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Written enroute, May 30, 1944
Printed and mailed from office,
Box 111, Eugene, Oregon
Dear Co-Workers:
Another issue of The BULLETIN is past due, but I have
been so busy broadcasting eight time a week from Des Moines--every
week day, and twice on sundays--in addition to preparing and
recording programs also for all the other stations, that I have not
had time to prepare it. And so I find it necessary to rush to you
just now, in the meantime, a special and VERY URGENT letter.
I have just concluded three weeks of DAILY broadcasting
from Des Moines, in a special radio Bible-study series. I have
been so happy to have Mrs. Armstrong with me this trip, and we have
met many listeners personally, visited a number in their homes, had
Bible studies with several. Before going to Des Moines, we met a
number of our listeners in San Antonio, Texas, following a Sunday
night broadcast from there, and I was surprised and much pleased to
find that so many of the ladies were more interested in meeting
Mrs. Armstrong than me. Several expressed surprise and great joy
in learning that her whole heart is in God's glorious work, just as
much as mine. The fact is, it is thru her that I was really
converted and brought into God's work. And while her voice never
is heard on the air, she has from the first been just as actively
a part of this work as I. Since I have learned, on this trip, both
at San Antonio and at Des Moines, that so many listeners have felt
it is a rare thing for a man's wife to be whole-heartedly WITH him
in a work of this kind, I thought I would just make mention of this
fact in this letter for ALL our Co-Workers to know. Somehow I have
always had a conviction, even before I was converted and drawn by
the Eternal into His work, that God Himself really selected my wife
for me, and while it's rather a personal matter, I don't mind
saying just to our inner family of Co-workers who are WITH us in
this work, that even before I was converted I never went to sleep
at night without praying and thanking God for giving her to me.
She has been constantly by my side, and during the seven
long, hard years when we were getting this work started from
NOTHING, growing to a nation-wide power and influence--in the days
when we had just one small, little inside office without window, or
fresh air or sunlight, she worked tirelessly in the office,
printing The PLAIN TRUTH on a hand mimeograph machine, folding,
sorting, mailing them and other literature, writing letters to many
listeners, helping every way she could. She helps me to prepare
the broadcasts, checks over the script with me before it goes on
the air, also articles for The PLAIN TRUTH before they are sent to
the printers, and in every way is a most important part of this
work. We have four fine children, two boys, 14 and 15, and two
daughters, one married, and the other financial secretary in our
office--and still more, we have two VERY fine little grandchildren,
a boy not quite two years, and a girl just four months. Now I
didn't intend, when I started this letter, saying a word about my
wife, but I felt that God has blessed me so ABUNDANTLY in so many
ways, and first of all--aside from the promise of salvation--with
such a good wife, and incidentally I feel sure from their
expressions that all our listeners and Co-Workers who have met her
this trip feel the same way.
What I started out to say is this: I have just completed
three weeks of daily broadcasting from Des Moines--we are now on
our way back home--expecting to stop off this evening a few hours
in Kansas to visit a man and wife who were converted by the
broadcast, and whom I personally baptised last August. And, after
being at my office in Eugene for a short time, I feel I must return
soon to Hollywood to broadcast another daily series of Bible
studies over station KMTR, to our listeners throughout Southern
California. And then, if we can get the time from 11:05 PM,
following an 11 PM news broadcast, over station WOAI, I hope to be
able later to return to San Antonio for a daily series there--and
if not available over WOAI, which reaches the entire HEMISPHERE at
that hour, from the tip of South America to the North Pole, then at
least to conduct a daily Bible-lecture series over one of the local
San Antonio stations, or possibly a Texas net-work, for our many
interested listeners in that section.
And in connection with that I hope soon, now, to be able
to prepare, print, and have ready for free distribution, the series
of articles I have had in mind SO LONG, taking the reader thru a
THOROUGH course in Bible study, going much DEEPER into vital
spiritual subjects than I can over the air or in The PLAIN TRUTH.
I have a heavy burden on my heart for this series of articles--but
it means much more work and effort and expense than one would
realize, and will take a little time.
