Plays On Word Radio
An in-depth look at the Word of God, the Plays On Word community, and the Plays - with original music - we perform, that are based on the Word of God. New episodes drop Fridays at 7AM EST! To find out how Plays On Word Theater can perform 'LIVE on YOUR STAGE' and to support this missionary & podcast visit: https://playsonword.org/
Plays On Word Radio
Ep 124: Faith Under Rubble - A Missionary's Journey
"Brian McDaniel's journey from prison to Haiti reveals God's transformative power, miraculous encounters, and how prayer can shape divine rescue and purpose. How might your prayers today become part of someone else's miracle tomorrow?"
The power of God's Word to transform lives takes center stage as Pastor Teddy, a.k.a Pastor Fred Kenney, Jr., interviews missionary Brian McDaniel about his extraordinary journey from a jail cell to the dangerous streets of Haiti.
Brian's testimony begins with a simple act—a fellow inmate handing him a Bible with the promise that knowing its God could solve his problems. What followed was a spiritual rebirth as Brian devoured Scripture, becoming "the happiest guy in jail" despite facing felony charges. This radical transformation led him through seven years of Bible study at Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa and eventually into missionary work that would change countless lives.
The conversation takes a stunning turn when Brian shares how he met his wife Sophia in Haiti. Her survival story from the 2010 earthquake leaves both men speechless — trapped under a collapsed church with rebar through her body, she was miraculously rescued after hours of digging. In a divine revelation during the interview, Pastor Teddy realizes his specific prayers about rescuers finding earthquake victims might have played a direct role in her survival.
After a year of paralysis followed by miraculous healing, Sophia's path crossed with Brian's at a local bakery — a divine appointment orchestrated through seemingly impossible circumstances. Their story exemplifies how God weaves together human lives through prayer and providence.
Today, Brian and Sophia serve in Haiti amid extreme danger, with 90% of Port-au-Prince controlled by violent gangs. Yet remarkably, their Bible Training Center sits in the only area of the capital that remains safe — so safe that the Supreme Court relocated next to it. As gangs prepare to invade their area, Brian requests not money, but prayer artillery: "When the enemy comes in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord raises up a standard."
This episode is a powerful reminder that God is still writing the book of Acts through ordinary believers who dare to follow Him into dark places. How might your prayers become part of someone else's miracle story? Join our community at playsonword.org and discover the difference your faith can make. How Can WE Pray for YOU? Tell Us!
Cross To Light Ministry - https://crosstolight.com | Brian and Sohia McDaniel
Ministry Continues in Haiti Despite Rising Gang Violence -
https://calvarychapelmagazine.org/articles
Plays On Word website
Plays On Word YouTube
Plays On Word Facebook
Plays On Word Instagram
Email us: team@playsonword.org
Lord, you know you will now listen to Plays on Word Radio. It's the best. I got saved in a jail cell. My life was destroyed. I was looking at felonies and some guy he came up. He handed me a Bible. Six months ago I sent in for this Bible but I got one in the meantime. If you want it, he goes, and if you get to know the God of this Bible, he can help you with every one of your problems and he goes. And if you get to know the God of this Bible, he can help you with every one of your problems. And I said, oh man, and I remember I said I had that Bible and I sat in the cell and, man, I started reading it and I never put it down.
Speaker 2:Jesus.
Speaker 3:You're the only name, you're the only name, you're the only thing, you're the only thing, you're the only thing.
Speaker 2:Hello and welcome to Plays on Word Radio, where we discuss, analyze, work and play on the Word of God. Thank you for joining us on this excursion. Today let's join Pastor Teddy, also known as Fred David Kenny Jr, the founder of Plays on Word Theater, as he does a deep dive into the Word of God.
Speaker 3:Okay, okay, welcome. Plays on Word Radio audience. God bless every single one of you. My name is Fred David Kenney Jr, otherwise known as Pastor Teddy. Thank you, josh Taylor and Katie Kenney for that intro.
Speaker 3:Today is the day that the Lord has made. I will rejoice and be glad in it. Today is the day we are going to visit with our dear brother, brian McDaniel from well, from Haiti. He's not from Haiti, but he might as well be. I mean, that's where he lives now and he's a missionary in Haiti. He absolutely is one of the craziest people I know he is. You guys think I'm out of my mind, this guy. He is a fool for Christ. Gotta love it, and that's what I love about this brother. He's sold out for the Lord, and you can see it in the ministry the Lord has charged him with, and just interacting with this brother is always a joy and always fun, and so I wanted to introduce. We've been trying to get him on the radio program for years now, and finally we were able to link up here at the East Coast Pastors Conference. So I guarantee please listen to this.
