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"Imagine if your name meant “God is with us!” This is the meaning of our dear Brother Emmanuel Agyemfra's name. We visited with him on our last Christmas Joe Tour. Listen in!"

We sit down with Pastor Emmanuel to trace a faith journey from a Ghanaian living room church to Korean seminaries to New Jersey congregations, and we cast a vision for bringing Plays on Word Theater to Ghana. Along the way we explore “dinner church,” bivocational ministry, and how unity in Christ thrives across many languages.

• early discipleship in a home church in Ghana
• starting a campus fellowship and owning calling
• bivocational mentors and NGO-minded service
• seminary studies and ministry posts in Korea
• transition to New Jersey churches and community care
• dinner church as practical evangelism and hospitality
• vision for a Ghana theater outreach powered by Scripture
• diversity as a gift and unity in Christ as center
• language, culture and the shared “hallelujah”
• closing prayer and pastoral blessing

Information for Emmanuel’s church, Leonia UMC, is in the show notes.

(Please click on the underlined links below.)

Leonia UMC Church: https://leonia.church/

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The Plays on Word Theater team is always setting up new performance dates! If you want us to visit your church/venue/community, please reach out with your inquiries here: https://playsonword.dm.networkforgood.com/forms/event-submission-form

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"Today we look back on our time with our dear brother Vinnie Whitehead. His life touched multitudes of people for eternity. He is now in glory with his Lord, and we look forward to seeing him again."

A good life leaves footprints you can follow in the dark. We remember Arthur “Vinnie” Whitehead — coach, teacher, elder, and friend—and trace the quiet choices that turned classrooms, gyms, and retreats into places where faith took root. Grief is honest here, but hope has the last word. We share the first handshake that felt like a challenge and a welcome, the late-night Bible study with an open door that drew men into Scripture, and the simple ways one person’s courage can become a community’s backbone.

You’ll hear how a high school coach redirected a student from detention to Fellowship of Christian Athletes and changed the arc of a life. We revisit ministry threads that span Calvary Chapel Old Bridge, Crossfields, and local camps, and we include Vinnie’s own testimony—from a religious routine to a living walk with Jesus, through battle and breaking, to a faith rebuilt by steady, verse-by-verse teaching. It’s a picture of discipleship that grows slow and strong: prayer, Scripture, accountability, and service.

This is also a frank look at time. Tomorrow isn’t guaranteed, relationships need repair, and the Gospel is too good to hoard. We hold sorrow and joy together, anchored by the promise of resurrection and the conviction that a life can preach long after the voice is quiet. If you’ve ever wondered whether small acts matter, this story says yes—welcome the newcomer, open your Bible, keep the door ajar, and finish strong.

If this tribute encouraged you, subscribe, share it with a friend, and leave a review so more people can hear Vinnie’s legacy and meet the hope that carried him. Then tell us: whose faith shaped yours, and how will you pass it on? Let us know here: https://playsonword.dm.networkforgood.com/forms/podcast-reviews

(Please click on the underlined links below.)

Calvary Crossfields interview #1
Calvary Crossfields interview #2

To honor Vinnie’s life and legacy, and in gratitude for the faith and values he lived out, donations in his memory may be made to a ministry close to his heart: Fellowship Of Christian Athletes - New Jersey: https://www.fcanj.org/donate

Plays On Word Newsletter Sign Up: https://playsonword.dm.networkforgood.com/forms/newsletter-sign-up
To Support Plays On Word Radio & Plays On Word Theater, please visit:

Plays On Word website
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Email us: team@playsonword.org

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"How can seeing Jesus as rescue, not restriction, reshape your faith this coming year? Today we kick off season four with global gratitude, gospel clarity, stories from the road, and practical discipleship, urging renewed joy and courage."

Season four launches with gratitude, a global roll call, and a clear gospel reset for the new year. We share stories from tours and church planting, celebrate salvations at the plays, and call believers to renewed power, purity, and purpose.

• how the podcast began and stayed weekly
• listener reach across 75 countries
• reading scripture in multiple languages
• 2025 interview highlights and takeaways
• church planting and touring balance
• salvations during performances and follow-up
• the cross as perfect justice and mercy
• Christ as the only way to the Father
• practical counsel for repentance and purity
• identity, resilience, and pressing forward
• upcoming plays and plans for Keswick

This program was made possible by the Plays One Word family of supporters. To find out more, check out our website at playsonword.org

(Please click on the underlined links below.)

Plays On Word Newsletter Sign Up: https://playsonword.dm.networkforgood.com/forms/newsletter-sign-up
Does any of today's podcast resonate with you? Let us know here: https://playsonword.dm.networkforgood.com/forms/podcast-reviews
To Support Plays On Word Radio & Plays On Word Theater, please visit: https://playsonword.networkforgood
The Plays on Word Theater team is always setting up new performance dates! If you want us to visit your church/venue/community, please reach out with your inquiries here: https://playsonword.dm.networkforgood.com/forms/event-submission-form

Plays On Word website
Plays On Word YouTube
Plays On Word Facebook
Plays On Word Instagram
Email us: team@playsonword.org

Plays On Word website
Plays On Word YouTube
Plays On Word Facebook
Plays On Word Instagram
Email us: team@playsonword.org