In these DAILY broadcasts I can start on a series of
subjects and go into them much deeper than I can on the Sunday
programs. But of course, while it does a TREMENDOUS AMOUNT of
good, all this costs added money, and reports from the office in
Eugene indicate very little money coming in again the past ten
days. The PLAIN TRUTH is all printed, and half mailed out, but
this sudden let-down in tithes and offerings received has prevented
my staff from being able to mail out the remainder. The postage
ALONE for this issue costs $350.00. The fact is, there are about
20,000 copies yet to be mailed, and for this we need at ONCE an
additional $200.
I wonder if our co-workers realize one vital DIFFERENCE
between our work and that of other broadcast programs. In the
first place, we have no denomination or organization back of us to
finance this work and guarantee the bills. All must come, as it
has from the small beginning, by FAITH. Secondly, we NEVER ASK FOR
MONEY, or even make known our need, over the air, or in The PLAIN
TRUTH, or in ANY literature we send out, except in the BULLETIN, or
a very rare letter such as this one, which goes only just to those
who have VOLUNTARILY, and without solicitation, become one of our
co-workers. NONE other of our listeners or PLAIN TRUTH readers
ever receive ANY request for money from us, in any form whatsoever.
The Gospel MUST NOT BE SOLD. We cannot put a PRICE on any Gospel
literature. Of the 35,000 who receive The PLAIN TRUTH, more than
33,000 of them have NEVER received any request or solicitation for
money from us in any form whatsoever! I'm afraid some of our Co-
Workers never realize this. In every religious or gospel broadcast
I know of, there is a request for money sent out OVER THE AIR in
every program. You NEVER hear this on The WORLD TOMORROW program,
because I do not believe it is God's way or His will--and if we
can't carry on His work HIS WAY, and according to His will, we
won't attempt to carry on at all. If I ASKED for money over the
air, put a PRICE on The PLAIN TRUTH, or begged for money in it of
all our 35,000 readers (or probably over a hundred thousand,
because we find more than three people read every copy), then we
would receive at least twice as much money as we do. But it isn't
God's way. I CAN'T DO IT!
Another thing, sending out The PLAIN TRUTH and other
literature make necessary a great deal of added office expense in
keeping our mailing lists constantly checked and up to date. As a
result, we have to maintain an office staff two or three times as
large as others conducting similar broadcasts, for the same number
of stations. The publishing work, sending literature FREE to so
many, costs just as much as the broadcasting, so that the cost of
the broadcast is only HALF of out total expense. Some might say,
"Why not drop the magazine and publishing work?" but if they knew,
as we do, he good this is doing they would never suggest that. No,
we shall NEVER drop the publishing work! It has resulted in too
precious a harvest of souls. Rather, my aim and determination is
to get the publishing work now better established, so The PLAIN
TRUTH comes out more often and REGULARLY.
But the net meaning of what I have here explained is
this: For the size of our broadcast, we have double the expense of
others, while, by being faithful to God's way of not charging for
the Gospel, selling it for a price, putting a price on it, or
begging for money over the air, our income is probably cut in half.
That simply means we have to TRUST GOD to lay it on the hearts of
our loyal co-workers to DO THEIR PART liberally, cheerfully,
constantly and continuously. We simply have to depend upon a few,
who are able (even at sacrifice) to send in reasonably large sums
of a hundred dollars or more. Some COULD place as much as five or
ten thousand dollars in God's work, and never did the work of the
Almighty, so vital in these closing days, need it as now! There
simply are not enough of the one, two, and five dollar offerings to
keep this work going--and growing! But to many, a dollar or five
dollars means just as great a sacrifice as a thousand or five
thousand would to a few others, and if you are one of them, God
will bless you MORE than He will the one who COULD place five or
ten thousand in His work, but only puts in perhaps twenty-five or
fifty. All do not have the same ability. God knows YOUR
circumstances, and is abundantly able to supply you with enough to
have a continuous and active part in HIS GLORIOUS WORK, and to make
up to anyone whatever sacrifice they make for HIS CAUSE!
The need is URGENT, and GREAT. A self-addressed envelope
is enclosed. Will you rush, even by air-mail if possible, the
largest possible offering you are able to place in God's work at
this time? Remember, GOD'S WORK should come FIRST above
EVERYTHING. Seek ye FIRST the Kingdom of God and His
righteousness, and all those things (material needs) shall be added
to you. God bless you!
HERBERT W. ARMSTRONG
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