When AllWorship first hit the airwaves on March 1, 2004, we vowed to always run this Christian radio station in a way that honored the Lord. We promised to do things ethically and offer listeners a professionally programmed station with the latest and best Christian music playing 24 hours a day without commercials. That was not a simple task or an inexpensive one since we were funded entirely by listener donations.

We enjoyed some fantastic success right out of the gate. People seemed to love our music, and we were one of the Internet’s first commercial-free Christian stations. Thousands of people listened to AllWorship, some in countries we didn’t even know existed.

As with any start-up, we had bumps along the way, mainly when it came to our finances. And the financial situation became more and more concerning when donations didn’t come in at the rate which we needed. After two years, our start-up money was almost completely gone. We were down to our last $100 and had bills due in a week for nearly $3,700.

We had always said we would run AllWorship to the best of our ability as long as we had the financial resources. It looked like that time had come to an end.

I went to our mailbox, and one envelope caught my attention. It had a beautiful Hawaiian stamp on it, so I opened it right there. It had a note that said the enclosed check was from a Christian ministry whose employees enjoyed listening to AllWorship every day in their office. Their ministry was closing, and they wanted us to have their ministry’s leftover funds so we could continue reaching people for Jesus.

The check was for $3,742, just enough to cover the bills that were due that week. Tears filled my eyes right there at the mailbox.

Nothing about that check–its timing or amount–was a coincidence. God shows Himself to us in extraordinary ways and at certain times in our lives, and that is undoubtedly one of them for me. And, more importantly, for AllWorship.

I genuinely think God was sending us a message: He was in charge, and we were simply doing His work. He brought us to that breaking (I should probably say “broke”) point to show us that this ministry was His, that we needed to be in the passenger seat, and that He was the driver. From that moment on, we released any “worry” about AllWorship.

Websites or radio stations are usually judged by statistics–the number of visitors to that home page or the number of clicks to listen. And AllWorship has some very impressive figures that could be cited. But this has never been just a website or a radio station; it’s always been a ministry. It is all about touching people with Christian worship music and either strengthening their walk with Jesus or bringing them to know Him. And doing this on the Internet gives us the privilege of reaching people around the world–a very humbling thought.

Thank you for your support and listening to AllWorship in those early days. And thanks for helping it blossom 20 years later. Being part of this for two decades has been one of the greatest joys of my life. Without your support, it would have never gotten off the ground or stayed on the air. I can’t wait to see what God has in store for AllWorship during the next 20 years!

From AllWorship co-founder Bill Hardekopf.