Saimir Braho lived under the extreme Communist rule in Albania, sometimes called the “North Korea” of Europe. Saimir experienced the tragedy of how far an atheistic worldview can drive a country away from the good God intends. For many years, Saimir himself did not believe in Christ, but over time he began to realize the deep failures of mankind when it turns its back on God and religion. In this episode, Saimir exposes the terrible fruit that grows from the lie that humanity can fix itself and does not need God.

Saimir’s story

Special thanks to Credo Schloss Unspunnen for the filming location and hospitality. This episode was recorded at the Kingdom Connect Conference in Switzerland; find more information at https://kingdomconnecteurope.org.

This is the 310th episode of Anabaptist Perspectives, a podcast, blog, and YouTube channel that examines various aspects of conservative Anabaptist life and thought.

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The views expressed by our guests are solely their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Anabaptist Perspectives or Wellspring Mennonite Church.

On February 28, America and Israel began attacks on Iran. But why did this war start? What happened in the past to lead the world up to this moment? Chris Stoltzfus has studied Islam and the Middle East for years and he has spent time in Iran. He brings his extensive study and experience in the Middle East to this interview to bring clarity to a complex situation. Chris explains how we should respond to this war, how we can pray, and how we can engage with the Muslims we encounter.

Video of Muslim imam discussing problems with the Qur’an

John Ghanim’s testimony

This is the 311th episode of Anabaptist Perspectives, a podcast, blog, and YouTube channel that examines various aspects of conservative Anabaptist life and thought.

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The views expressed by our guests are solely their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Anabaptist Perspectives or Wellspring Mennonite Church.

How should we engage with, and respond to, the many hot-button current issues, such as the American abduction of the president of Venezuela? The endless news cycle adds much confusion, and it can be hard to know how to live as citizens of God’s Kingdom, while also living within earthly kingdoms in this world. And what does Romans 13 have to do with this? Jaran and Marlin examine several recent events and how they view these events.

Report about US military commander

Milton’s Paradise Lost

Hans Mast, “Newslines.” Sword and Trumpet, January 2026

Hans Mast, “Reconciling Nonresistance with God’s Justice”

Vince Lewis’ Reflections on the American Military Industrial Complex

This is the 310th episode of Anabaptist Perspectives, a podcast, blog, and YouTube channel that examines various aspects of conservative Anabaptist life and thought.

Sign-up for our monthly email newsletter which contains new and featured content!

Join us on Patreon or become a website partner to enjoy bonus content!

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Read essays from our blog or listen to them on our podcast, Essays for King Jesus

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Support us or learn more at anabaptistperspectives.org.

The views expressed by our guests are solely their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Anabaptist Perspectives or Wellspring Mennonite Church.

Bryant Martin unpacks a theology of hospitality and gives practical ways we can “extend our tables in the wilderness” to reach into a broken and hopeless world. How can hospitality be effective ministry? How can we create life-giving spaces for the world around us?

Bryant started Sowers Harvest Cafe; find more info here.

Extend Cafés.

The Ideal Resistance

Doing Business Differently by Bryant Martin

Reaching America by Gary Miller.

The Six Conversations by Heather Holleman

Beautiful Resistance by Jon Tyson

The Gospel Comes with a House Key by Rosaria Butterfield

This is the 309th episode of Anabaptist Perspectives, a podcast, blog, and YouTube channel that examines various aspects of conservative Anabaptist life and thought.

Sign-up for our monthly email newsletter which contains new and featured content!

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Read essays from our blog or listen to them on our podcast, Essays for King Jesus

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The views expressed by our guests are solely their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Anabaptist Perspectives or Wellspring Mennonite Church.

There are many different interpretations of the sacraments throughout church history. Dean Taylor takes us on a journey through what the early church believed about baptism and the eucharist (Lord’s supper) and helps us think about how their beliefs can inform our lives and churches today.

Dean’s previous episode on the sacraments

Ante-Nicene Fathers (online for free)

Origen’s Commentary on Romans (Volume 1)

Origen’s Commentary on Romans (Volume 2)

The Didache

This is the 308th episode of Anabaptist Perspectives, a podcast, blog, and YouTube channel that examines various aspects of conservative Anabaptist life and thought.

Sign-up for our monthly email newsletter which contains new and featured content!

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Read essays from our blog or listen to them on our podcast, Essays for King Jesus

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The views expressed by our guests are solely their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Anabaptist Perspectives or Wellspring Mennonite Church.

Vince Lewis completed two years of officer training followed by 24 years of being an officer in the United States Air Force. He then worked for 14 years in weapons development for the Department of Defense on projects such as the B-2 Stealth Bomber. Eventually, Vince came to a different understanding of war and saw how Christ’s followers are instead to love their enemies. Vince draws from his experiences to take us inside America’s military industrial system. The kingdoms of this world use warfare for power, dominance, and control, while Christ’s kingdom wields self-sacrificial love.

Christianity, War, and America’s Salvation Story by Michael Lewis

Vince’s Testimony

This is the 306th episode of Anabaptist Perspectives, a podcast, blog, and YouTube channel that examines various aspects of conservative Anabaptist life and thought.

Sign-up for our monthly email newsletter which contains new and featured content!

