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First Person is produced in cooperation with the Far East Broadcasting Company, who rejoice in the stories of changed lives through the power of Jesus Christ. Learn more at febc.org. Now we have 120 stations all across the heart of America proclaiming God's Word together with Christian news and information to help the Lord's people, help people grow in the Lord, and then apply their faith in their daily lives. ♪
His calling is in Christian media. You'll hear the testimony of the chairman and CEO of BOT Radio Network on this edition of First Person. Welcome, I'm Wayne Shepherd. This program is now nearly 14 years old, and we have introduced you to hundreds of people over those years. We started on just a couple of radio stations, but have grown to more than 500 stations today, in addition to the listeners who join us on other digital media. I'm very grateful for how the Lord has blessed First Person's mission.
This past week in Nashville was the annual National Religious Broadcasters Convention, and I thought it would be a good time for you to meet Rich Bott, Chairman and CEO of Bott Radio Network. Rich and I share a number of connections, including as board members of the Far East Broadcasting Company, but Bott Radio counts as 120 of the radio stations carrying first person, and of course, a full 24 hours of biblical teaching and programming.
So I asked Rich to join us and tell us his own story of faith and the circumstances of his calling to the field of Christian radio. As you may know, I was raised in a Christian home, and what a blessing that is. My grandmother taught child evangelism fellowship, so I and my brother and sisters and all my cousins, we got to grow up
with flannel graph lessons and learning about the stories of the Bible from a very early age. And when I was five years old, I prayed at my grandmother's knee to accept the Lord as my savior. Later, my folks brought us to a Youth for Christ rally. Youth for Christ was very important here in the Kansas City area, Kansas City Youth for Christ. And when I was nine years old at a Youth for Christ rally, Tony Fontaine was the speaker that night.
And he said that being born into a Christian home no more makes you a Christian than being born in a garage. Than being born in a garage makes you an automobile. And in my little nine-year-old brain, that really made sense. And though I remembered praying when I was five, I thought I better go forward and make sure of my salvation. Let's make certain. And I did that as well. And so, yeah.
So that's my story. That's how I came to know the Lord. I was reared in a Christian home and trusted the Lord when I was five and made sure of it when I was nine. And being born in a garage doesn't make you an automobile, and being born in a Christian home does not make you a Christian. God doesn't have any grandchildren. He has children. And each person needs to make sure of their own salvation.
That's a great story. You can't just assume.
That everybody has to make their own decision for the Lord. True. Very true. I also accepted Christ as a young child, a little bit older than you. I was seven. But let me ask you if there was a particular turning point in your later life, maybe in your teen years or beyond, that you just realized, hey, I need to get serious about this. Yes. Thank you for asking that question, too. Again, Kansas City Youth for Christ, very important in our formative years as Christians.
early teenagers and later teenagers. When I was in junior high, I must have been about 13 or 14, we went to the Youth for Christ summer camp, and we took over the campus of John Brown University in Asylum Springs, Arkansas.
And that was a wonderful time. But we had chapel service, and then after chapel service, we had lunch. And on Wednesday chapel, they had a missionary service. And so they had a missionary that was speaking to all of us about church.
uh, the, the mission field and how wonderful it was and how challenging and difficult it was and all of that. And, and I was kind of thinking about lunch and there towards the end, he said, so if you would be willing to have the Lord use you on the foreign mission field, stand up and say, here, my Lord, send me.
And I began to pay attention at that point. And everybody around me was standing up and saying, here are my Lord, send me. And I didn't want them to think I was a lesser, less of a Christian than they were. So as a hypocrite, even though I didn't feel it in my heart, I stood up and said,
Here, my Lord, send me. And I felt such a sense of conviction at that point that I lied to the Lord. I lied in front of all my friends. And instead of going to lunch, I ran back. It's funny how I remember this so vividly. I ran back to the dormitory room and threw my things.
self on the little bed, his little bunk bed in the dormitory and prayed and cried and asked the Lord to forgive me for my lying and my hypocrisy. And I couldn't get a sense of relief from that. And I realized that the problem wasn't that I lied. The problem wasn't that I was a hypocrite. The problem was why wasn't I willing to
And I wrestled with that as a young teenager for several months. And I settled it one night, again, up in my grandparents. My grandparents lived in Minneapolis, a basement bedroom where I was down there staying with them. And I prayed and asked the Lord. I said, Lord, I realize that you created me.
