Born to serve

MARY REICHARD, HOST: Today is Wednesday, December 27th. Thank you for turning to WORLD Radio to help start your day. Good morning. I’m Mary Reichard.

NICK EICHER, HOST: And I’m Nick Eicher. Coming next on The World and Everything in It: Today, church leaders and religious figures. We’ve covered many of these throughout the year. People like evangelist and missionary pioneer George Verwer, and religious broadcasters Pat Robertson and Charles Stanley.

WORLD Radio executive producer Paul Butler now with a few more remembrances we haven’t covered.

PAUL BUTLER: We begin today with the life of Pentecostal pastor Jack Hayford…

HAYFORD: Most of us need to come to terms with this reality in a more aggressive stance. The reality of the spiritual assault that is being made on us...

In 1969 Pastor Jack Hayford began leading a small Foursquare church in Van Nuys, CA. It grew quickly—becoming known as The Church On The Way. He served there as senior pastor for more than 30 years.

HAYFORD: There are two figures of the season. The first is the beginning of the turning of the leaves along the mall that tells us it's autumn. But there is another figure that is in the multicolored faces that gather here today that tell us there's a great season of God's work among us as well.

Hayford’s involvement with Promise Keepers in the 1990s brought him to national prominence…as a vocal proponent of racial reconciliation. But Hayford was widely known long before that for another reason. He wrote more than 600 songs during his lifetime…many sung around the world. His most published song was the simple chorus: Majesty.

MUSIC: MAJESTY  performed by Gracias Choir

Jack Hayford died on January 8th. He was 88.

MUSIC: WHO KNOWS by Mylon LeFevre

Next, another charismatic pastor who started out as a singer and guitarist: Mylon LeFevre. Born into a famous Southern Gospel family, his big break came at age 17 after Elvis recorded one of his songs. LeFevre left gospel music to try his hand at rock and roll.

MUSIC: WHO KNOWS by Mylon LeFevre

LeFevre became one of the earliest Christian rockers with his Atlantic Records LP: “Mylon, We Believe” released in 1970.

MUSIC: WHITE ROCKET by Mylon LeFevre

Later that year LeFevre signed with Columbia Records and his secular music career took off—recording and performing with greats like Elton John, Eric Clapton, Billy Joel and many others.

LeFevre started using drugs and nearly died of a heroin overdose in 1973. But in 1980, LeFevre met 2nd Chapter of Acts and their manager/producer Buck Herring…who led him back to Christ…

LeFevre broke his Columbia contract and was soon recording and performing Christian music. In 1981, he started a Christian band that eventually became known as “Broken Heart.” 

MUSIC: CHILDREN OF THE KING by Mylon LeFevre

The band earned a Dove Award for Rock Album of the Year in 1987…and a grammy for Best Gospel Performance that same year.

MUSIC: LOVE GOD HATE SIN by Mylon LeFevre

In 1990 LeFevre met Kenneth and Gloria Copeland in Panama City and began a three decades long friendship and partnership. Mylon left music and became a full time evangelist and minister—often preaching about divine healing. For the last 25 years LeFevre has preached with his wife Christi all around the world. He also produced a television show with Kenneth Copeland ministries.

LeFevre died of cancer on September 8th, 2023, at the age of 78.

Next, a pastor who changed the way the church views movies.

MICHAEL CATT:  We make our decisions about movies after a season of prayer. We say that there's a difference between a good idea and a God idea.

Michael Catt served as senior pastor of Sherwood Baptist Church in Albany, Georgia from 1989 to 2021. In 2002 he—along with Alex Kendrick—began Sherwood Pictures.

MICHAEL CATT: We say that there's a difference between a good idea and a God idea.

 Their first independent Christian film was titled: Flywheel.

MOVIE TRAILER: You're in the shape you're in today because of the choices you've made...

That film made enough money to encourage Pastor Catt and the Kendrick brothers to continue. They went on to produce Facing the Giants, Fireproof, and Courageous. But Michael Catt was a lot more than a great supporter of Christian movies…he also founded ReFRESH conferences for pastors and lay leaders, a pregnancy counseling center, and a biblical counseling center.

Michael Catt died June 12th. He was 70 years old.

Next to a popular devotional writer:

SARAH YOUNG: It was a pleasure and a privilege to be able to set aside large blocks of time for focusing on Jesus and His word.

Former missionary Sarah Young died on August 31st at age 77. She penned the popular devotional book: Jesus Calling, based on her own daily Bible reading and prayer.

YOUNG: “What is Jesus calling you to, right now?” Immediately the answer came to me, write for publication.

Evangelicals criticized her use of extended quotes in the voice of Jesus and her elevated view of personal revelation…even so, Jesus Calling went on to sell more than 45 million copies. Young also wrote a children’s version and four follow-up adult devotionals.

Next to the “Indiana Jones” of creation science who led over 12 expeditions to Mount Ararat searching for Noah’s Ark.

JOHN MORRIS: One time three of us were climbing about 14,000 feet, and before that was over the three of us were actually struck by lightning.

John Morris was a life-long creation scientist with a PhD in geology. He spent his life preaching that the Bible was reliable—particularly focused on the creation account and the flood narrative. He believed the world’s geological formations were a clear record of a worldwide flood:

MORRIS: If what the Bible has to say is right, then when I look at the rocks, I ought to see some things, I ought to see the results of it.

Morris published numerous creation science books and led the Institute for Creation Research. He died January 29th at age 76.

And finally, a missionary pioneer that believed short-term missions was the best way to fulfill the great commission…Youth with a Mission founder Loren Cunningham:

LOREN CUNNINGHAM: I've never known a man or a woman of God today, who has a reputation as a man or woman of God that didn't lose their reputation first. It always happens. Not sometimes. Always.

In 1956 Cunnigham was traveling in the Bahamas when he claims to have seen a vision. In it he saw a great map. The waves on the shorelines grew bigger and bigger—until they covered the continents. The waves then changed to young people having gospel conversations all around the world.

He founded Youth With A Mission four years later. Unlike traditional mission organizations, YWAM was unincorporated. Non-hierarchical. Cunningham believed ordinary people could complete the Great Commission through temporary assignments as volunteers. So he created a network of ministries—serving in nearly 200 nations. Loren Cunningham died October 6th at age 88.

CUNNINGHAM: But every one of us must know this principle, the principle of relinquishment. And it is in that relinquishment, that we find the freedom to do all that God asks us to do. And he is not only able to take our lives and then use it, but he multiplies that which we have given to the Lord. When we give it to him, he is able to multiply it to reach the world.

For WORLD, I’m Paul Butler.

WORLD Radio transcripts are created on a rush deadline. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of WORLD Radio programming is the audio record.