Tours: Send us your memories.

Were you ever a part of Word of Life Tours? We’d love to hear from you.

If you participated in a Bible Institute production, whether on the road or at the Florida campus, please consider sending some memories or photos along.

We’re looking for the following:
(1) Photos – Anything showing the experience, from the performances to backstage to going on the road
(2) Memories – What encouraged you? Who do you remember? Any funny stories?
(3) Encouragement for other alumni – Pass along whatever you’d like to share.

It doesn’t have to be long! We’d just love to hear from you and share your thoughts with other alumni. Even if it’s just a sentence or a grainy 3x5 photo, let us know how Tours touched you.

Thank you for your contribution!

Contact Mike Bush at mikebush@wol.org or send your photos or memories to alumni@wol.org.  

Campus Update: Bible Institute moves across U.S., into Africa

By Dick Dray, Associate Executive Dean, New York campus

For many years, Jack Wyrtzen would introduce Word of Life’s radio program as being from high, high, high in the Adirondack Mountains of New York. He also would say at times that Word of Life was reaching youth both around the corner and around the world. This past December, through the Bible Institute, we saw exactly that happen.

In the last issue of The Victory Journal, Bible Institute Chancellor Don Lough, Jr. talked about student groups heading to New England and the southeastern United States for various music and drama tours, including the new original presentation Magi as well as a Collegian group and the ensemble Redemption.

During the nearly two weeks these groups were out, they shared the message of God’s Word through music and drama in Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Ohio, West Virginia, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, and Maine. We saw God work in bringing in more than 18,000 people in attendance. More than 100 people made decisions for Christ, and we made many great contacts with alumni and potential future Bible Institute students.

At the same, we saw God working “around the world.”

Bible Institute Executive Dean Mark Strout headed to Uganda to connect with Thomas Obunde (Class of 1995, 2000) and David Kirabira (2005, 2007) to work on plans to open another Bible Institute campus there, on the continent of Africa, this fall. At this time, a one-year program is planned, with 25 students anticipated to start the inaugural school year this September, although the campus as is can hold up to 50 students.

Teaching will be provided by resident lecturers from Uganda and surrounding countries, as well as some professors from the U.S. campuses, and additional options will be considered for ongoing training at the school as the Bible Institute looks to train up future leaders for Africa.

It’s been a packed fall and winter so far, but we’re only get started as we continue to watch God work both here around the corner and out around the world.

Q&A: Rich Andrews

Director of Ministries, Word of Life Florida

Ministry Timeline
Camper, Word of Life Ranch (1981, 1986-87)
Camper, Word of Life Island (1988-1991)
Bible Institute student: first year (1992), second year (1995)
Camp staff, Island (1992-1994, 2000)
Impact Singers (1992-1993)
Impact Team (1993-1998)
Camp director, Ranch (1995-1999)
Camp staff, Word of Life Florida (2001-2013)
Camp director, Florida (2005-present)
Director of Ministries, Florida (May 2013-present)

Family
Wife: Lynn Fahning Andrews (Class of 1994); married for 19 years
Children: Gavyn (15), Javen (13), Lynneah (11)

What was your first connection with Word of Life?
A Word of Life staff member brought a group of Bible Institute students to my home church, Bethany Baptist Church in Mount Clemens, Michigan, and did a Vacation Bible School-style event. I accepted Jesus Christ as my personal Savior at that event.

Whose life has impacted yours the most spiritually, and why?
God has allowed me to be mentored by several great men, but the biggest impact was made by George Theis. Our relationship began on my first Collegian tour, when he confronted me about talking while he was talking and followed it up with this statement: “You and I are either going to be the best of friends when this tour is over or the worst of enemies.” I’m so glad I chose friendship! He and his wife, Joan, continue to be a great encouragement to me and my wife, Lynn.

How were you impacted as a camper?
My first week of camp was in 1981 at Word of Life Ranch, and I hated it, missed home, ate too much candy, and was just miserable. When I was 14, though, I dedicated my life to the Lord on Kenya Hill.

How were you impacted as a student?
My first year was 1991-1992, and God used that year to change the direction of my life. I was involved in Collegians and developed a love for the technical side of theater. Through that, I decided to stay for another year and travel with the Impact Singers.

