It was a Christmas memory, of all things, rich with history and spiritual stirring, that first breathed life into "O Little Town of Bethlehem." A memory that has since become a treasured part of countless Christmas celebrations, including ours in that little mountain church on the side of the road so many years ago.

But around 1797, a dark cloud overshadowed the ministry of Christmas Evans.

Although Samuel and Joanna Evans could not have possibly known it, the child in their arms that would bear the name of the day of his birth, through heartache, pain, poverty and suffering, would also leave in the wake of his life a myriad of changed lives and a lasting mark on the country of his birth.

Down through the annals of recorded history, tucked away within its dusty pages, are hidden gems; breathtaking accounts that put on display happenings so astonishing that their only explanation is the intervention of the Divine. In his book, “Church History in Plain Language”, author and historian Bruce Shelly states that “Christianity is a historical religion, and its history is the story of God's interactions with humanity.” These interactions are the driving passion behind the Forgotten Podcast. Join me, your host, Ronnie Brown, as I delve deep into the lives of those who, although have faded from the conscious memory of the Christian church, still brilliantly display the power of God doing extraordinary things through the lives of ordinary people. From accounts of inexplicable providences, and stories of powerful conversions, to moving testimonies of selfless sacrifice and service, each audio journey peers through the lens of Christian history to uncover the mysteries of faith. Every episode of the Forgotten Podcast will rouse your courage, challenge your complacency, and strengthen your resolve to trust God down every avenue of your own life's journey.
Join me as we walk alongside fascinating Christians of bygone days and discover how the past can hold strength for the present. Subscribe now on your favorite podcasting app or visit us online at forgottenpodcast.com.

Escaping the horrendous North Atlantic storm that nearly took his life, John emerged with a newfound faith in Christ. But the days ahead were far from smooth sailing. As with many new believers, those early first steps of following Christ are filled with faltering stumbles of spiritual immaturity and well laid snares by an unseen enemy. But them all, God is able to recover John again and again and by astounding providences bring him to a place of obtaining the love of his life. 

Emerging from captivity, John soon ventured upon a life in Africa of growing wealth and boundless exploration of his depraved desires. That is until he was lured by prospects of inheritance onto a ship bound for England. A ship whose near floundering changed John's life forever.

Pressganged in to the Royal Navy, John's haughty personality and infatuation turn what might have been a prestigious opportunity for John in to a disgraceful ruin. And the chance encounter with a slave ship which he thought to be his rescue, proved to be a nightmare.

Over 250 years ago, wooden boats powered by canvas sails tried the seas with no assurances that they would ever set foot on solid ground again. On the high seas, sailors at the mercy of rolling waves and raging storms, do what have done since the days of Jonah, they cry out to God. Such was the case with a blasphemous deckhand named John. At first, he hesitated, considering how he had forsaken God so long ago for a life abandoned to wickedness. But cry John did. And the Lord heard that cry, reaching down with a tender hand of love and grace and not only saved John from the storm, but rescued his life from the depths of sin. An act of God that would eventually impact much of the known world for centuries to come.

If there was ever an individual who fit the description of being a wretch, it was John. From the age of eleven he sailed the high seas, picking up every depraved behavior that an 18th century deckhand was willing to share. He was an insubordinate and disrespected member of the English Navy, twice charged with desertion. His active participation in the African slave trade and his horrific treatment of them was abhorrent. On top of all this, his complete and utter disregard for the God of the Bible, a love for which his mother desperately tried to instill in his childish mind before her untimely death, justly deserved a thunderous bolt of lightning hurled from the heights of heaven to devour his puny frame and dispatch him into the charred walls of the damned. 

The Mad Queen of Madagascar's first draught of martyr’s blood, which without doubt brought upon her a continuous thirst for more, was from of a young woman named Rasalama; a peasant girl in the poor village of Manjakaray in Madagascar. The queen’s intent was to either cause the girl to beg for her life, casting aside her Christian faith. Or the empress would use her gruesome execution to send a chill of fear upon all that might be persuaded to heed the words of this Jesus. In the end, it did neither.

Burrage Lane made sure his hunting rifle was loaded with dry shot, then he slid the weapon into his saddle. Anger boiled within him, as he looked at the gun. The man he was there to find had to be stopped at all costs because what he was spouting from behind that pulpit was poison, as far as he was concerned. But he did promise his wife that he would go and hear what he had to say one time.

The series of personal tragedy and suffering that Elizabeth Payson Prentiss encountered is hard to fathom. Stories of lesser personal loss that caused individuals to completely shut out even the idea of a loving, personal almighty God are numerous and easy to find. So what would become of Elizabeth, this heart-broken mother, wife of a respected Presbyterian pastor, and daughter of arguably the most beloved and powerful pastor’s of 19th century New England?  More. She would plead to God for more.

John quickly kissed the forehead of his daughter and handed her to the crewman, who then handed her to Jesse. When Nana saw that her daddy was not following, she began to cry and scream, “Daddy! Daddy! No! Don’t leave me!” Through the blur of tears in her eyes, she saw her daddy, turn and...

With his heart filled by the joy of the Christmas story, and the gift of a Saviour, Jim Elliot (as well as his four friends) had no idea that a few days hence they would pay the ultimate price for their desperate attempt to make the good news known to all people. Sound track list:...

There are some for whom the Christmas season only magnifies more their sorrow than their joy. The stringing of lights, the gifts under the tree, and the arrangement of the Christmas dinner table are only stinging reminders that someone who was once there is gone. The great evangelist D.L. Moody was no stranger to such...

The LORD ruleth over all. He is able to control the seas, the storms and the sparrows of life; its rains, its rivers, and its routes. He is even able to guide the steps of a condemned servant running for his life and the paws a wilderness dog to intersect into an encounter of astounding...

Even though David Marks was not much more than a child, he knew that what was to be prized above all, was not to be found in this life but in the life to come. So on January 1, 1821, with a single one dollar bill in his pocket and the promise of God to...

Sickness and suffering, pain and plague seem to be question that many default to: If there is a God, then why is there so much suffering in the world? But we can be assured that our wounds are not wasted; that our suffering is never senseless. And as in the case of Charlotte Elliott, we...

Not much is known about James Abbes. He is described as young man, with a zeal to share to the story that the monarchy desperately longed to stamp out: the plain teaching of salvation by grace through faith alone. This teaching was considered heresy and punishable by death and in 1555 the list was long...

In AD 303, God confronted a most vile and blasphemous young man who had strayed far from the instruction of family and He did so at not a more inconvenient time. Sound track list: Liam Higgo – Forgotten Liam Higgo – Journey