Speaker 1:Check him out. We just heard the message of faith man, we're looking for a place, amen.
Speaker 3:Amen, amen. All right, I am here with Brian Meck. I like to put the Mac on it, but it's not really Mac, it's Mac Daniel, yes, or McDaniel, yes, amen. And you are the acting president of Haiti.
Speaker 1:Well, actually you are the. I'm just a servant over there trying to feed the sheep. Yeah, you are in Haiti.
Speaker 3:You are a missionary to Haiti. Yes, Tell me first. Tell me First. Tell me about you. How did you come to meet Jesus? You're one of the craziest guys I know, which is what attracts me to you, because I'm a madman too. I'm a madman for Christ, and I see that in you. So how did you and when did you meet Jesus? How did I get saved? How did you meet him? How did he come into your life?
Speaker 1:I got saved in a jail cell. Wow, yep, I was in a jail cell. My life was destroyed. I was looking at felonies and some guy, man, I don't even. I won't know. I don't want to know who he is until we get to heaven. He came up, he handed me a Bible. He goes.
Speaker 1:Six months ago I sent in for this Bible, but I got one in the meantime. If you want it, he goes, and if you get to know the God of this Bible, he can help you with every one of your problems. And I said, oh, man, and I remember I had that Bible and I sat in the cell and, man, I started reading it and I never put it down, dude, I never put it down, dude, I never put it down. I was like I, I mean, I read that thing. I mean I was philippians, thessalonians, corinthians, romans. I just kept reading it, devouring it, devoured. I saw I was just sitting there by my side and and after about two weeks, all of a sudden, man, I'm I'm not kidding, after two weeks I was the happiest guy in jail. Are you Born again? Not of a corruptible seed, but incorruptible through the word of God, which lives and abides forever? I'm serious. That's how I got saved. Born again for the word, and that was it, man.
Speaker 2:And you haven't been the same since.
Speaker 1:No, no, I got out. I got out. I got out. I was getting out of jail and I had to see a chaplain. He said okay, he goes, you gotta find a church. Where are you gonna go? I go. I'm gonna go to Calvary Chapel, costa Mesa. He goes have you ever been there? Is anybody from the church? I go. I don't even know, I don't even know to this day how I said that. He said did somebody from that church come and invite I? So I got out what I got out and the next day I went to that church and I remember the first Sunday Chuck goes. Well, that concludes our study in Revelation 22. Next week we're going to start Genesis, chapter 1.
Speaker 2:What and the next week.
Speaker 1:After I sat there for seven years from Genesis to Revelation, I don't think I missed a study. That's how it started with me. Man. God had perfect timing. Man Perfect timing.
Speaker 3:Yep, and you know, chuck, he takes you through the Word man, you just go through it.
Speaker 1:Man, I didn't want to miss one study.
Speaker 3:So the Word of God? How important was the Word of God? Obviously it was important to you being saved. Yeah, you know those people that maybe don't think it's important to get into the Word of God or, conveniently, are bamboozled by the enemy to not pick up their word. Or you know they can do it next week or next, or just bring it to. What would you say to somebody who says what's so powerful about the Word of God?
Speaker 1:Well, we train young leaders in Haiti now, and so what I tell them is your ability to memorize the Word of God, to rightly divide the Word of God, is directly related to how much of the good works God has ordained for you before the foundation to be able to take those. God has ordained for you before the foundation to be able to take those, Because, when they were going into the promised land, you know, Joshua asked Moses how do I do it? He said this book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night.
Speaker 1:Then your way will prosper. Then you'll have good success. The way you're going to be able to take this is through the word of God, so I found that to be true for me. Amen.
Speaker 3:So God started working on you. Yeah, and as you're going to Costa Mesa, how did that translate to? Oh well, I need to be in ministry.
Speaker 1:Well, what happened was is I started leading a little evangelism group. It was like 15 of us. We'd meet on Friday night, go pass out tracks in the malls, yeah, and this is little humble group. And then we started doing mission trips. You know, like Jerusalem Now before you go, we go to Mexico Before you go any further.
Speaker 3:I just have to say for the audience this is the guy. This is the guy that literally will, at a red light, get out of the car and let everybody know hey, do you know Jesus? And he'll start preaching like right there, he's the madman like that. So, okay, continue. You said Jerusalem and you're doing the evangelism.
