Listen in as I interview my friend Jamie Tworkowski of TWLOHA (To Write Love On Her Arms). Jamie and I discuss the formation of TWLOHA, the recent death of Michael Jackson, and the importance of community. Read the entire TWLOHA story here...

To Write Love on Her Arms is a non-profit movement dedicated to presenting hope and finding help for people struggling with depression, addiction, self-injury and suicide. TWLOHA exists to encourage, inform, inspire and also to invest directly into treatment and recovery.

VISION: The vision is that we actually believe these things… You were created to love and be loved. You were meant to live life in relationship with other people, to know and be known. You need to know that your story is important and that you're part of a bigger story. You need to know that your life matters.

We live in a difficult world, a broken world. My friend Byron is very smart - he says that life is hard for most people most of the time. We believe that everyone can relate to pain, that all of us live with questions, and all of us get stuck in moments. You need to know that you're not alone in the places you feel stuck. We all wake to the human condition. We wake to mystery and beauty but also to tragedy and loss.

Millions of people live with problems of pain. Millions of homes are filled with questions – moments and seasons and cycles that come as thieves and aim to stay. We know that pain is very real. It is our privilege to suggest that hope is real, and that help is real. You need to know that rescue is possible, that freedom is possible, that God is still in the business of redemption.

We're seeing it happen. We're seeing lives change as people get the help they need. People sitting across from a counselor for the first time. People stepping into treatment. In desperate moments, people calling a suicide hotline. We know that the first step to recovery is the hardest to take. We want to say here that it's worth it, that your life is worth fighting for, that it's possible to change.

Beyond treatment, we believe that community is essential, that people need other people, that we were never meant to do life alone. The vision is that community and hope and help would replace secrets and silence. The vision is people putting down guns and blades and bottles. The vision is that we can reduce the suicide rate in America and around the world. The vision is that we would learn what it means to love our friends, and that we would love ourselves enough to get the help we need. The vision is better endings. The vision is the restoration of broken families and broken relationships. The vision is people finding life, finding freedom, finding love. The vision is graduation, a Super Bowl, a wedding, a child, a sunrise. The vision is people becoming incredible parents, people breaking cycles, making change. The vision is the possibility that your best days are ahead. The vision is the possibility that we're more loved than we'll ever know. The vision is hope, and hope is real. You are not alone, and this is not the end of your story.

Listen in as I interview Craig Detweiler - filmmaker, screenwriter, and author. In this discussion, Craig and I talk about his documentary Purple State of Mind, the importance of civil dialog in an increasingly polarized society, and whether there is such a thing a Christian film.

Craig Detweiler is a recognized author, screenwriter, filmmaker, professor and the former chair of the mass communication department at Biola University. He left this position in 2006 for Fuller Theological Seminary, where he served as the director of the Reel Spirituality Institute and the Associate Professor of Theology and Culture. He is now the incoming director of the Center for Entertainment, Media, & Culture at Pepperdine University.

Items discussed in this interview:

• Purple State of Mind
• Sundance Film Festival
• John Marks
• Conversant Life
• Center for Entertainment, Media, & Culture @ Pepperdine University

Listen in as I interview journalist Conor Friedersdorf. In this interview we discuss the state of conservatism and the GOP, the failure of the "Karl Rove strategy", and the importance of narrative in politics. Conor is one of my regular reads and is a refreshing voice of intellectual integrity in an ocean of partisan shills.

Conor Friedersdorf is a writer, editor and consultant. His credits include The Atlantic, Culture11, The Atlanta Journal Constitution, The Orange County Register, The San Bernardino Sun, Draft Magazine, and many others.

Recommended readings from Conor Friedersdorf:

• Electric Kool-Aid Conservatism
• Substance Matters
• Whiplash Watching the Right
• There's Nothing to Fear But All the Awful Things That Might Happen
• No One on The Corner Has Swagger Like Rush

Listen in as I interview David Batstone of Right Reality and the Not For Sale Campaign. David and I discuss the problem of modern day slavery, what people can do to fight this problem, and the issue of ethical business practices.