Spring Celebration

O Timothy, keep that which is committed to thy trust, avoiding profane and vain babblings, and oppositions of science falsely so called: Which some professing have erred concerning the faith. Grace be with thee. Amen. 1Ti 6:20-21 (Paul to Timothy was written from Laodicea!)

This is a Celebration letter.  It has some historical comments.  Some practical comments about the ministry thrust of the station.  It has a bit of hope in CCM’s future in the Church.

Sometimes I have to stop long enough to think about the experiences of this radio station/ministry; someone may say something in a completely unassociated manner that triggers a kind of a self evaluation of FM 104.5.  After all, we’ve broadcast 24 hours a day, 365 days a year for over 36 years.  

We praise, we worship, we have fun, we encourage believers, we focus in on the Faith of Christ each day and hour.  We make an effort to be Christ centered.  Not many of our names are spoken on air; His name is the most prevalent.  

It’s not possible to put what has happened through WBVN in a few descriptive words; its many words spoken for over 19 million minutes sharing the Gospel in some fashion or form.  I’ve heard some people minimize what Christian music and programming accomplishes.  I’ve heard testimonies of how powerful those minutes have been in people’s lives.

 I recently received a note about the passing of Nancy.  Nancy was someone that had listened to the station, had supported this station, for much of the time since its beginning in January of 1990.  To do so, something of value about this ministry was in Nancy’s heart.  

There are literally hundreds of others that I would love to name that have said and done such kind things for this ministry.  I take those comments seriously. I believe them to be given sincerely.

I was recently thinking about what changed my life so dramatically about CCM years ago.  I had never experienced that music until 1983 when, on a whim, we went to an CCM concert in St. Louis.  WOW is an appropriate word for that moment.  Prior to that, I didn’t know CCM even existed. 

I was ‘born again’, secure in my everyday Gospel, innocent of ever thinking about public ministry on my part.  Jane and I were both believers, I would say ‘hardcore’ believers.  We, more quietly than loudly, proclaimed the Gospel.

I’m sure 99.9% of the people Jane and I knew back then would have never, ever put us in the ‘let’s risk everything’ to share this Gospel in such a manner as WBVN.  There were three daughters to consider and everything else that you can imagine (I’ll not list them all) to provide for a family.  

I will say, it took what I’ll call an ‘unction’ ( a miraculous unction) to take the steps Jane and I took.   I plead guilty to saying, when someone asks about the station’s beginning, ‘don’t try God to see if it will work, only try God when you can’t help it, be pushed by an unction.  Embrace what God has placed in your heart, what you can’t help but do.  

Thoughts can be dangerous, inspiration is secure.

We began this ministry with one thought in mind, encourage the Church.  It was not to do heavy teaching, preaching, or doctrinal persuasion.   We encourage through music, on air and at concert events.  We encourage; it’s simple!

I mentioned to a friend the other day that my greatest pleasure at BVN (other than the Gospel itself) has been getting to ‘be good to people’.  It’s not always economically profitable, not always popular with some, but it’s one of my ‘little personal treasures’ at the station.  We didn’t do 24 hours a day or 243 concerts because it was profitable; we did it because people benefitted from having those.

Each day our listeners come to mind when we choose music, contract concerts, choose the emphasis that day such as Double Play Tuesday, Worship Wednesday, Throwback Thursday or No Break Friday.  Every day is measured by does it benefit you.

(While I’m at this subject let me say one more thing that’s important for the people that listen and people that support and listen.)  Much of the thrust of this ministry is because of the loyalty of this radio station’s staff and its volunteers.  I’ve teased in a ‘tongue in cheek’ manner (and serious at the same time) that I hope will illustrate how much people who work with Jane and I care about you: my expression ‘I couldn’t run those people off.’   

A majority of those people have been here, some a dozen, some dozens, years. They’re motivated with a unique passion about this station and a passion for serving those who use it for encouragement.  When we started this ministry in 1990 Steve Camp released a song with these lyrics:

Oh, my dear Timothy Hold on to the faith
Keep your conscience pure and holy
Ah, fight the good fight every day
Don’t give in to myths and fables
But train yourself for godliness
You’ve got to be an example in your youth
You’ve got to, ah, be faithful to the truth
You’ve got to watch your life and doctrine closely
It’ll save you, and those who hear you too
You gotta guard the trust Hold on to the faithful Word
Ah, this you must You gotta guard the trust

We guard the Trust, the Gospel, which we have been given to share over this station.  We’re convinced it’s a sacred trust that BVN has specifically been given. 

 History is repeating itself again.  When we started in 1990 two huge national ministries had public failures.  Today, headlines are exposing Christian artists and ministry failings.  That’s both saddening and challenging to every believer’s confidence. 

Disappointingly, some national figures are embarrassing and shaming the Gospel of Jesus again.  We were aggressive to re-establish confidence and integrity in 1990 and we’re still aggressive in 2026.  CCM is a way for us to get in contact with our hearts and express our faith.  CCM speaks our language about the God we love and believe in.

Songs and hymns are God’s gifts to us and intended to benefit believers.  We can’t let them be taken from us.  Some people can abuse our Gospel but God has a way of cleansing, and rebooting His gifts and re-establish the gift.  

This station is committed to placing its confidence in Jesus and his message rather than in people.  People will disappoint.  As we begin our Spring Celebration 2026, we ask for your prayers and support to be able to continue sharing His Good News Message.