Speaker 1:We started doing evangelism and you know we go to Mexico and San Francisco, and then, with Judea, we started going out a little farther and I was noticing the people that would go on these trips would have a special man. It was like you'll receive power to be my witnesses and they were special and it was anointing. It was like man, we've got to do it. God was doing miracles that were like we've got to go again, we've got to go again. Right, keep going. And so that's how I ended up. That's how I ended up in Haiti.
Speaker 3:So you're saying miracles, and this was when you were in a promised land. You're saying or this was just during that time.
Speaker 1:That was when I was at Costa Mesa towards the end of the seven years of going through the Bible, you know, then I started I was doing the evangelism and that turned into missions and then they said you're already doing missions, why don't we just make you a missionary?
Speaker 3:So, okay, all right. So Chuck made me a missionary. That's the Calvary way, I guess, because he's already doing it. Look what God did. Yeah, raised you up. Yeah, how does that translate to Haiti? How do you end up in Haiti?
Speaker 1:Well, so then, what happened? Was we doing short-term trips? Okay, and then, uh, we did a short-term trip to haiti after they had a massive earthquake in 2010. I remember that. I remember telling people.
Speaker 3:I remember telling a group of a congregation I said, listen, pray as if you're under the rubble, because you remember the right. Everything collapsed on people and and I said those people were just praying oh, we, lord, we pray for haiti. Oh, we pray for haiti. And I said, no, wait a second, pray as if you're under the rubble. And then the prayer started changing. Lord, whoa, I pray that you would direct the rescuers back to the area they were walking away from to find that person that's hanging on. Now we're specific prayer, you know, and I remember, man, my heart was praying for people as if I was one of the people under the rubble. Lord, please, oh, you were praying that I was praying as if I was under the rubble and I was directed and telling people please pray as if you're under the rubble right now, with that type of fervency of prayer, and the Lord was directing people in their prayers and I know first responders God was answering prayers turning dogs.
Speaker 3:That.
Speaker 1:You know, that's interesting because so I ended up in Haiti. So now I was as I was. I went over to Haiti by myself. What? Yeah, I wasn't married. I figured I'll never get married. And after about two years of being there, the lady in the kitchen asked me if I'd go to the bakery and get some bread. And I went to the bakery and there was a girl there, a lady, and I was like I remember it was like Isaac meditating on the word and he lifted his eyes up.
Speaker 1:Whoa, there was Rebecca. I saw that and I said something to this lady and, um, and, and she said something to me and I remember leaving with the missionary I go, did you see that lady? Did you hear it? He goes, I don't know what you're talking about. So I went back to the ministry, dropped off the bread and I said I gotta go get more bread. And I went back and I waited in line for her and that's how I met my wife. And so what happened was she told me. She said after I got to know her, was she told me. She said after you know, after I got to know her, she said, she said to me. She said hey, can I tell you my testimony? And I said what? She goes, I'm an earthquake survivor. And my wife, she was in. She was.
Speaker 1:She came from a Christian home, her dad was a deacon. She went to this church. She was in the choir. It was a three-story building. She went to this church, she was in the choir. It was a three-story building and it was the night of the choir practice and they went in. She was a little bit late, but when they got there they started to sing.
Speaker 1:The choir started singing, the building started shaking. The choir ran out on a balcony. Her and a girl tried to get on the balcony. There was no more room. The balcony fell off and killed the choir. At that moment the whole floor fell out and the three-story cement building pancaked. The girl next to her died. She was in a small little area. Rebar went through her back and through her leg and that's where she realized she really got saved. She started confessing her sin. She knew's where she's realized she really got saved. She started confessing her sin. She knew she was going to die. And then, right after that, her dad found out she was at the church. She could hear her dad up above yelling Sophia, sophia yelling in the cracks. And then she took a rock and she went tap, tap, tap. He goes Sophia, tap, tap, tap and her dad found her and he goes we're going to find you. That was your prayer.
Speaker 2:Oh, find the people in the rubble.
Speaker 1:Listen, listen, they. They dug from five in the afternoon to 11 o'clock at night and they found her and they got her out of there. They brought her to the. They brought her to the hospital and um the hospital in Port-au-Prince. It was four doctors. She waited there till five in the morning. Nobody saw her.
Speaker 2:They were putting blue tarps in the park dropping off bodies and amputees.
Speaker 1:So they thought she was going to die and they said let's just get her home. And they brought her to the house and the ladies in the church came over and anointed her and washed her. She didn't die. She was paralyzed from the waist down. She sat in a wheelchair. She lived where she lived. It was a dirt road, no water, no electricity. Her dad made one hundred and twenty five dollars a month with five kids. She, they got her a chair. She sat in this wheelchair. Somebody got her an iPod with all the American music, every praise and worship song.
