Tim Wildmon
AFA president
July-August 2012 – Part of my responsibilities at American Family Association is to host Today’s Issues a daily talk program on American Family Radio. AFR is a network of nearly 200 stations that AFA owns and operates. I have been doing this for 21 years. One of my favorite guests that we have hosted over the years was Chuck Colson.
Colson passed away on April 21.
What struck me most about this man was that he was always excited about some new book or new project he was working on to somehow further the kingdom of God. And wow, did he evermore make some major contributions to the Lord’s work after he dedicated his life to Jesus Christ in the mid-1970s. His 16 books sold over 5 million copies.
In his best seller Born Again, Colson penned his testimony of transformation from ruthless, power-hungry political animal to humble servant and follower of Jesus Christ. His conversion story swept through Washington and around the country.
As he matured in his Christian faith, he developed two real passions in life. One was reaching those incarcerated as he had been. Thus he founded Prison Fellowship. Colson’s belief was that the best way to turn people from a life of crime and rebellion was to change their “want to.” And the best way to change their “want to” was to introduce them to the life changing power of Christ, a power that he had experienced himself. Thousands, perhaps millions, of prisoners (and their families) have been impacted profoundly by the work of Prison Fellowship.
“When I was in prison, I saw the absolute futility of the prison system,” said Colson. “There’s no way you can take a bunch of criminals, stick ’em in a dormitory where they sit around at night comparing the crimes they committed and how they’re going to do it next time, and expect to rehabilitate them.”
Colson’s second passion was training believers in what it means to have a biblical worldview. In fact, he really helped popularize the word worldview, following in the steps of his mentor Francis Schaeffer, the great Christian apologist of the 1960s, ’70s and ’80s.
His Breakpoint daily radio program is heard on stations all over America, including the American Family Radio network.
Promoting a comprehensive biblical worldview in the areas of government, family, law, history, economics and social issues was his forte. The social issues, and sometimes political issues, are the areas where AFA and Mr. Colson often joined together. I remember having him as a guest on Today’s Issues, and he was singing the praises of my dad, Don Wildmon, and AFA for helping him promote the 2009 Manhattan Declaration, a document signed by thousands of Christians and Christian leaders (www.manhattandeclaration.org). Colson explained the aim of the declaration this way:
The Manhattan Declaration is a wake-up call – a call to conscience – for the church. It is also a crystal clear message to civil authorities that we will not, under any circumstances, stand idly by as our religious freedom comes under assault.
The Declaration begins by reminding readers that for 2,000 years, Christians have borne witness to the truths of their faith. This witness has taken various forms – proclamation, seeking justice, resisting tyranny and reaching out to the poor, oppressed and suffering.
Having reminded readers about why and how Christians have spoken out in the past, the Declaration then turns to what especially troubles us today – the threats to the sanctity of human life, the institution of marriage and religious freedom.
If there were a Mount Rushmore of Christian leaders who influenced the church and the culture in the last quarter century, certainly Chuck Colson’s profile would be there. For me personally, his book Against the Night gave clarity to the culture war going on in our country and what was at stake should a vibrant Christian influence be lost.
May the impact of Chuck Colson continue even as he has passed on to his great reward in heaven with the Lord he served so faithfully. 
