Changing the World Through Prayer, Part 1

Roger Marsh: Welcome to Family Talk Weekend. I'm Roger Marsh. Thanks for making time during your weekend to take us along or to have us with you at home. Family Talk is a listener-supported broadcast outreach, and your prayers and financial partnership make these programs possible. Well, we have a great program in store for you today, so let's jump right in.
Dr. James Dobson: Welcome everyone to Family Talk. It's a ministry of the James Dobson Family Institute supported by listeners just like you. I'm Dr. James Dobson, and I'm thrilled that you've joined us.
Roger Marsh: Welcome to Family Talk. I'm Roger Marsh. Prayer is one of the most powerful gifts that God has given to His children. It aligns our hearts with His. It invites us into a relationship with Him and opens the door for Him to do extraordinary things in and through our lives. On today's edition of Dr. James Dobson's Family Talk, we're bringing you a classic conversation between Dr. Dobson and his dear friend Dr. Dick Eastman. Dick served as international president of Every Home for Christ for 34 years, and he was the originator of the Change the World School of Prayer, which has trained more than two million believers in over 120 nations. As you may have heard, Dr. Dick Eastman passed away earlier this year on April 21st at his home in the Colorado Springs area. He was 82 years old. Dick devoted his entire life to prayer and to carrying the gospel to every corner of the earth, and his legacy continues to touch lives all around the world. So we're especially grateful to bring you this conversation today. In it, you're going to hear Dick share the remarkable story of how Jesus moved in his life, from a childhood of hardship to a life-changing encounter in a college prayer closet to a worldwide ministry born out of faithful, persistent prayer. It's a testimony to what God can do when we simply say yes to Him. So let's listen in now to Dr. James Dobson and his guest Dr. Dick Eastman right here on Family Talk.
Dr. James Dobson: You and your team have literally taken the gospel to the ends of the earth, and that's not an exaggeration. We're going to talk more about that prayer ministry that God laid on you very, very early, and you've been at it for a long time. You have been the keynote speaker at many national and international events on prayer and leadership and evangelism. You've written books on these topics and have conducted hundreds of hours of seminars and workshops, including the monthly Change the World School of Prayer. There are so many components to the work that you've done, Dick, and I admire you and I thank God for you. This training has impacted more than three million Christians in 120 nations, and you are obviously a very busy man. But the work continues. It certainly does. We're so glad to have you here today to talk about this. You and I were in a mutual support group back in the '90s, and we got together and prayed together. So we're soul brothers in some ways. Let me take you back to your college days because you had a pretty rough road. You've always had barely enough money to support what you felt God was asking you to do, and that was true in college.
Dick Eastman: When I first went to college, I remember my mother saying goodbye to me, putting me on the train, and handing me a $20 bill. That's exactly what I started with. I had to get a job right away and just miracle after miracle of how the Lord sustained us and just set in motion the things He's doing today. Those are great times that really teach you to depend on the Lord.
Dr. James Dobson: As a matter of fact, let's go back earlier than that because you had a pretty tough childhood, didn't you?
Dick Eastman: My father, I never knew him having health. Even when he passed away as he was in his last moments, I asked my mother how long has Dad been regularly in the hospital for months at a time. She said she was thinking about that and it had been 29 years where up to three to five months or more in the hospital. So we just didn't have money. I remember I was a paperboy and I delivered, like so many young guys did. I had picked up the newspaper one day because there had been a track meet the day before. It was an evening paper and I opened up the sports page to see Henry Aaron, my idol back then, and there was my picture. Someone was at the school, and I was running in socks because I couldn't afford track shoes. It had my name and it said, "Socks askew running in the..."
Dr. James Dobson: That really does illustrate it. Was it really that bad?
Dick Eastman: It was a real struggle. Yet during those days, the Lord had His hand on us and was working into my life. It was a season now you look back at and just say, "Lord, thank You for what You've done."
Dr. James Dobson: How many years have you been married now?
Dick Eastman: 51. In fact, I decided this one night we were together and I just thought I'm going to—and we were sitting really close and it was real cozy. I said, "I need to tell you something," and she graciously said, "What?" and I said, "I love you," and she just jerked away from me, literally jerked. I thought, "Oh boy, I've missed the mark here." When I said to her, "Don't you have something to say?" she said, "Well, what am I supposed to say?" I said, "Usually when a young man says to a young lady 'I love you,' they say back 'I love you too.'" She said, "I can't say that." Then I said, "Do you think you ever could?" She said, "Well, maybe in six months and then again maybe never." Which set up an encounter with the Lord three days later that really changed our lives.