Speaker 1:She sat there for a year, paralyzed in a wheelchair, listening. That's when I talked to her. She knew English better. She learned English from these praise and worship songs. You've got to be kidding me, no? And then, after one year of sitting there thinking how she wasted her life, all of a sudden one day she could feel her toe and she got her mom and they got her up and the Lord. She started walking and the Lord healed her. And then, right after that, somebody asked her and said hey, you've got to remember haiti's 95 unemployment and so wait, hold on, let me just digest that first.
Speaker 3:Let me just I need to digest.
Speaker 1:You say 95, yeah it's the poorest country in the western hemisphere, there's no work. So someone came to her and said hey, there's a job at the bakery and she said I'll take it. And they and they go okay, here's the deal. It's nine hours a day, it's six days a week, on your feet and you're going to make 115 bucks a month. She said I'll take it. So she went in there and she was working there and she realized she couldn't do it. She just got out of the wheelchair, she was getting ready to quit. She almost quit. She said I can't stand for nine hours just getting ready to quit. She almost quit. She said I can't stand for nine hours Just getting ready to quit. And then here I came, boom Timing, baby, yeah. And then I remember she goes, I can't do the job. And I remember telling her how much do you make? Yeah, she goes, I make one hundred and fifteen a month. And I said quit, I'll give it to you. She goes you'll give it to me.
Speaker 1:And I called the church. I go listen, we got an emergency. You got to send me an extra $115 a month. Come on, baby, don't worry about what it's for, but anyway, I go quit, I'll pay it. I'm the super missionary, super provider, I can do this. Amen, amen Anyway. So that's how I met my wife man.
Speaker 3:That is dude, I never knew that.
Speaker 1:In all these years I never knew that Well the fact that you after that were praying to direct the people that could have been a direct result from your prayer, From the story you tell me.
Speaker 3:I remember and it was the Lord that was directing the prayers, praying, and I remember a specific prayer about rebar, something about rebar and the cement and space, because I felt as if there were people in small pockets and, lord, please direct the rescuers and help them remove the stuff off of them. That was the Lord, dude.
Speaker 1:They were in a small area. Yeah, a piling was on her and after every aftershock it was closing in and the girl died and she knew she was done and she said it was like 9-11. The dust was so thick she couldn't breathe. Oh, my goodness. And they found her. This is amazing. Yeah, they dug for six hours with sledgehammers and picks and made a hole and made it down here and got her. Thank you for the prayers bro that's got to be it.
Speaker 1:We'll find out when we get to heaven. Man, this is mind-boggling Woo. This is mind-boggling Woo.
Speaker 3:This is mind-boggling. That was you, bro. No wonder we did this. I'm telling you, man, this is mind-boggling to me right now.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 3:Because I remember vividly, like it was yesterday, and I remember praying and I remember being slightly overwhelmed with how the Lord was directing the prayer, like because there were general prayers going out Lord, we pray for Haiti and you know that you would blah, blah, whatever. But then I remember the Lord, really it was an overwhelming sense of pray, as if you're under the rubble, okay. And then I sent that out to some people and I directed this group of people I was talking to and we started praying as if we were under the rubble. And that was a game changer because I'm like, wait a minute, man, this is intercessory that I whoa, whoa, whoa People are praying specific stuff.
Speaker 3:Those prayers Like Lord turn that dog around, turn it around, have him smell the person over. You know, whatever the rescue, help the rescuers, help them. You know, help the rescuers, help them, help the rescuers. And there was something about rebar. I don't even remember, I just remember when you said rebar, I was like wait a second. I remember saying something about rebar and it was like you know, there you go. There's that spirit-led intercessory and how he lets us be part of that.
Speaker 1:We'll find out when we get there. I'm looking forward to that. I'm sure that had I mean, they could have directed for him to find her in the rubble of a three-story building, a pancake building. Yeah, she couldn't talk, but she found a rock to communicate.
Speaker 3:So and see, I'm waiting for the Lord. I'm looking forward to him showing us the DVD of everything. Oh yeah, when we get a chance to see the DVD. As far as you ended up in like full-time ministry, tell us about what's going on in Haiti right now, because I texted you when stuff started going cuckoo and I was worried, and I and I was. I was unnerved by your response, because you almost never seem like this is really getting bad, but your texts seem like it's getting bad in Haiti. Can you tell the people what's going on in Haiti right now?
Speaker 1:Okay, so, as some of you guys might have heard on the news, but the president of Haiti was assassinated a couple years ago and since then, these violent gangs have started to take over, and so they estimate now that 90% of the capital of Haiti is taken over by gangs.
