’t proactive in teaching their children a biblical perspective on human sexuality, the world will be all too eager to fill their heads with harmful misinformation.  And with children having more and more internet access from increasingly younger ages, they will almost certainly be exposed to the worst teacher of all: internet pornography. This week Kevin talks to Luke Gilkerson, a Christian author, co-founder (with his wife) of the family website IntoxicatedOnLife.com, and an 8-year employee of Covenant Eyes.  Luke is all too aware of the dangers of pornography: he was addicted to it for years.  After countless attempts (many halfhearted) to give up porn left him believing he could never truly change, Luke was finally able to escape

Does the geologic evidence really prove an ancient Earth, or can a biblical perspective do a better job of explaining our world’s features?  This week Kevin’s guest is research geologist Dr. Steve Austin.  He may not be a stone-cold wrestler, but he does know a lot about rocks.  You may think geology sounds boring, but Steve could prove you wrong: he recently climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro, and has visited many other exotic and beautiful locations for his research (especially the Grand Canyon). Steve talks to Kevin about some of the evidence he’s uncovered for biblical history throughout his long and productive career.  Where did the Grand Canyon come from, since it clearly wasn’t formed by the Colorado River (as secular geologists are now admitting)?  Why are there so many marine fossils in completely inappropriate places, like deserts and high mountains?  Could there be evidence that there really was an earthquake when Jesus was crucified, as the Bible says? &

Many people can name a specific reason why they became a Christian, but how many would say the reason is “math”? Probably very few, and Douglas Ell is one of them.  Kevin talks to Doug about his recent book Counting to God, in which he explains how mathematical analysis of the scientific evidence over several decades finally persuaded him to change from atheism to Christianity.  For Doug, it wasn’t moral arguments, spiritual feelings, or difficult life circumstances that brought him to God.  He needed hard evidence, and that’s just what he found.  Kevin and Doug discuss this evidence, from biology (the fact that so many organisms have completely unique and functional DNA code with no evolutionary history) to quantum mechanics (the existence of measurable, physical phenomena that defy the laws of physics) and beyond.  They show that God isn’t just a last resort to cover gaps in scientific knowledge: there are irrefutable positive evidences why He is absolutely neces

As Christians, we believe that God created us.  Does it really matter how he did it?  This week Kevin talks to Mike Riddle, founder and president of the Creation Training Initiative, who has been involved in creation ministry for over 30 years.  As someone who grew up in a non-Christian home and accepted the theory of evolution from a young age, Mike brings a unique perspective to creationism.  In this episode he explains why both the Bible and logic tell us that evolution is not an adequate view of origins.  He talks about why a Christian’s view of Genesis matters, and addresses some common objections to creation science. In his early education Mike was taught that evolution was the only theory around, and didn’t think to question it.  It wasn’t until his adulthood, while he was serving in the marines, that a stranger planted the seed that would transform his life.  One day while Mike was at the gym, another marine approached him out of the blu

This week Kevin examines one of the oldest objections to theism, dating to even before Jesus walked the earth: the problem of suffering (aka. the problem of evil, the problem of pain, etc.).  The ancient Greek philosopher Epicurus argued, if there were a righteous and all-powerful God, he would not allow evil to exist.  Yet evil does exist.  Therefore a righteous, all-powerful God does not.  Case closed, right? But perhaps Epicurus’ argument raises more questions than it answers.  What is evil?  Is it an absolute quality, and if so, what defines it?  Can we really know for sure what a righteous and all-powerful God would or wouldn’t allow?  Kevin takes a look at the questions raised by Epicurus’ challenge, as well as the basis for morality and reasons to believe God exists.  As Josh McDowell stated, “Don’t allow the unexplainable to keep you from the undeniable.” Though the reality of suffering can be hard to deal with,