What is unique about the Word of Life Florida Youth Camp?
One of the unique aspects of the Florida Youth Camp is the number of church groups that come. We have very few individuals, so there’s a great dynamic between the youth leaders and pastors and our staff. It’s been called the “best camp in the universe” by some, but I think what makes all the Word of Life camps unique are the Bible Institute students serving as counselors. It’s very unique in the Christian camping world to have so many trained young people as counselors.

What’s new for summer 2014?
In 2014, we’re working hard to grow the Bible Institute as well as the Youth Camp. We’ve had several projects take place over the last year that have added so much to the property, and now we’re working to get the word out about this incredible ministry.

What types of ministries are the Bible Institute students involved in?
The Bible Institute students are involved in children’s evangelism, drama, praise band, and ensemble as well as Open Air Evangelism and ministering to groups that come to the Youth Retreat Center. We also were part of the new traveling tour Magi. We had 20 of our students travel with us for the production during the Christmas break.

How can we pray for your ministry?
You can pray for me personally as I balance my time between my family and that God would continue to grow the ministry of Word of Life Florida. We believe there are great days ahead!

On the road again: A message from the chancellor.

Remember the words from the popular 1980s song, “On the road again — I just can’t wait to get on the road again?” While this song came long after the Apostle Paul’s time, he certainly would have identified with the lyrics. If such a thing existed, Paul would have qualified as a charter member of AAA or even as a platinum frequent flyer.

Paul covered more than 9,000 miles on his missionary journeys. Venues like synagogues, markets, and even Mars Hill provided him with a platform to reach people with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. He did not wait for people to come to him — he went to them.

Following Paul’s example, Word of Life is increasing our road presence. Our goal is to leverage new opportunities to join with you and with local churches across America in getting the Gospel out. If you attended Word of Life rallies or traveled on tours with Jack and Harry, you know the value and impact of “hitting the road” and reaching people where they live.

This December we launched our brand-new Christmas production Magi.

Also, after a wildly successful pilot phase, Intersect Camps are now preparing for a new season of impacting thousands of young people in major cities across the Northeast. These one-day events are designed to take Word of Life camp to the cities of America. We have already seen more than 160 people trust Christ at these events. Check our website for more details and dates on these road initiatives. Get involved with us!

As we take some big steps forward, we can hardly wait to see you “on the road again.” In the meantime, thank you for your faithful prayers and friendship.

Tours: More Locations.

The Magi production will also be taking a swing through Florida, Georgia and Alabama. Take a look at what's behind Magi, and check below to see if the Word Life group is coming to a church near you.

Tours: Harry Bollback remembers the beginning.

Word of Life has been involved in a variety of musical groups and dramatic productions over the years, including Tours around the country and Gospel Productions, based at the Florida campus. This year the ministry is moving away from hosting productions solely at the Florida location, and Bible Institute students will instead be touring several cities with a production called Magi.

Don Lough, Jr. and Harry Bollback sat down with Mike Calhoun, executive assistant to the president, to talk about this new time for Word of Life.

Mike: When did the tour idea originally come to you?

Harry: In 1975, Jack Wyrtzen asked me to take a group of Collegians out. He took one group, and I took the other. We called it The Living Christmas Tree. Basically, the students stood on risers and held a string of lights that one of the guys would plug in every once in a while. When I got back, Jack said, “What do you think?” I said, “Jack, it was terrible. Honestly, it doesn’t look like Word of Life — no class.” That’s when Jack said to me, “Why don’t you do something about it?” I said, “I’ve never done anything like this.” 

Mike: That’s when Let Freedom Ring was born, right?

Harry: Yes. I had the advantage in that 1976 was a big year, and the story of Let Freedom Ring was a very patriotic story. Jack traveled with me and did a 10-minute Gospel message at the end. We started out on spring break in 1976. The response was overwhelming. We had taken a giant step of faith. We were in every giant theater you could think of and filled them. We had more than 90,000 people come to see it. There were hundreds of decisions. I decided while I was on that tour to write Ring the Bells.

Mike: How many nights in a row would you tour?

Harry: The full tour would be about 40 days.

Mike: About how many nights were you and Millie on the road?

Harry: I think about 120 days a year.

Mike: Over the course of all your tours — I have heard you talk about the numbers....

Harry: Leander Chute was on the tour with me and would count the tickets every night. He was very precise, so believe me when I tell you that he counted more than two million tickets of those who attended all of our presentations.

Mike: What was the largest audience you ever had?