Speaker 1:So it makes Chicago look like a playland. Well, I just got this article 90% of Port-au-Prince is controlled by gangs, thousands forced to flee into encampments. So that's the reality. So one of the praise reports is we're in the Capitol, you're dead center, we're dead center. And so one of the praise reports is literally the only 10 percent of the capital not taken by gangs is around the bible training center.
Speaker 1:So you know, hey, listen, we, we have, we, we have, we teach. We have four, uh, pastors that teach remotely every week. We have a speaker on the top of the bible training center that blast out praise and worship music. And we believe, because of the top of the Bible Training Center that blasts out praise and worship music, and we believe, because of the teaching of the word and the praise and worship, that the enemy is not allowed to come in there. I believe that, and so it's very interesting. So the Supreme Court in Haiti, in the Capitol, just moved from downtown and they moved next to the Bible Training Center and announced they moved there because this is the safest place in the Capitol, and so we'll figure that out when we get to heaven.
Speaker 2:Amen, Amen, amen.
Speaker 1:And so it's just miraculous, the police were outnumbered, so they let 90% of the Capitol go because they didn't have the resources. But guess what? They came right above the bible training center and established a new base, you guys. So so you got a listen. That's amazing it's amazing.
Speaker 3:So we had people praying, and when did all this?
Speaker 1:happen. This has been happening, it's been developing, but, uh, the reason you guys were praying about about a month ago is because the gangs announced that they're going to take the area around the Bible Training Center.
Speaker 3:Oh, that's why you said please pray, please pray.
Speaker 1:And I was like oh okay, so it didn't work out good for them. It didn't work out good for them, but they pushed them back now. But they pushed them back now and it's just a miracle, you know, because we're there teaching the Word, making disciples, and that's the heart of where we're planning Bible teaching churches.
Speaker 3:So how can we pray? Do we need specific prayer? Yeah, yeah. So listen, this is what we do.
Speaker 1:We're real big on prayer, Okay, Okay. So if people go to Crosstoolitecom they can get updates.
Speaker 3:We'll put the links in the show notes as well, and if anybody has any information, wants to learn more, get more contact with this guy, you reach out to me and I will make sure you get connected. Yes, and they can go to.
Speaker 1:Crosstoolite, and if they hit the updates, we don't overwhelm you. But if all of a sudden the enemy's coming in like a flood and we want the Spirit of God to raise up a standard, we hit it out and we pray and people, the soldiers, can start firing artillery of prayer.
Speaker 2:Amen, all right, all right well, thank you, bro.
Speaker 3:We're going to thank you so much for being on Plays Hardware Radio.
Speaker 1:Yeah, lord we thank you for your grace. We thank you for your favor. Lord, remind us to pray, remind us that prayer changes things. And, lord, we men ought to always pray and not lose heart In Jesus name.
Speaker 3:Amen, all right, amen, amen. My man, brian McDaniel, holding it down in Haiti. What an incredible interview that was. I really pray that you were blessed by that and I pray that you have seen the theme over the last three episodes in particular, of this radio program. Uh, everyone has requested, not funds or anything like that. Their, their number one request is prayer, from axon caonga in zambia, tony reyes out there in the Philippines and our dear brother Brian McDaniel in Haiti. The request is for prayer, man, please. That's something we can all do.
Speaker 3:You know we read about in the scripture, we read about the biblical events and all these events that are happening and they seem fantastic and it's just incredible. Let me tell you something God's not done. No, he's not done. He's given us his word. There's no new revelation of God, no new special word from God that's adding to the scripture, but his work continues.
Speaker 3:The Spirit of God is working in the church and through believers right now. That's why the book of Acts doesn't just stop. It has continued. The book of Acts has continued. The Acts of the Apostles and the Acts of the Holy Spirit in the church is really what it should be called and he's working today. Today, he is still the same yesterday, today and forever. This same risen Christ is still impacting lives for eternity, and the amazing thing is he's allowing you if you're in Christ by faith, he's allowing you to be a participant in what he's doing.
Speaker 3:Yes, so please, believer, launch some prayer artillery. Launch it for plays on word, launch it for our dear brothers and sisters that have been on this program that have asked for prayer. Let the Lord guide you on how to pray, but don't forget to pray, amen. All right, so that's all the time we got today. We will be back next week, god willing, if the Lord tarries, but until then, the Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you. The Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.
Speaker 2:This program was made possible by the Plays on Word family of supporters. To find out more, check out our website at playsonwordorg.
