In honor of our 75th year of missional ministry, we are hosting a fun-filled day trip to The Museum of the Bible on October 28th. In addition to raising funds for the ministry, this trip offers something special—a chance to see the very microphone used by Reverend Charlie Byers during the early years of “The Gospel Tide Hour” broadcasts, along with a songbook dated from 1939 that inspired the ministry’s name!
The microphone is the actual microphone used by Reverend Byers and his staff to record his broadcasts in-studio. It is an RCA ribbon type 77DX supplied from Atlas Sound in Brooklyn, first purchased and put into use in 1963. Still in working order, the microphone is mounted on a stand. The first song in the songbook is “Let the Gospel Tide Roll In,” copyrighted in 1939 by Stamps-Baxter Music and Printing Co., Inc. The ministry staff purchased the songbook from an online book retailer; and three academic libraries also hold copies, but they are not available for purchase or lending. No additional copies of the book have been located.
The inclusion of these artifacts in the museum is significant. By being included in the records of biblical mission history, these artifacts emphasize the importance that the ministry has had both in the Christian community and around the world.
Director Don Shenk commented, “For The Tide ministry, creatively sharing the Gospel on continents around the world is our mission. But intimately knowing God’s Word and sharing Jesus’ saving grace and eternal hope in our own backyards is the duty of all Christians. We pray this trip to the Museum of the Bible will open our eyes to the wonders of God’s Word, enable us to bring the Savior to life for others and to never lose sight of the fact that people everywhere need Jesus.”
For more information about this day trip or to register to attend, click here.