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Do angels still show up in the lives of ordinary people? In this special Christmas episode of The Unfolding, you'll hear powerful stories of angelic encounters—moments of protection, comfort, and God's undeniable presence. From hospital rooms to everyday situations, these eyewitness accounts point to a God who still intervenes in miraculous ways. Featuring stories from Gale, Stesha, Mark, Susie, Hannah, and Christy, this episode explores how God uses His messengers to bring hope when we need it most. If you're drawn to stories of evidence of God at work today, this episode will encourage and inspire you.

After years of questioning if adoption was right for her family, Megan Nilsen felt a clear leading from God to pray, fast, and search His Word. Her 'yes' to adoption opened the door to both immense challenges and undeniable moments of God's presence, teaching her about love, grace, and identity in Christ.

Megan is also the author of the Advent devotional Untangled Advent: Finding Hope in a Weary World, designed to help readers reconnect with God's peace during the holiday season. Learn more at meganbnilsen.com/untangled-advent.

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When Louis Dooley was 19, the judge sentenced him to life in prison plus 100 years. At that moment, something inside him shut down. His future felt gone and life as he knew it was over. But Louis' story didn't end behind bars. In the darkest, most hopeless place he could imagine, something unexpected and truly miraculous began. Today, Louis Dooley is the Executive Director of Philemon House, a ministry that disciples people touched by incarceration, and the author of "Prison Saved My Life." In this powerful episode, Louis shares his journey from despair to hope, the lessons he learned inside, and how his life now points others toward redemption and possibility, even when it feels impossible.

Content Warning: This episode includes discussion of violence and suicide and may not be appropriate for young listeners.

Show Notes:

Book: https://emmausworldwide.org/products/prison-saved-my-life?_pos=1&_sid=1f0bdf573&_ss=r

Philemon House Website: https://philemonhouse.org/

Louis' Website: https://www.louisdooley.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/philemonhouse5/

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"Sometimes God uses the smallest things to tell the biggest truths… a pair of shoes given to a child in the name of Jesus." Shawn Spurrier knows this firsthand. His own return to faith came through the steady kindness of community, long before missions was ever on his radar. Today, as director of Buckner Shoes for Orphan Souls, he's seen that same kind of community transformation unfold in Tenango, Mexico. This episode traces God's faithfulness in Shawn's story and in a village brought together by something beautifully simple.

Faith Podcasts are made possible by your support. You can click here to give.

What do you do when you're sure God has given you a dream, but every door stays firmly shut? Dallas Jenkins, creator and director of The Chosen, spent more than 20 years praying for the chance to make a film based on the beloved book The Best Christmas Pageant Ever. But year after year, the answer was the same: no. Until one unexpected moment when God stepped in. In this episode of The Unfolding, Dallas shares the behind-the-scenes story of waiting, disappointment, and the whisper from God that stopped him from deleting his dream forever. It's a story about calling, hope, and God's timing- perfect for the Christmas season and for anyone who's ever waited for God to open a door.

Show Notes:

The Chosen: https://www.thechosen.tv/en-us

Best Christmas Pageant Ever Movie: https://bestchristmaspageantever.movie/

Dallas Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DallasJenkinsOfficial

Dallas Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dallas.jenkins/?hl=en

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"Every cell in my body recognized that this was Jesus."

Heidi Barr was sixteen when a traumatic horseback accident changed her life. She describes leaving her body, meeting Jesus face to face, and waking up with a faith she never saw coming. Growing up in a Jewish home that rejected Jesus, her experience stands out as both unexpected and deeply powerful.

Read more in her book What I Saw in Heaven.

Faith Podcasts are made possible by your support. You can click here to give.

What happens when a skeptical agnostic begins investigating near-death experiences? For bestselling author and pastor John Burke, that search changed everything. John's journey began as a teenager while his father was dying of cancer. After picking up a book about near-death experiences (NDEs), he spent decades studying thousands of NDE accounts from people around the world. Their stories of encountering a God of light, love, and overwhelming peace, led him to a deeper understanding of Scripture, the afterlife, and the reality of heaven.

John Burke, author of Imagine Heaven and Imagine the God of Heaven, explains how science, faith, and evidence from NDEs intersect, and how his own path from doubt to belief became a powerful story of hope. If you're curious about life after death, what the Bible says about heaven, or how God pursues people through their questions, this episode offers real-life stories you won't forget.

Show Notes:

Imagine Heaven Book: https://www.amazon.com/Imagine-Heaven-Near-Death-Experiences-Exhilarating/dp/080101526X

Website: https://imagineheaven.net/

Imagine Heaven Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@JohnBurkeImagineHeaven

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/johnburkeofficial/

Faith Podcasts are made possible by your support. You can click here to give.

What happens when a skeptical agnostic begins investigating near-death experiences? For bestselling author and pastor John Burke, that search changed everything. John's journey began as a teenager while his father was dying of cancer. After picking up a book about near-death experiences (NDEs), he spent decades studying thousands of NDE accounts from people around the world. Their stories of encountering a God of light, love, and overwhelming peace, led him to a deeper understanding of Scripture, the afterlife, and the reality of heaven.

John Burke, author of Imagine Heaven and Imagine the God of Heaven, explains how science, faith, and evidence from NDEs intersect, and how his own path from doubt to belief became a powerful story of hope. If you're curious about life after death, what the Bible says about heaven, or how God pursues people through their questions, this episode offers real-life stories you won't forget.

Show Notes:

Imagine Heaven Book: https://www.amazon.com/Imagine-Heaven-Near-Death-Experiences-Exhilarating/dp/080101526X

Website: https://imagineheaven.net/

Imagine Heaven Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@JohnBurkeImagineHeaven

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/johnburkeofficial/

"Why Is Your Son Still Alive?"

Susie Larson knows what it feels like to walk through a season where God seems distant and every day feels fragile. Between high-risk pregnancies, neurological symptoms, and two children fighting for breath, she cried out for God to speak and heard nothing. But then a nurse asked a question that revealed a miracle Susie never expected. This powerful story invites you to rest, be still, and remember that God is rarely absent, even when He seems quiet.

Faith Podcasts are made possible by your support. You can click here to give.

At seventeen years old, a diving accident changed Joni Eareckson Tada's life forever. Paralyzed from the shoulders down, she sank into anger and depression, convinced her life was over. But in the midst of deep suffering and thoughts of suicide, Joni began to experience God in a way she never had before.

What started as heartbreak became a story of transformation, from despair to hope, and from questioning God to trusting Him. Through her journey, Joni discovered that the places of our deepest pain can become the very places God uses for His greatest purpose. Today, through her ministry Joni and Friends, she shares that message of hope with millions of people around the world, offering practical help and the love of Jesus to those living with disabilities.

Show Notes:

Website: https://joniandfriends.org/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JoniEarecksonTada

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joniandfriends/

Face of Anguish Drawing: https://joniandfriends.org/jonis-artwork/how-god-redeemed-my-life-in-the-face-of-anguish/

"I threw this Bible across the room and I said, 'God, if you're real, why won't you talk to me?'"

He writes fiction stories about danger and survival, but this story is real. Years before the books and the success, Ryan Steck's life unraveled into silence, weakness, and a single cry to God.

https://ryansteck.com/