The Unfolding

Ryan Otto wanted the fairytale marriage and family he missed out on as a child. But he was paralyzed by the fear of choosing the wrong person or repeating his parents’ mistakes. Mary Jane was confident of one thing, she would never marry a pastor. It seemed to be an impossible situation, but it was actually an only-God-could-do-this kind of love story.

We all long to be loved and accepted. When people shower us with attention, it can be intoxicating. But when they repeatedly reject us, the wounds can be deep and long-lasting. The rejection Blake Mattocks experienced as a teenager forged a deep and festering anger that led him to a very dark place.

For missionaries Martin and Gracia Burnham, a night of celebration turned into a nightmare. On May 27, 2001, they were kidnapped from a resort in the Philippines by the Abu Sayyaf. They were held hostage for more than a year, forced to march through the jungle with little food, no clean water, and witnessing atrocities along the way. It was a year that would test their faith beyond anything they had experienced before.

Empty- that was how Daniel Goulet described his life. He tried to fill the void with drinking, drugs, and pornography, but nothing worked. As he spiraled into addiction and despair, he began thinking of suicide. That’s when he had a supernatural encounter that offered a way out.

Daniel Massieh was a young man in Egypt when he had a supernatural encounter with Jesus. His first question was “Lord why didn’t I know you sooner? Why didn’t someone tell me about you?” He had a passion to share the love of Jesus with everyone he met. But telling people about Jesus came with a cost - rejection, persecution, and prison.

How do you trust God as you watch your child suffer and your prayers seem to go unanswered? That was the unwelcome journey of Kelly Denham’s life. Kelly’s son T.J. experienced a brain injury when a mistake was made during heart surgery. For years, T.J. suffered and Kelly struggled to help, cope, and hang onto her faith.

What if you grew up believing you were unlovable? Going from foster home to foster home, Joe Buchanan believed there must be something wrong with him. It would take a supernatural act of love to change his life.

When Christmas doesn’t go the way we hope, it can be disappointing. But sometimes when things don’t go according to plan, it turns out to make some of our most precious memories. In this special episode, we share the stories of three people who had a different kind of Christmas.

All throughout the story of Jesus’ birth, there are encounters with angels. In fact, the scriptures, both Old and New Testament, are full of these stories. But many of us are perplexed by these spiritual beings. Hebrews 13:2 says, “Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.” Do people still encounter angels today?

The trauma and abuse Stephanie Cockrell experienced as a child left her with a deep-seeded, all-consuming anger. She moved through life ready to fight anyone that crossed her path. But at the same time, she was desperately looking for hope and love. She wanted to believe that somehow all of those traumatic experiences could be redeemed and that she could be free from the prison of anger, and maybe even help others find freedom too.