Dr. James Dobson: In what way?
Dick Eastman: She said to me things like, "We can still date." It was like that statement, "We can still be friends." I was working all night shift at a grocery store to pay my tuition. So in the afternoon of that third day, I was in prayer in our closet, the big closet in our dorm room. The Lord just began to speak to me and made what now seems like unbelievable promises. People might think you're making this up, but like, "You're going to be involved in millions of souls coming into the Kingdom." Well, I was dating Dee, who had been working at the Billy Graham Association as a correspondence secretary. So I said, "Lord, you mean I'm going to have a ministry like Billy Graham?" and He said in my heart, "No, these will be prayed into the Kingdom." Then all of a sudden, and this is no exaggeration, I heard in my heart, "And Dee will marry you." I said, "Thank You, Jesus, thank You." Then I stopped and said, "Pardon me, God, would it be alright if You tell Dee this before I do?" and He said, "I am taking care of that now." The miracle is He did. She asked me to pick her up from work where she was working at the end of the day. So I went and picked her up. She looked at me, I still can remember the dress she had on, and she said, "Let's go out to eat tonight." She's asking me on a date. After we ate, she said, "Let's go down and park by the lake." We agreed on our dates we would pray together, and she has a beautiful voice. Sometimes she would sing. She sang solos with the choir in college. She took both my hands, started to cry, and sang the popular wedding song back then, "I Love You Truly." She only sang the first line, threw her arms around me, and that was our proposal from her.
Dr. James Dobson: You know what? We can see now that the Lord has answered that prayer. She has been your partner, your friend, your wife, your lover for all these years, and she is one great lady. I'm talking about Dee Eastman.
Dick Eastman: She's had an office by me all these years. One thing I should add is that the Lord later said to me, "See what I said to you? I'm taking care of it now. I'm going to take care of the rest of what I promised you."
Dr. James Dobson: So your whole life really has been a fulfillment of that revelation in a prayer closet at 20 years old.
Dick Eastman: Really that led to Every Home for Christ.
Dr. James Dobson: Would you explain what Every Home for Christ is? Are you literal about that?
Dick Eastman: Some have said they appreciate the name because the name actually reflects exactly what we do and what our focus is. Every Home for Christ actually—sometimes people think I founded the ministry, but it was founded in 1946 in Canada and became a literature ministry just sending literature to the missionaries. Our founder was out in Japan with another Canadian missionary trying to reach people at the train stations in Tokyo. For every one person they could give a gospel booklet to, ten got by them. They prayed that night, "Oh God, how could we reach a whole nation?" He put on their heart dividing the country up into prefectures and into districts and start a campaign to take the gospel literally, no matter how long it takes, to every household, every home. Thus was born the Every Home Crusade part of the Every Home campaign.
Dr. James Dobson: You're talking about people knocking on doors of people they don't know and sharing the gospel with them, door by door by door.
Dick Eastman: Keep in mind that the early church in Acts chapter five, when the authorities had arrested the apostles and they said, "You have filled Jerusalem with your teaching," we wonder could that have been literal. Because when you get to the end of Acts chapter five, verse 42, it says, and this is how they did it. It says, "Daily in the temple courts and to every house, they never stopped proclaiming the gospel." So what we're seeking to do is to do that literally. We've now actually had every home campaigns in 215 nations.
Dr. James Dobson: Well, how did you get involved in it?
Dick Eastman: During the Jesus movement in California, we started a prayer center for young people that when they finished high school, before going to college, we asked them to give a year to come and help pray day and night prayer. We called it the Prayer Corps. 10 years before that, President Kennedy had started the Peace Corps and I thought, "The only way we're going to have peace is more prayer." We started this and started mobilizing young people, and over about four years we had 100 young people give a year of their lives. I've often been interviewed and said, "How did your prayer ministry begin?" and I say, "With a century worth of prayer." What does that mean? 100 young people giving a year to pray day and night in assigned times. That's how our ministry began and our founder heard about that and said to me, "Why don't you come and take what you've learned and put it into a School of Prayer and take it to the nations?" That's exactly how I got involved in this ministry.
Dr. James Dobson: And you have been president now for how long?
Dick Eastman: 28 years.
Dr. James Dobson: Shirley and I were invited to a celebration of 25 years. You showed films and slides of you being in just all around the world. It's amazing what the Lord has done through this ministry.
