Daytime with Lydia

Imagine you had to rate your pursuit of God on a faith appraisal form - what score would you give yourself? Convicting, isn’t it? In a culture that constantly tells us to do more and be more, many Christians end up feeling spiritually exhausted. But what if pursuing God wholeheartedly isn’t about doing more? Texas-based Bible teacher and women's minister Cheryl Marshall joined Lydia to chat about her new book 'All of Me' and what it really looks like to give God every part of ourselves.

When was the last time you had a proper health check? Not with your GP... but a spiritual check up. Rev Rachel Bedford has just published her first book, Spiritual Health: In Pursuit of Resilient Wellbeing and she joined Lydia to unpack why looking after our spiritual wellbeing is just as vital, if not more so, than caring for our mental or physical health.

Small groups are often the heartbeat of church life. Yet for many churches, small groups don’t always live up to that hope. So, how can we foster true discipleship and build thriving small groups? Derek Hughes, who has led Life Church Eccles for over three decades, with on‑the‑ground experience in building small groups, joined Lydia Bennett to unpack this

After encountering Jesus for the first time in her 50s, Rev’d Claire McEnery’s life took a dramatic turn. Following a distinguished 30-year career in policing, she felt God calling her into ordained ministry in the Church of England. Claire joined Lydia to share the remarkable story of her late-in-life faith journey, her deep passion for Jesus, her commitment to police welfare, and her heart for seeing the Church bring hope and healing to people today.

Helen Thorne‑Allenson, who has spent years helping churches think carefully and compassionately about this, has written a new book, A Church That Cares: A Biblical Guide to Loving One Another Well. She joined Lydia Bennett to unpack mental health in the life of the church and the practical building blocks needed to create communities where people don’t carry their burdens alone.

Loving the stranger sounds like the Christian thing to do, but in practice, many find this rather difficult. With the recent events around the world, how can Christians respond? Theologian and author, Dr Krish Kandiah OBE, joined Lydia Bennett to discuss insights from the newly released edition of his book God Is Stranger: The Surprising Power of Hospitality. Together, they unpack what loving our neighbour really looks like

Over the Easter period, the global Bible platform YouVersion saw 21.6 million people engage with Scripture in a single day, the highest number on record. So what’s driving this renewed hunger and curiosity for God’s Word? Lucinda Ross, Central Group Leader for Communications at YouVersion, joined Lydia Bennett to explore what God is doing through the Bible app.

Is the Church failing single people? Church should be a place of deep belonging for everyone but for single people, it can be often be a place where they feel left out or pressured because of their relationship status. So how do we shift the culture in our churches to genuinely value people of every stage of life? And if marriage is something we hope for, how do we keep it from becoming an idol? Nigel and Careena Van Zyl, founders of Cherish Singles Ministry joined Lydia to unpack.

The story of Rev. Fernando Carrillo stands out among those who were miraculously changed by the love of God. Fernando is the founder and CEO of Wellwater. He is also the host of London’s Leadership Podcast, works as an executive coach, and currently serves as the vicar of Christ Church, Peckham. But life didn’t start easily for Fernando. His journey to faith and to discovering Jesus is truly remarkable. He joined Lydia Bennett to share his powerful story and journey of faith.

Scripture doesn’t tiptoe around human emotion, it speaks of grief, anger, frustration - nothing is edited out or dressed up. And yet, running all the way through the Bible is a promise of peace, comfort, hope. So what happens when our internal world doesn’t match that promise and negativity feels louder than truth? Shaun Lambert joined Lydia to unpack what it looks like to break out of cynical thought patterns, and how we practically step into the joy of the Lord, even when it doesn’t come naturally.

Bikes4Mission exists to equip indigenous workers with the motorcycles they need to take the Good News deeper into unreached communities across Asia and Africa. The organisation was founded less than a year ago, but it’s already seeing key needs being met by the work they’re doing. Founder Ian Read joined Lydia Bennett to share his story and how God has uniquely woven this into this ministry.

We all do it, but comparing ourselves only steals our joy! How can we make sure comparison doesn't plant seeds of bitterness in our hearts? Howard Espie joined Lydia to unpack this question. Howard is an Anglican priest, spiritual director and leader of the Greenwood Retreat on the west coast of Scotland.

In his new book, In Good Faith: How the Nature of Belief Shapes the Fate of Societies, author and former Economist journalist Ryan Avent argues that faith shapes how we cooperate, how we build institutions, and how we imagine the future we’re working towards. He joined Lydia Bennett to explain how he came to that conclusion.

The Bucket Ministry exists to share God’s love through the gift of clean, safe drinking water. Founded in 2012, the ministry has since grown into a worldwide movement. Christopher Beth, the Founder, Chief Storyteller, and Director of The Bucket Ministry, joined Lydia Bennett to share his testimony and the vision behind the ministry.

What happens when the healing we’re praying for is delayed, looks different from what we expected, or doesn’t arrive at all? That is the tension that Andy Robinson had to wrestle with after learning he had stage 4 cancer. In his new book, The Big C in Me, Andy shares his cancer journey and the testing of his faith. He joined Lydia Bennett to share his testimony and how he learned to go from "Lord, why me?" to asking "Lord, what now?"