Where Can You Get It?

Where can you get it?

If you want the latest information on social issues, sports scores, or even the weather, where can you get it? You might be thinking, “The internet or social media, of course!” You would have a different answer if the year were 1946. There was no internet and no social media. Radio was one of the main places people turned to for the content they wanted.

​It was August of that year that a certain man stepped up to the microphone of WCHA Radio in Chambersburg, PA. He didn’t approach the microphone to talk about the weather. He had a more pressing matter to discuss. He was there to tell about the good news . . . the unchanging, unconditional love of God expressed through the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, who paid for our sins. Though there is no known recording of his first broadcast, one can imagine it went something like this (adapted from a transcript of a sermon by Rev. Byers):

Today we will talk about the matter of enduring hope and joy.  Where can you get it?

To find the answer we invite your attention to the portion of scripture found in the 5th chapter of the second letter the Apostle Paul wrote to the church in Corinth. We will look at the 17th verse. Then we will read the 103rd Psalm, one of David, and it will be the 12th verse. Finally, we will examine the 19th verse of the 6th chapter of the Book of Hebrews.

Now, find your Bible, be seated around your radio, or in your sitting room, or by your breakfast table, and follow along. The scriptures are going to show you where you can find hope for this life and eternity. It is a hope given by God, who loves you dearly. Because He loves you, He wants you free from the burden and wages of sin. And so He casts your sins as far as the eastern horizon is from the western horizon so that you may enter into a personal relationship with God. This relationship is required to escape Hell and gain entrance to Heaven. It is a relationship that gives you a new heart and a new life. This, my friends, is the gift of salvation. It is a gift bought and paid for by the Holy Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. He is the one whom we call Jesus. He is our Prophet who proclaims the Word of God, our King who reigns over us and goes before us to fight our battles, and our Priest who has made atonement for our sins and continues to be our mediator.​

With that, the Gospel Tide Hour began and thus the beginning of what would become known as The Tide® ministry. Charlie Byers wanted others to where they could get a new heart and a robe of righteousness. He wanted people to know that they could get that through Jesus.

He tells about his own experience of getting it this way:

It was very simple. I went forward [at a revival service] with a tremendous load of sin and guilt in my heart, afraid of death and hell and the judgement. I yielded and asked the lord to save me, and he did. All that burden left me, never to return. And oh what joy filled my heart.

The Tide ministry remains committed to that mission.  When under-reached and unreached people want to know where they can get the hope and joy that lasts, we point them to Jesus (Titus 1:1-3). When persecuted people ache to know where they can get the strength to endure, we point them to Jesus (Philippians 4:13). When hearts on shores worldwide want to know where they can get unconditional love, we point them to Jesus (Romans 8:35).

We are grateful that you have empowered us to continue proclaiming the same message for 80 years. There is hope, joy, strength, and love found in Jesus. On October 24, you’ll have an opportunity to celebrate how God has worked through your support of the ministry as well as the vision God has given us for future growth, expansion, and stability. We call that vision The Tide Forward. To learn more about joining us for this free celebration dinner, or about sponsoring The Tide Forward and helping us continue to creatively share the Good News of Jesus Christ worldwide, please visit our 80th Celebration Dinner page.