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Read essays from our blog or listen to them on our podcast, Essays for King Jesus

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Support us or learn more at anabaptistperspectives.org.

The views expressed by our guests are solely their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Anabaptist Perspectives or Wellspring Mennonite Church.

Sometimes communion services in Mennonite churches can be a time of anxiety and bring up questions about assurance of salvation. Why is that? What is a proper way to think about and prepare for communion? Verlon Miller and Marlin Sommers explain how Mennonite churches traditionally have observed communion, and how we can come to the Lord’s Supper with joy rather than fear.

Anabaptists and the Sacraments: It’s Complicated! - Dean Taylor

This is the 306th episode of Anabaptist Perspectives, a podcast, blog, and YouTube channel that examines various aspects of conservative Anabaptist life and thought.

Sign-up for our monthly email newsletter which contains new and featured content!

Join us on Patreon or become a website partner to enjoy bonus content!

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Read essays from our blog or listen to them on our podcast, Essays for King Jesus

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Support us or learn more at anabaptistperspectives.org.

The views expressed by our guests are solely their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Anabaptist Perspectives or Wellspring Mennonite Church.

Paul Lamicela makes the case that we often oversimplify the kingdom of God. He takes us on a journey through Scripture to discover a fuller picture of God’s kingdom. What did this kingdom mean to the Old Testament saints and the New Testament church? What does it mean today?

Exile and the Storyline of the Bible

The Crucified King by Jeremy R. Treat

Biblical Storyline Academy

This is the 305th episode of Anabaptist Perspectives, a podcast, blog, and YouTube channel that examines various aspects of conservative Anabaptist life and thought.

Sign-up for our monthly email newsletter which contains new and featured content!

Join us on Patreon or become a website partner to enjoy bonus content!

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Read essays from our blog or listen to them on our podcast, Essays for King Jesus

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Support us or learn more at anabaptistperspectives.org.

The views expressed by our guests are solely their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Anabaptist Perspectives or Wellspring Mennonite Church.

Cancer affects or will affect most of us, whether it comes to us personally or to someone we love. Arvin Martin reflects on his own journey with cancer and offers some ways to think about God’s love and care through the pain cancer brings.

Walking the Talk by Arvin Martin

Cancer Statistics

Losing Linda Mae: A Cancer Caregiving Memoir

Trauma-Informed Churches - Janelle Glick

This is the 304th episode of Anabaptist Perspectives, a podcast, blog, and YouTube channel that examines various aspects of conservative Anabaptist life and thought.

Sign-up for our monthly email newsletter which contains new and featured content!

Join us on Patreon or become a website partner to enjoy bonus content!

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Read essays from our blog or listen to them on our podcast, Essays for King Jesus

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Support us or learn more at anabaptistperspectives.org.

The views expressed by our guests are solely their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Anabaptist Perspectives or Wellspring Mennonite Church.

Dean Taylor returns to the podcast to explain the sacraments and what this means for the life of the church. Historically, the Anabaptist view of the sacraments was a major issue in their breaking from the Catholics and Protestants. What were the issues at stake in those debates? What is the Anabaptist view of the sacraments? How should this inform how we live and do church?

Dean’s episode on the atonement

Ausbund

Doctrines of the Bible ed. by Daniel Kauffman

The Shape of the Liturgy by Gregory Dix

The Martyrs Mirror

An Introduction to Mennonite History by Cornelius J. Dyck

The Schleitheim Confession

The Writings of Pilgram Marpeck

The Writings of Balthasar Hubmaier

This is the 303rd episode of Anabaptist Perspectives, a podcast, blog, and YouTube channel that examines various aspects of conservative Anabaptist life and thought.

Sign-up for our monthly email newsletter which contains new and featured content!

Join us on Patreon or become a website partner to enjoy bonus content!

Visit our YouTube channel or connect on Facebook.

Read essays from our blog or listen to them on our podcast, Essays for King Jesus

Subscribe on your podcast provider of choice

Support us or learn more at anabaptistperspectives.org.

The views expressed by our guests are solely their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Anabaptist Perspectives or Wellspring Mennonite Church.

Albania was once the strictest and most isolated of the Communist countries and was sometimes called the “North Korea” of Europe. Saimir Braho was born in Albania during the Communist regime and witnessed the period of religious turmoil that came after the collapse of Communism. Saimir eventually embraced the truth of Christianity, despite living in a country in which talking about God had been grounds for imprisonment and believing in Christ had been illegal.

The Reformers and Their Stepchildren

Yuriy Kravets' Story

Special thanks to Credo Schloss Unspunnen for the filming location and hospitality. This episode was recorded at the Kingdom Connect Conference in Switzerland; find more information at https://kingdomconnecteurope.org.

This is the 302nd episode of Anabaptist Perspectives, a podcast, blog, and YouTube channel that examines various aspects of conservative Anabaptist life and thought.

Sign-up for our monthly email newsletter which contains new and featured content!

Join us on Patreon or become a website partner to enjoy bonus content!

Visit our YouTube channel or connect on Facebook.

Read essays from our blog or listen to them on our podcast, Essays for King Jesus

Subscribe on your podcast provider of choice

Support us or learn more at anabaptistperspectives.org.

The views expressed by our guests are solely their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Anabaptist Perspectives or Wellspring Mennonite Church.