A BACK TO THE BIBLE CHRISTMAS LEGACY

By Tina Matras

Christmas always makes me reflective and nostalgic. It seems I’m even more so this year,

and Back to the Bible is a large portion of the memory wheel playing in my mind.

I grew up with the music and preaching of Back to the Bible. Car radios. Home radios. Night and day. I don’t think a day went by throughout my entire childhood that I didn’t hear something from Back to the Bible.

I can remember eating lunch at my Grandma’s kitchen table as the Back to the Bible Quartet and Choir sang about our Savior’s birth. I regularly heard the preaching of Theodore Epp and Warren Wiersbe.

My grandparents were saved in the 1940s, and started listening to Back to the Bible in the 1950s. They always referred to those godly men as Pastor Epp and Pastor Wiersbe, because even though they faithfully attended Bible-believing churches, they considered these men to be spiritual leaders.

When my parents married in the 1960s, my dad didn’t have a strong Biblical foundation. He’d grown up Catholic and had many questions. Back to the Bible provided answers and played a huge part in his spiritual growth.

When I came along, Back to the Bible radio was so ingrained into my family’s DNA that it would have been odd if I hadn’t heard it. Even though I didn’t always understand the preaching as a small child, the voices of Theodore Epp and Warren Wiersbe were as familiar as family members.

When I moved out on my own in the 1990s, I regularly listened to Woodrow Kroll on the radio. Just like my grandparents, I attended—even worked—at a wonderful church in inner-city Chicago, but I considered Dr. Kroll to be one of my pastors.

But my grandparents and parents didn’t just listen to Back to the Bible—they supported the ministry as well. Just a small amount, faithfully given over the years. During a recent conversation at my kitchen table, Jack Burke showed my dad a visual—a football field lined with people, representing those who've come to Christ through my parents’ giving to Back to the Bible. Now, I have the privilege of using my God-given talent as a writer to contribute to the ministry in a new way.

I was saved when I was three years old. I vividly remember going into my room, kneeling at the foot of my bed, and asking Jesus to forgive me for my sin and please come into my heart and take me to heaven when I die. The funny thing is… I don’t remember hearing the Gospel. But I knew it. And I have no doubt that at least some of that knowledge came from hearing Back to the Bible playing on the kitchen radio.

Grandma, Grandpa, and Mom have all gone to heaven. Now, Dad lives with me, and Back to the Bible continues to be a huge part of our lives. And that is something we’re thankful for this Christmas.