Dick Eastman: It's been just our policy when we go to a home, our policy is to leave actually two messages, one for adults and one for children, in the language of the people there. Then they can respond by sending a decision card or a response card to the nearest office, and we have them all over the world. Then we follow them up with a four-part Bible correspondence course. Then we go into the villages where you might have 10 or 20 people genuinely respond, and they'll even write a testimony of how they've come to know Jesus because that's a part of the last part of the courses—is to write your testimony. Well, then we go in and start New Testament fellowships. We call Christ groups, and that's what's really been taking off in our ministry.
Dr. James Dobson: Well, there are so many other components to it, Dick. The National Prayer Committee came along what, 20 years ago?
Dick Eastman: Actually more than that. I was in the very first meeting with Vonette Bright and a number of other prayer leaders. She felt led to call that meeting, the wife of Dr. Bill Bright, and that was in 1975.
Dr. James Dobson: I've got to tell you something about this. I know this. I'm going to share it. Of all the members of the National Prayer Committee, with the passing of Vonette Bright, a great loss to the Christian community, Shirley and I loved her. I just can't even describe it. Tell me what the passing of Vonette Bright meant to you.
Dick Eastman: Vonette and Bill, too, they're just absolute giants in the faith. Vonette, it's interesting when I look back and the Prayer Corps ministry we mentioned, the vision for that actually came to me in November of 1971. If you know the history, that's the exact month and time that Vonette Bright started the Great Commission Prayer Crusade with Campus Crusade for Christ. So I—we have that history of being very focused on the prayer side of the coin of the Great Commission. Because I say one side is the prayer: "Pray ye therefore the Lord of harvest will thrust forth laborers." And the other side of the coin is the "Go ye therefore." So you've got the "Pray ye therefore" and the "Go ye therefore," and Vonette lived that.
Dr. James Dobson: Well, let me tell you a story that's very meaningful to Shirley and me about Vonette Bright. Shirley and I were very close friends with Bill and Vonette. Of course, they were the founders and he was the president of Campus Crusade for Christ. We went out to dinner together one night and toward the end of that meal, Vonette turned to Shirley and said, "Shirley, I've been feeling the Lord would have me step down as the executive director of the chairman of the National Day of Prayer." Vonette had founded the National Day of Prayer and she said, "I feel there are other responsibilities for me and I just am feeling a leading that you should succeed me in that responsibility." Shirley smiled and she said, "Vonette, I really can't do that. We have a very busy plate. We have two children we're raising and I serve on Jim's board of directors and that requires a lot of me. So I thank you, but I just really can't do it." Vonette smiled and she said, "Well, Shirley, will you at least pray about it?" and Shirley said, "Of course I will." The more Shirley prayed about Vonette's request, the more she felt God's hand in her back. Finally, Shirley said in her own prayer before the Lord, "If You really want me to do this, I would like You to confirm it in two ways. The first is for Vonette to ask me again. I'm not going to respond to her, but if You want me to do this, I just pray that You will tell me through Vonette. And secondly, I would like You to confirm with Jim that this is something I ought to do." So Shirley talked to me one night about it and said this request had been made of her by Vonette Bright. Shirley knew I would say no because we were too busy for anything else. Instead, I said, "Shirley, what more important thing can you possibly do than calling the nation to prayer?" So Shirley said, "Lord, I will do it." It has been a labor of love and frankly, it's one of the things I'm most proud of in Shirley's Christian walk, including of course the raising of our two children. Shirley has carried that responsibility and done it very, very well. Vonette is responsible for it, and now of course she's gone on to be with the Lord. She was one great, godly lady. We absolutely loved Vonette and Bill Bright and thank God for them, and we're going to see them again someday in heaven.
