This week on 20 Minute Takes, we are sharing a part of Nikki Toyama-Szeto's conversation with Jemar Tisby and Mark Labberton on a new project and podcast: Credible Witness. They discuss the changing landscape of our world today, and the ways in which the credibility of Christian life is more important than ever. You can find the episode in its entirety here. Jemar Tisby is a historian, speaker, and New York Times best-selling author of the books "The Color of Compromise," "How to Fight ...

This week on 20 Minute Takes, we talk Avril Speaks. Avril is an accomplished film producer, showrunner, and director. She serves as Senior Program Director for Christians for Social Action's Storytellers Collective initiative. Avril shares about her journey with storytelling and how her vocation as a filmmaker is tied to her faith journey. She helps gives a glimpse of the challenges and opportunities of telling stories in Hollywood, and unpacks how compelling storytelling is authentic storyte...

On this episode of 20 Minute Takes, we speak with Eugene Cho, the President and CEO of Bread for the World—"a nationwide Christian advocacy organization that educates on hunger and equips people to advocate for policies to end it in the U.S. and around the world." He shares about how his ministry as a church pastor is deeply connected to his advocacy and justice work today, and how a vision for human flourishing here and abroad requires that people of faith take the problem of hunger & po...

This week on 20 Minute Takes, Nikki Toyama-Szeto speaks with Lauren Kim, National Organizer and Spokesperson for Young Evangelicals for Climate Action. In this conversation, Lauren shares about how climate action became a crucial part of her faith journey, shares stories of how young people are caring for creation, and gives some practical first steps for people looking to integrate creation care into their personal lives and faith communities. You can learn more about Lauren Kim and he...

This week on 20 Minute Takes, Nikki Toyama-Szeto talks with Malcolm du Plessis and Jalen Seawright of Common Hymnal, a songwriting collaborative that writes music of praise and protest, centering especially the voices of people who've been historically marginalized by Christianity. They discuss their music, the landscape of the Christian music industrial complex, and what it means to write believable music that is prophetic and affirming. This conversation is thick with theology and tunes, so...

This week on 20 Minute Takes, Nikki Toyama-Szeto talks with Michael Kim-Eubanks. Michael is a musician and co-pastor of Bethel Community Church in San Leandro, CA. They discuss the passage and signing into law of California's SB 4 (which allowed faith institutions among others to build multi-family homes on their properties, allowing for the development of 170,000 acres of land for development toward addressing housing insecurity in the state), their church's journey in pursuing this new oppo...

This week on 20 Minute Takes, Nikki Toyama-Szeto talks with Dr. Jenny Dyer, the founder of The 2030 Collaborative. They discuss the reality of foreign aid from the United States, how the recent funding cuts have directly impacted global health and the lives of HIV/AIDS patients around the world, and how it came to be that the American Christians in the early 2000s began to address the global HIV/AIDS emergency. This is a critical episode that you don't want to miss. Jenny Dyer is the Founder ...

This week, Nikki Toyama-Szeto talks with author, theologian, and pastor, Gary VanderPol. They discuss climate justice, and practical ways that faith communities can approach Christ-centered climate action prayerfully, personally, and politically. If you're interested in learning more about how to start up climate action small groups at your church, you can email Gary here: garyvp@gmail.com 20 Minute Takes is a production of Christians for Social Action Hosted by Nikki Toyama-Szeto ...

On this episode of 20 Minute Takes, Nikki Toyama-Szeto talks with Kevin Nye. Kevin is a writer and advocate working toward ending homelessness by engaging best practices. He's the author of the 2022 book, "Grace Can Lead Us Home: A Christian Call to End Homelessness." In this conversation, Kevin challenges listeners to think about homeless systemically, dispels some common myths about the problem of homelessness, and shares stories of communities who have taken steps of faithfulness to care f...

Welcome to 20 Minute Takes Season 7! What happens when we have learned to distrust our desires? And how does that get in the way of our pursuits to live in whole and just ways in our world today? Listen in as Nikki Toyama-Szeto interviews author, coach, and consultant Tracey Gee talk about her new book The Magic of Knowing What You Want: A Practical Guide to Unearthing the Wisdom of Your Desires. You can learn more about Tracey and her work here. Find her on Instagram, TikTok, and Threa...