And you created me for a purpose. And I'll never be happy in my life. I'll never be fulfilled unless I'm doing what you created me to do.
And so, yes, Lord, I'm willing to do whatever that is, even, and this was always the part I was holding back, even if it's to be a missionary on the foreign field. I'll be happy to do that. And right when I prayed that prayer, there's like a boulder was lifted off my chest. And I had such joy and peace and freedom. And you know, Wayne, the interesting thing is, after I prayed that,
I never again felt like the Lord wanted me to be a missionary on the foreign field. But I realize now that he wanted all of me. He wanted me to be willing, and then he could show me how...
I could best use him with my life. Yeah, yeah. So it's a story of surrender is what it is. It really is. And you were faithful and no turning back, as they say, right, Rich? That's right. No turning back. That's right. And so because of that experience, I have a real tender spot in my heart for those that are serving the Lord on the foreign field.
And you and I are both blessed to serve on the board of directors for Far East Broadcasting Company. And that brings me such joy to meet with those missionaries and to hear their stories and to know in some small way we're having a part in that from back in the homeland.
Yeah, I'm glad you mentioned that because we have had a chance to travel a little bit together and to see some of that work up close and personal. And it really is very meaningful. And I love to encourage those folks who are striving for the Lord in those places and doing so joyfully and just with abandon. You know, they just love the Lord. And it just inspires me every time I see people in other parts of the world serving Christ like that. So thanks for mentioning that, Rich.
Now, of course, you are president and CEO of Bot Radio now. Tell me the history of Bot Radio. Here's the challenge. We are being heard on Bot Radio right now on all your stations, but we're also being heard on many other stations across the country. So for those who don't know what Bot Radio is, please introduce us.
Well, I'll give you a quick history then. My grandfather on my mother's side was a pioneer broadcaster in the family going back to the 1920s. And he came to Christ and felt the call of God on his life to be a...
a preacher and went into the ministry and out in Western Kansas where he lived, he was a kind of a circuit riding preacher responsible for three different churches. And he heard R.R. Brown preaching the gospel out of Omaha at his neighbor's house. His neighbor had one of these new radio receiver sets.
And he felt the call of God on his life to utilize this new technology to expand the reach of his ministry as a preacher. And instead of traveling from church to church to church, he thought that would be great to be able to broadcast the gospel in so many over such a broad area could hear. Back then, if you're going to be on the radio, you had to live in a city that had a radio station. So he moved the family to Denver and started a ministry called the Radio Prayer League.
And I have a picture of him in my office from 1926, where he's producing his Radio Prayer League broadcast. Well, that led one thing to another, and he eventually bought a radio station in San Francisco, California. And when my mother and father got married,
They worked together with him at that radio station. They bought their first radio station in Salinas, Monterey, California in 1957. It was a secular music and news station, and they were successful operating it, but unfulfilled specifically.
And they thought, wouldn't that be neat if we had a radio station that was in a larger city where we could just specialize in having programming that was a blessing to the Lord's people? And so they looked and they found a radio station for sale in Kansas City, moved the family to Kansas City in 1962, and turned a country music station into...
a Christian radio station with quality Bible teaching, Christian news and information 24-7. And that was the birth of KCCV, Kansas City's Christian Voice, which later became Bot Radio Network. And now we have 120 stations all across the heart of America preaching the gospel, proclaiming God's word together with Christian news and information to help the Lord's people
help people grow in the Lord and then apply their faith in their daily lives. So that's it. That's it in a nutshell. We're meeting Rich Bott on today's edition of First Person, and we'll continue the conversation with Rich in just a moment.
Here's Ed Cannon on a vision for FEBC's weekly podcast. The primary purpose of Until All Have Heard, of course, is to share the experience that FEBC has because we have staff on the ground in so many oppressive places. But in addition to that, we're trying to speak to you in a way that only the kind of testimonies you'll hear from around the globe can do. Discover how the gospel is making a difference around the world.
Search for Until All Have Heard on your favorite podcast platform or hear it online at febc.org.
