Yesterday, I talked about some lessons I learned while working as a radio announcer right after college. One lesson I left for today. It has to do with dealing with people.

Although I didn’t have a call-in program, there were some individuals who had the phone number for the radio station because they had been calling announcers there for a number of years to request certain songs be played. I inherited that tradition. The problem was that I was introducing newer Christian music at that time; they wanted the old hymns. Now, I like the old hymns, but I felt it was time to broaden the musical tastes. I think I alienated some of them in the process, although I believe I treated each person with respect.

The other matter had to do with counseling. CBN had [and still maintains] a counseling center where people can call in and ask for guidance and prayer. It was advertised as a 24-hour center. Often, though, no one was available to cover the all-night shift, so what happened was they flipped a little switch and every call for counseling—anywhere in the country where the main program, the 700 Club, was playing—came directly to me.

Keep in mind I was a 23-year-old recent college graduate with no real experience counseling anyone. This was a challenge that pushed me to the limit. I remember one call in particular, a woman who said she was going to commit suicide. She had concluded it was going to be alright to do so since God would never leave her or forsake her. That’s not my theology. I spent a couple of hours talking with her while trying to keep other programming going on the air. She hung up, still determined to carry out the deed—I was distraught, to say the least. I never found out what happened.

I also had another regular caller, a young girl who apparently developed a fascination with me. It got out of hand. She started calling my home, and when my wife would answer, she would get abusive. We had to change to an unlisted number.

What did I learn? Christian ministry is not all glory. It is hard work. People are difficult. Yet through it all, I had to grasp this one essential: these are the very people Christ came to save. In spite of how they acted, regardless of their indifference toward Him and their desire to serve self instead, He still reaches out to them.

That’s a lesson I have to keep learning day by day. No matter how hard someone’s heart may be, there is always hope. I cannot change anyone, but I always have to be ready to say and do whatever God directs me to say and do.

My experiences in radio were indispensable for what I’m doing now. I’m thankful for the instruction I received. As I noted in yesterday’s post, God will take every experience and weave it into the tapestry of our lives today. Everything we have done has value.

Today and tomorrow, I’m taking a break from political commentary. I want to share more on a personal level. I guess I’ve always been a communicator, in one way or another. My undergraduate degree was in radio, TV, and film production. From the start, I wanted to use that degree in a Christian ministry.

My first after-college job was with the Christian Broadcasting Network, at that time located in Portsmouth, Virginia. Although I began as a behind-the-scenes audio technician for the television station, when an opening occurred in the radio ministry, I immediately applied for, and was awarded, the job.

I had no on-the-air experience, just some training in the classroom, but I relished the opportunity. The opening was for the all-night announcer position. That probably explains why no one else seriously applied. At least I could do less harm with a smaller audience. This job was a blessing in a number of ways.

• First, I learned how to be creative, interspersing music with commentary, making the songs fit what I wanted to communicate.
• Second, it helped me to focus more on the words I needed to use to communicate effectively; ultimately, it made me a better speaker and writer.
• Third, while playing tapes of other programs during my shift (which usually lasted from 9:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m.) I had time to study. I became a devoted student of the Bible and theology during those years. I probably couldn’t have asked for a better assignment.

Perhaps only one picture exists of me as an announcer at this radio station—this is it. Notice the high-tech turntable in front and the really fancy controls. Well, things certainly have changed. My age in this picture was between 23-25. I looked happy. Most of the time I was.

I am grateful for all the preparation God gave me so that I might do what I am doing today. What’s even more instructive, for me at least, is the realization that life is dynamic, not static. Even though I expected the media to be my career, God used circumstances to change my direction more than once. Yet He will always use elements of what you have done previously. Life is a whole, not partitioned into separate compartments.

There’s another big lesson I learned in this job, but I’ll save that for tomorrow.