Dick Eastman: It was incredible. One thing I should comment to was that during the days of the founding of the Prayer Corps, and I was doing some conferences in Christian colleges where God spontaneously would begin to speak at the end of some of our meetings of young people to sacrifice things that stood between them and the Lord. The Purple Pig became a book. One of my books is titled *The Purple Pig and Other Miracles*. In that book, I tell some of the stories that were just incredible. Can you imagine young people coming to the altar? I remember one young lady coming in one college and bringing her violin, and I said, "Why are you bringing your violin?" and she said, "This has been my whole life. I've won many awards, but I've only done it for myself and I don't even want to pick this violin up again if I can't do it for the glory of the Lord." Well, that started happening with young people. In one college, there were about eight or 10 young people. I imagine that something sparked others doing it. But when out to their car and brought—some actually took out of their car their stereos where they were playing rock music. I mean, it was just in one way I want to say crazy, but it was really amazing. Well, I was going into a big conference in Michigan and I knew God wanted to do the same thing in that conference with these young people. There were about 2,000 there. That afternoon in prayer, the Lord asked me if I was willing to give up everything I had and I said, "Sure, everything. Even all the money you have on you." "Sure." Then I said, "Well, Lord, could I just keep $2?" I'm hearing this in my heart: "Why, what do you want that for?" Well, He knew what I was going to say. I always buy our daughter Dina, who was just three years old then, a gift at the airport when I go. "Can I just..." He said, "Well, how much do you love me? Do you really..." and I just wept and said, "Okay, Lord, I'm going to give it all." I came home from that trip and didn't have a gift for my daughter. She was kind of acting up. I just remember this because Dee was with a little three-year-old. The next morning or the morning after that, I opened the front door and there was a gigantic box that had come from someplace in Michigan. When I opened it up, it said, "For your daughter." It makes me want to cry. She said, "For your daughter," and it was this giant stuffed purple pig. What I forgot to say about when I was in prayer that afternoon in this auditorium alone before the meeting, the Lord said to me, and this was the lesson of the purple pig: "If you will give Me everything you have, I will give you everything I have." I thought, "That's a good deal."
Roger Marsh: Well, that promise that Dr. Dick Eastman received in a quiet auditorium all those years ago still speaks to every one of us today. "If you give Me everything you have, I will give you everything I have," the Lord says to us. You're listening to a special edition of Dr. James Dobson's Family Talk and a classic conversation featuring Dr. Dobson and his dear friend Dr. Dick Eastman. Now, if you missed any part of today's broadcast or if you'd like to share it with a friend who needs encouragement in their prayer life, visit us at JDFI.org. If today's program stirred a desire in your own heart to grow closer to the Lord, I'd love to point you to a wonderful free resource. The Dr. James Dobson Family Institute has created a 10-day email series based on Dr. Dobson's bestselling book *When God Doesn't Make Sense*. When life brings heartache and trials that we simply can't understand, these messages can strengthen your faith and remind you that even the darkest valleys can lead to a closer walk with the Lord. Each day's reading is short enough to fit into your busy schedule, yet rich enough to bring real comfort and biblical perspective right when you need it most. To sign up for the free 10-day email series called *When God Doesn't Make Sense*, visit our website at JDFI.org. Conversations like the one you heard today here on Family Talk are only possible because of listeners like you. For more than 15 years, this ministry has worked to strengthen marriages, equip parents, defend the sanctity of human life, and to introduce as many people as possible to the gospel of Jesus Christ. That mission depends on the faithful generosity of friends like you who believe in this work, and every donation, no matter the size, helps us reach more homes and more hearts with the message of hope that families need today. So we invite you to partner with us. You can drop us a line through the U.S. Postal Service. Our ministry mailing address is The Dr. James Dobson Family Institute, P.O. Box 39000, Colorado Springs, Colorado 80949. Once again, our ministry mailing address is The Dr. James Dobson Family Institute, or you can just use those initials JDFI for short. P.O. Box 39,000, Colorado Springs, Colorado, the zip code 80949. If you prefer, you can give a gift through our secure website at JDFI.org or call us at 877-732-6825. That's 877-732-6825. Well, I'm Roger Marsh and on behalf of everyone here at Family Talk and the Dr. James Dobson Family Institute, thanks so much for making this program a part of your day. Be sure to join us again next time right here when Dr. Dick Eastman will share more remarkable stories of world-changing prayer. That's coming up right here on the next edition of Dr. James Dobson's Family Talk, the voice you trust for the family you love. This has been a presentation of the Dr. James Dobson Family Institute.
Dr. James Dobson: With today's Dr. Dobson Minute, here's Dr. James Dobson. I've never met Larry Walters, but I know I like him. Larry's a truck driver from Los Angeles whose boyhood dream was to fly. Then one day, somewhere around his 33rd birthday, he emerged from the garage to capture the attention of the entire city. A weather man at the Los Angeles International Airport noticed this small blip on the radar screen. High above the city, Larry was flying. He was sitting in an aluminum lawn chair hooked by ropes to 40 weather balloons. Later, when a reporter asked if he was scared, he said, "Wonderfully so." Let me ask you what new idea has been buzzing around in your head for years? Have you wanted to start your own business or go back to school or write that book that's somewhere in the back of your mind? Maybe this is the time to set your dreams in motion. If Larry can drift skyward in a lawn chair, you can reach for the heavens in your own way. For more information, visit DrDobsonMinute.org.