Treasure Christ more than my reputation [Kanishka's story]

Marking 200 episodes of Stories of Jesus Changing Everything with Archbishop Kanishka Raffel!We welcome the Most Reverend Kanishka Raffel, Archbishop of Sydney, to share his remarkable journey from Buddhism to leading one of Australia's most influential Christian denominations.Archbishop Raffel's story begins in 1986, when a humid Sydney night and a pocket-sized Gospel of John transformed everything. Raised in a devout Buddhist family after immigrating from Sri Lanka in the 1970s, Kanishka spent his early twenties earnestly pursuing enlightenment through meditation and the eight-fold path. He was committed to gaining total control over every aspect of his life, until a friend on a beach mission told him something that shattered his worldview: being a Christian meant losing control of his life to Jesus Christ.From reading John's Gospel three times in one night to the prayers of his Christian grandmother and teenage friends, Kanishka's conversion story reveals how God orchestrates every detail, even before we know we need saving.They chat about the Archbishop's 17-year ministry in Perth, his unexpected call to become Dean of Sydney Cathedral, and ultimately his election as the first non-European Archbishop of Sydney. Kanishka shares the challenges of public ministry in an increasingly secular culture, the loneliness of leadership, and why he asks people to pray specifically for "the fear of God rather than the fear of humans."From debating theology over chili salt preferences to discussing the power of persistent prayer across generations, this episode captures exactly what Chip Lunch does best, revealing the extraordinary work of an ordinary God in the lives of people because Jesus Changes Everything.