The Do Gooders Podcast – Details, episodes & analysis

The Apostle Paul tells us in 2 Corinthians 9:7 that "God loves a cheerful giver." And we've seen that throughout this series—giving changes lives, both for those who receive and for those who give.

But here's something interesting: science agrees. Research shows that helping others doesn't just strengthen communities—it also transforms our health. Acts of kindness can boost our resilience, lower stress, and even help us live longer.

Today, I'm joined by health and science journalist Nicole Karlis, author of "Your Brain on Altruism." In her book, she explores how generosity lights up our brains, improves our well-being, and nurtures a culture of caring.

We'll talk about why crises often bring out extraordinary generosity, what the latest science says about altruism, and how we can sustain caring for one another even after the crisis passes.

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Alright, let's cut right to it today: the people behind the gifts—the donors, kids, families and partners who show us what it means to give with joy.

Paul reminds us in 2 Corinthians 9:7: "Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver."

And when we hear "cheerful giver," it's easy to picture the act itself—dropping money in a kettle, buying a toy for a child, or writing a check. But what's so powerful is how giving transforms both the receiver and the giver.

In this episode, you'll hear stories of people who've made generosity part of their tradition. Joy multiplies. Families are knit closer together. Communities are strengthened. And those who receive don't just get a meal, a gift or a place to stay—they experience hope, dignity and love.

So as you listen, I invite you to consider: what's one joyful giving tradition you could start in your own life, or with your family? Because as you'll hear in these stories, cheerful giving doesn't just change Christmas—it changes us.

EPISODE SHOWNOTES: Read more.

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DO GOOD. Give to The Salvation Army.

Discover how the Big Five personality traits shape the way you see the world—and your relationships. 

Dr. Jack Anderson joins Christin Thieme to share practical ways to bridge differences, build trust and bring out the best in others.

EPISODE SHOWNOTES: Read more.

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DO GOOD. Give to The Salvation Army.

We're kicking off our state of the issues series today with the state of hunger.

According to the USDA, more than 34 million people, including 9 million children, today in the United States are food insecure. 

Across the country, The Salvation Army operates more than 1,500 food pantries, and annually serves more than 171 million meals, which includes prepared meals and some 6.4 million food boxes that contain 20 meals each.

To help set the table for this series on hunger and food insecurity, we're talking today with Captain Angel Amézquita, the Corps Officer and director of the Los Angeles Central Corps and Red Shield Community Center, located in the heart of LA's Pico-Union neighborhood.

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FIGHT FOR GOOD. Give to The Salvation Army.

Just a year ago, if you would've asked the experts where the U.S. was headed, they were certain of one thing: the country was beelining toward a recession. 

In fact, a Bloomberg economic model said the odds of a U.S. recession in 2023 were 100 percent. Not 99 percent. There was no possible chance an economic slowdown was avoidable.

So, how are we doing a year later? Well, you could say those grim forecasts were a little off-target. The U.S. economy, according to all the key indicators, is humming right along.

And yet, for many Americans, prosperity is ever elusive. And there's still unmet need in every zip code across the U.S.

The Salvation Army has its work cut out for them, especially as we work to meet the needs of the whole person—body, mind and soul.

And that's exactly what we're covering in the episodes of this podcast to come. We'll be taking a look at the state of the issues, exploring The Salvation Army's work through the lens of its seven primary areas of service. 

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FIGHT FOR GOOD. Give to The Salvation Army.

As the saying goes, the mind is a terrible thing to waste. 

That's the ethos Major Terry Masango lives by, and it's paid off as he recently received a Doctor of Education in Organizational Leadership.

Dr. Masango was raised in Zimbabwe and now as a Salvation Army officer, or pastor, he serves in the Seattle area as the General Secretary in the Northwest Division—a role you might compare to a chief operations officer. 

Along his educational journey, Dr. Masango learned to embrace discipline, and is now putting those skills to work. 

So allow me to introduce to you today, to share more about his academic pursuits and how he's applying them to his ministry with The Salvation Army, Dr. Major Terry Masango. 

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FIGHT FOR GOOD. Give to The Salvation Army.

Before and after.

Before 2020, the idea of closed borders, lockdowns, face masks, social distancing, and testing weren't a thing.

After, we've experienced the real toll, the disruption, the unknown that the pandemic brought.

It was a crisis of a generation, and it changed the world on a global scale. Mental exhaustion, economic disparities and escalating divisions now mark our times.

But award-winning author, Dr. Chris Rice sees the challenges of our day as a historic opportunity for renewal and fresh growth.

In his new book, "From Pandemic to Renewal: Practices for a World Shaken by Crisis," he examines eight interrelated crises exposed by the pandemic era and provides pathways for followers of Christ to bring transformation and healing to their lives and communities.

Rice is director of the United Nations Office of the Mennonite Central Committee, an international relief, development, and peace agency. He served as Co-Founding director of the Duke Divinity School Center for Reconciliation, and is coauthor of Reconciling All Things and More Than Equals, which both won Christianity Today Book Awards.

Now, from a burnout society and bipolar world order to our own divided selves, Rice helps us understand this emerging world that will reshape our lives for decades to come. In today's show, he also shares some of the transformative practices that can move us toward social healing and spiritual renewal.

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Did you know The Salvation Army serves in more than 130 countries around the world and in every U.S. zip code, working to meet human needs in every community—exactly as that community needs? 

Every program is rooted in a passion to serve God by serving the hurting, the helpless and the hopeless. In the Western Territory, The Salvation Army serves the 13 Western states in addition to Guam and Micronesia. With a geographic area that large, the scope of service often takes unique forms. 

So on this show, I'm here to share 11 ways The Salvation Army tailors its service to meet the distinct needs of people in the West.

EPISODE SHOWNOTES: Read more.

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FIGHT FOR GOOD. Give to The Salvation Army.

After 37 years of not believing, one day, God was there.

That was the experience Andrew Flockhart had. As he says: I found God at the Dallas-Love Field Airport on a business trip. 

Now in training to become a Salvation Army officer (or pastor) at the College for Officer Training at Crestmont in Rancho Palos Verdes, California, Cadet Andrew Flockhart is preparing to be commissioned and sent out for ministry in June 2024.

Once an atheist but no more, he is here today to share more of his own story, his testimony about what has happened since that day in the airport.

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FIGHT FOR GOOD. Give to The Salvation Army.

Things are messy, right? That's life?

So where is the joy?

How do you find it?

Captain Arwyn Rodriguera can show you the way.

Arwyn Rodriguera is the Corps Officer and Executive Director of The Salvation Army Ray and Joan Kroc Corps Community Center San Francisco and Railton Place, a 113-unit affordable housing development in the city's Tenderloin neighborhood.

And she's also the adoptive mother to twin girls.

She knows about the trust established through attachment to a primary care giver. And that that attachment is the healthy community that can restore what has been broken.

She learned more about attachment theory on her journey to becoming a certified foster parent and realized in those classes that that's exactly how our attachment works to God.

That safety, that joy—alongside community, trust, restoration and celebration—are, as she says, the witness a weary and broken world needs.

EPISODE SHOWNOTES: Read more.

BE AFFIRMED. Get the Good Words email series.

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STUDY SCRIPTURE. Get inside the collection.

BE INSPIRED. Follow us on Instagram.

FIGHT FOR GOOD. Give to The Salvation Army.