Ministering through airwaves

When a producer suggested that the Baptist Messenger reach out weekly via the radio, Ray Sanders and Bob Nigh wondered if they could come up with enough shows for one year.

They did. And this month, Baptist Messenger Radio is celebrating its second anniversary.

Soon after starting the radio show, the duo realized there were plenty of topics of interest and numerous guest speakers to keep the program thriving with informative shows, said Sanders, communications team leader for the Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma and executive editor of the convention's newspaper, the Baptist Messenger.

"We've produced over 100 original programs, and we're going into our third year,” he said.

Sanders said Paul Sublett, station manager at KQCV-AM 800 radio, initially suggested the Messenger be launched on the airwaves. Sanders said the idea fit with the convention's Messenger Media Strategy to convey news and information important to Southern Baptist Oklahomans by way of numerous forms of media, including radio and the Internet.

Both men had radio experience: Sanders with KGOU, a public station licensed at the University of Oklahoma, and Nigh while hosting a show for KPAN in Hereford, Texas.

Armed with what they already knew, the Baptist Messenger Radio show became yet another way to disseminate news, Sanders said.

"Our goal is for people to hear us on the air and read about it in the Baptist Messenger.”

The show is aired at 3 p.m. Tuesdays on KQCV. A second radio station, KWHW-AM 1450 in Altus, picked up the show and airs it at 5:30 p.m. Sundays. Baptist Messenger Radio also is available online at messengerradio.com.

This week, Sanders and his co-host Nigh found out the show has received two awards. He said the show won first place in the video podcast and the radio broadcast categories of the Baptist Communicators Association competition held recently in Arizona.

There's no secret to the show's success, only a desire to keep things realistic. Both Sanders and Nigh knew they wanted to do something different than a typical show. They wanted to have informal conversations with guests while encouraging them to share their stories of faith.

"It helps to make those stories more personal,” said Nigh, who is managing editor of the Baptist Messenger.

"We just want it to be real, and we want it to be relevant,” Sanders said.

To that end, the show has had a diverse group of guests including Richard Land, executive director of the Southern Baptist Convention's Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission; Gov. Brad Henry and first lady Kim Henry; creators of VeggieTales; Michael Catt, producer of "Facing the Giants”; State Rep. Sally Kern; and contemporary Christian recording artists Dennis Jernigan and Jami Smith.

Tiffany McClendon, Sanders' administrative assistant, helps book guests and researchs the show's topics. Marcus Wehmuller and Jacob Wright serve as the show's producers.

Nigh said they typically have a short script but always allow plenty of room for the unscripted.

"We script it to a certain extent, but we let God take over,” Nigh said. "Sometimes He'll reveal things that we hadn't thought about.”

Readers of the Baptist Messenger and listeners of the radio show can stay tuned for videos from Sanders and Nigh. Sanders said a new studio is being built, and podcasts will be posted on the Web.

Also, Baptist Messenger Radio is going to Falls Creek Baptist Conference Center for "Rewired,” the convention's men's conference set for Friday and Saturday.