My guest is Rich Bott, who is president and CEO of Bott Radio, and we're talking both about Rich's life and ministry and calling into radio as well as the ministry itself. Rich, let me ask you, you mentioned 120 radio stations now on the Bott Radio network now that you have all these stations, and we're so privileged that First Person is a part of that as well, but why radio? Why in this day and age, why has radio survived, and why are you involved in radio?
Because faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. So, I say that, but it's very true. I believe that radio, and audio in particular, is the most efficient way to communicate truth.
the message of the gospel, the spoken word, and it's the word of God. So, so we, we, we focus on that, but it's interesting way. Now the, the, the definition of what radio is, is expanding. It's true. And so we have radio that broadcasts over the airwaves. We have radio that streams through the internet and you can listen on your computer. We are, we're on Amazon echo, you know, the Alexa devices and, uh,
on your phones, with mobile apps, and all different ways that you can access radio. But it's a very efficient medium, and it's also a very personal medium. You talk to people on the radio one at a time. And even though you're talking to thousands and thousands of people,
They hear it one at a time, whether they're in their kitchen or in their bedroom or getting ready for work or in their automobile. They turn on the radio and there's that voice that they can talk to and they meditate on God's word throughout the day. You know, radio is not a substitute for the local church. We encourage all of our radio listeners to be involved in a good Bible believing Bible preaching church.
But Christian radio can help supplement that throughout the week as you continue to meditate on God's word and hear the word spoken. You know what? Let me just share this with you, too, if I could. You know, the first...
example of drive time Christian radio in the Bible for me is Philip and the Ethiopian unit and how the Lord miraculously sent a Bible teacher to this fellow while he was driving down the road and thinking about God's word and not really sure what it meant and asking the Lord to help him to understand it. And miraculously, he sends a Bible teacher right there to speak with him in the chariot. He comes to trust the Lord miraculously.
And that's, to me, a picture of what drive-time Christian radio can be for many people. We've received a lot of listener testimonies of how when you get in your car and they turn it on, all of a sudden the speaker is speaking something from God's Word, which is just what they needed to hear at that moment. Yeah, that's so fun to think about that story of Philip, though. Thank you. Thank you for that. I never thought about it in terms of...
Drive Time Chariot Radio. That's right. Do you remember, let me ask it this way, what is your earliest remembrance of being on the radio, Rich? Well, my older sister and I used to play in the radio studio when we were children, and my mom and dad were busy trying to get things done.
going at the radio station and they gave us a little portable tape recorder and let us play with it while they were busy doing more important things. And Sherry and I had our own make-believe radio program and she was the
She was the preacher and the singer, and I was the amen person. So I would tell her amen. So that's an early, early memory. But when I was a teenager in high school, I had a radio program on our station in Kansas City. You know, I remember this because I'm just a little older than you, and I remember being in radio and opening up the National Religious Broadcasters magazine.
and seen an advertisement there for a KCCV and your picture as a teen behind the microphone. I remember those. That's right. It was called Teen Tempo. Yeah. Teen Tempo. And we had interviews and testimonies from teenagers, and we played some music at that time that was kind of relevant to the teenagers. That would have been in the early 1970s. Oh, well, here's one person who remembers. I'm sure there are many others. Yeah.
But that launched your career in radio, huh? Well, pretty much. I grew up in it, but I really felt like it was God's calling in my life. And like that time where I committed to serving the Lord on the foreign mission field, just whatever, and the Lord just opened doors and that just seemed like the thing that he placed a desire in my heart.
uh, to do. Yeah. Well, you grew up around a radio station there in Kansas city, but of course you received other training as well. Right. Uh, when, when did you actually join the staff, uh, officially, uh, at the station? Well, I did that radio program during my teenage years. Then, and then I went to, uh, Bob Jones university and I majored in business and, uh, communications. All right. And then I worked on staff there for two years while, uh,
my application for Harvard Business School was being completed. And then I went to Harvard Business School and got my MBA.
MBA, uh, master's in business administration there. I graduated in the spring of 81. We had just acquired our new radio station in Fort Wayne, Indiana. And so my first, uh, assignment, uh, after graduating from Harvard business school was to move to Fort Wayne, Indiana and manage that new radio station to help, help get it off the ground. Yeah. I'd forgotten that chapter of your life. I remember the Fort Wayne station though. So I was there for, uh, Oh,
and then moved to Kansas City, and as the network continued to grow, then helped to manage the growth of that. You know, there's a verse, too, that says, delight thyself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. And I thought, well, that doesn't mean so much that he's going to give you what you want, but that if you focus on him, he'll give you the desires for...