In this final episode of season six, Nikki talks with Tony Deik. Tony is a Palestinian Christian from Bethlehem, Palestine. He is on faculty at Bethlehem Bible College, and currently resides in Bolivia with his family. Tony talks about the centrality of justice in the Christian scriptures, and how Christians might begin to understand justice as an act of worship and witness. They also discuss Christian Zionism, and how theologies have the potential to actualize either oppressive or just reali...

How can churches be good neighbors to families experiencing housing insecurity? This week on 20 Minute Takes, Nikki talks with Edith Yoder. She's the CEO of Bridge of Hope, an organization that has equipped Christian faith communities to end and prevent homelessness since 1987. Edith shares stories of transformation and empowerment as churches have learned to extend meaningful relationships to their homeless neighbors. If you are interested in learning more about Bridge of Hope and how they ...

This week on 20 Minute Takes, Nikki talks with Rev. Janna Louie, co-founder of the Coalition for Asian American and Pacific Islander Churches (CAAPIC). In this episode, they discuss the complex historical dynamics that affect Asian American/Pacific Islander (AAPI) voters, and the work that CAAPIC does to encourage AAPI Christians to show up as engaged citizens who participate robustly in the democratic process here in the United States. In a Presidential election year when the AAPI vote is ar...

Please enjoy this encore presentation of this episode (originally aired on March 16, 2022). This week, Nikki Toyama-Szeto talks with Kristyn Komarnicki (CSA's Director of Dialogue & Convening / Program Manager for Oriented to Love) about practical tips for transforming conflict through curiosity. After listening to this episode of 20 Minute Takes, your ability to handle conflict, have difficult conversations, and engage in meaningful dialogue will level up; your friends and family will ...

This week on 20 Minute Takes, Nikki talks with Jesse Rudy. Trained as an attorney, Jesse is the Founder and CEO of Redeem International, a Christian faith-based nonprofit that protects some of the world's most vulnerable widows and orphans from violent abuse and exploitation. They talk about the phenomenon of land theft in Uganda, its effects on women and children, and how their organization's deterrence strategy has broad societal effects throughout the country. Jesse also shares his reflect...

This week, David de Leon interviews CSA Executive Director and 20 Minute Takes host, Nikki Toyama-Szeto. Nikki shares what it looks like to lead a justice organization justly. She unpacks her organizational leadership theory anchored in intercession, and gives advice for how new leaders might integrate their spirituality into their leadership practice. Follow Nikki on Instagram, X (formerly Twitter). 20 Minute Takes is a production of Christians for Social Action. Host, Producer, Editor: D...

Please enjoy this encore presentation of this episode (originally aired on June 29, 2022). This week, David de Leon chats with Tim Ignacio. He's a Pilipino American community worker (and rapper!) in Metro Manila, in the Philippines. In this conversation, Tim shares about his story and vocation, the power of a ministry of tambay (loitering), and why he considers himself a balikbayan, and not a missionary. Listen in. Find Tim on Instagram @sobrangitm You can find his music on Spotify and Band...

This week, Nikki talks with Bill White. Bill is co-pastor of City Church Long Beach. Bill shares the story of his son coming out and how that experience challenged his theology and ultimately deepened his faith in Jesus. He discusses his church's journey of transformation through challenging conversations, and how critical it is for church communities to practice healthy modes of disagreement. You can also check out Bill's work at Small Church, Big Table. 20 Minute Takes is a production of ...

This week, Nikki talks with Rick Barry, the executive director of the Center for Christian Civics. Rick helps Christians to think about what it looks like for their communities to show up in the public square, and in this episode, he helps us to wrap our minds around what civic discipleship looks like and helps to break down the variety of ways people understand "politics" today. You can follow @therickbarry and @christiancivics on Instagram. 20 Minute Takes is a production of Christ...

July 27, 2024 will mark two years since Ron Sider, founder and President Emeritus of Christians for Social Action (originally Evangelicals for Social Action), passed away. Please enjoy this encore presentation of this episode with Ron (originally aired on March 9, 2022). This week, Nikki Toyama-Szeto chats with Ron Sider, the author of the acclaimed book Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger and the founder and President Emeritus of Christians for Social Action. Nikki and Ron talk about lesso...