Harry: I think the largest audience we had was at Madison Square Garden — not in the big Garden, but in the smaller, 7,500-seat auditorium. We did three Christmas programs. We had about 21,000 people that day. We did it just like this: We opened the back door and let everybody out and then would bring them in by a different door.

Mike: Would you do it again?

Harry: Definitely! But remember, I did not do it by myself. I had a great team!

Were you involved in Tours or Gospel Productions in any way? We want your stories and your photos! Send them along to alumni@wol.org or post on our Facebook group. We are hoping to tell many stories from throughout Word of Life’s years of productions in an upcoming issue. Please send your memories, even if you only have a few words to say.

Click here to read what Don Lough Jr. has to say about the new production.
Click here to see when and where Magi will be headed.

Tours: Don Lough, Jr. shares his vision.

Word of Life has been involved in a variety of musical groups and dramatic productions over the years, including Tours around the country and Gospel Productions, based at the Florida campus. This year the ministry is moving away from hosting productions solely at the Florida location, and Bible Institute students will instead be touring several cities with a production called Magi.

Don Lough, Jr. and Harry Bollback sat down with Mike Calhoun, executive assistant to the president, to talk about this new time for Word of Life.

Mike: Tell me about your passion for getting Bible Institute students into churches and communities with the new Christmas presentation Magi.

Don: It is important to me that we build close relationships with churches. As a ministry, Word of Life desires to serve the local church, and I believe this is one of the ways we can assist churches in reaching their communities.

Mike: Is this presentation a tool for evangelism?

Don: Yes. This program will be a great blessing to believers of all ages. However, it will also afford an opportunity for believers to bring friends to a quality Christmas program where they will see and hear a clear Gospel presentation. We are building specific aspects into the program just to keep children engaged. This is a family experience, and it was created with the family in mind.

Mike: I know another goal you have is for us to reconnect with our Bible Institute alumni.

Don: We are serious about reaching out to our alumni and reconnecting with them. We have asked Mike and Amy Bush to oversee this area for us, and they are aggressively reestablishing contact. I want to do more of this as we are on the road with this presentation.

Mike: I understand you have some history with Tours even as a child.

Don: Starting when I was about 10 years old, my father directed the Collegians, and I had the privilege of traveling on Tours such as Ring the Bells and His Truth Goes Marching On. It was an amazing experience to be up close and personal with Bible Institute students and Uncle Harry and Aunt Millie. What a joy it was to see so many come to Christ night after night. The periodic rides in the Chutes' green RV were a bonus!

Mike: Where do you anticipate taking the Christmas presentation?

Don: We will begin this year with one group in New York and New England and another in Florida and Georgia. However, I foresee us covering much of the East Coast and the Midwest as we move forward. Even this year, there will be a second Bible Institute ensemble going to the Midwest during the same timeframe. They will just not be doing the Magi presentation.

Were you involved in Tours or Gospel Productions in any way? We want your stories and your photos! Send them along to alumni@wol.org or post on our Facebook group. We are hoping to tell many stories from throughout Word of Life’s years of productions in an upcoming issue. Please send your memories, even if you only have a few words to say.

Click here to read what Harry Bollback had to say about the beginning of Tours.

Click here to see when and where Magi will be headed.

Tours: A New Frontier.

Word of Life is hitting the road again, this time for a special Christmas production called Magi. With a cast and crew made up of Bible Institute students and Word of Life staff, come experience a unique blend of music, drama and multimedia with one purpose in mind: to share the Good News of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Magi will be reconnecting with local churches with these special presentations this Christmas season. For more information, visit wol.org/Christmas.

Dates and Locations:

Dec. 6: Chicopee, Massachusetts
Dec. 7: Springfield, Massachusetts
Dec. 8: Worcester, Massachusetts
Dec. 9: Weymouth, Massachusetts
Dec. 10: Providence, Rhode Island
Dec. 11: Scotland, Connecticut
Dec. 12: Hartford, Connecticut
Dec. 13: Clinton, Connecticut

2014 Tour: Northern New England, western Pennsylvania
2015 Tour: Western New York, northern Pennsylvania, Indiana/Michigan

Were you involved in Tours or Gospel Productions in any way? We want your stories and your photos! Send them along to alumni@wol.org or post on our Facebook group. We are hoping to tell many stories from throughout Word of Life’s years of productions in an upcoming issue. Please send your memories, even if you only have a few words to say.

Click here to read what Don Lough, Jr. and Harry Bollback have to say about this new production.