Yeah.
I want to go back for a moment because I find it very interesting that the Lord led you into studying business, knowing that you were going to be involved in ministry. And that's an important combination, isn't it? Ministries are run with excellence, excellent business practices. And I'm sure, I'm absolutely certain you're committed to that at Bot Radio. Well, you have to operate according to good business principles. Otherwise, the ministry can't sustain itself and continue.
And what we do is we provide the platform from which others speak, whether it's John MacArthur or Chuck Swindoll or Adrian Rogers or many others. So we want to establish a quality, reputable, consistent platform from which others can speak. So my training and background is more in business and communications and
And those that have wonderful theological training are the ones that actually bring the teaching. Yeah. The voice of the gospel needs to be heard in this culture, doesn't it? And, you know, what you're doing is a major part of that. It's very important that our nation pay attention to the gospel. And, you know, we've wandered far from it in many ways, but...
You and others are calling us back. Thank you, Wayne. You know, you can't help but feel the encroaching darkness in our culture that is enveloping us. It just seems like we're taking these steps or a spiral downward.
downward in terms of the battle between good and evil. And it just seems like it's getting increasingly dark, but what that means is that as we shine the light of the gospel, it shines all the brighter. And we need to make sure that we are consistent and dedicated to it and not try to accommodate ourselves to the culture, but to accommodate ourselves to the word of God.
and let the culture accommodate itself to God's word as well. So we want our light to shine.
And there's no better time to do it than right now. Well, you and your father before you have been very influential in keeping the airwaves open through organizations like the National Religious Broadcasters. You've both been very active in that and given leadership to NRB for many years. We just completed this year's convention, by the way. It was good to see you there. In Nashville. In Nashville. Speak about the NRB and broadcast.
and why we need to keep the airwaves open for the type of radio that we do. You know, it's interesting, if you study the history of the National Religious Broadcasters, it was founded at a time when access to the airwaves was under great attack.
And it was really being threatened, and gospel preaching broadcasts were being taken off the airwaves, and they banded together and said, we need to do something in order to protect our access to the airwaves. It's kind of the cancel culture of the day, and that's how NRB was formed. And with the formation of NRB, before long, they were able to regain their access to the airwaves. And indeed, radio stations...
were given to Bible preaching came on the air as well. And so NRB became a wonderful opportunity to make the case that the gospel should be on the air and also a point of real encouragement for those that were engaged in it. And like iron sharpens iron, we get together at our annual convention and
and have a chance to visit and meet and talk and learn what the Lord is doing through various ministries. Now, it started off as radio, and then it became radio and television, and now there's all kinds of electronic communication that NRB is a part of. Rich, I appreciate the scripture that you've sprinkled into our conversation here today, but in conclusion, is there a particular passage or verse that guides your life that really is a touchpoint for you? Well,
My favorite radio verse is Isaiah 40, 31. But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with wings as eagles. They shall run and not be weary. They shall walk and not faint. And the application that I give that is to contemplate what a good waiter is. And if you think about a waiter in a restaurant, they don't rush out and bring you the food. They stand by your table and ask what you would like.
And then once you have given them the order, they rush to do it. And they try to do it with excellence and a cheerful heart and good service. So I want to be a good waiter for the Lord. And so that's what that verse means to me. Our guest has been Rich Bott, chairman and CEO of Bott Radio Network. And we're grateful for all the radio stations that carry First Person each week. But I especially wanted you to meet Rich and hear his heart for using radio to proclaim the gospel.
For those of you not listening via bot radio right now, we have more information at FirstPersonInterview.com.
You heard mention of the Far East Broadcasting Company. Rich is one of the board members of FEBC, and it's been great for us to have that in common as we share the joy of spreading the story of FEBC and its ministry. Led by Ed Cannon, FEBC makes this program possible each week, but more importantly, it broadcasts the good news in 50 countries of the world, always in the local language. There's more at febc.org.
Now, with thanks to my friend and producer Joe Carlson, I'm Wayne Shepherd. Join us next time for First Person.
