In Touch Ministries with Charles Stanley

Dr. Charles F. Stanley, pastor of the First Baptist Church of Atlanta and founder of In Touch Ministries, demonstrates a keen awareness of people’s needs by providing practical biblical truths for everyday life. Modeling his ministry after the apostle Paul’s message to the Ephesians, Dr. Stanley believes that: “. . . Life is worth nothing unless I use it for doing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus–the work of telling others the Good News about God’s mighty kindness and love” (Acts 20:24 LB).

In 1971, Dr. Stanley became Senior Pastor of the First Baptist Church of Atlanta, Georgia. In 1972, a half-hour program was launched on an Atlanta-area television station. Looking for a practical Bible teaching program, the Christian Broadcasting Network contacted Dr. Stanley in 1978 to request the program inclusion on its new venture, a satellite distribution network to cable systems. At no cost to First Baptist Church, the broadcast grew from 16,000 local Atlanta viewers to a nationwide audience in one week. By 1982, In Touch Ministries was incorporated and began radio syndication. The In Touch program penetrated almost every major market in the United States during the 1980’s, reaching more than one million households with the message of Christ’s sufficiency for life’s demands.

Today, the In Touch program can be heard in every nation on earth via radio, short wave, or television broadcasts. In the United States, the In Touch television program is seen on 204 stations and 7 satellite networks. The In Touch radio program is heard on 458 stations and via short wave radio. The ministry continues to produce audio and videotapes, CDs, DVDs, pamphlets, books and an award winning daily devotional magazine, In Touch. Dr. Stanley’s messages tackle such issues as parenting, finances, personal crises, emotions and relationships. Instructional teaching for personal spiritual growth focuses on prayer, the character of God, fellowship through the Holy Spirit, and the Person of Jesus Christ. Dr. Stanley fervently believes the Bible to be the inerrant Word of God, a belief strongly reflected in his teaching.

The goal of Dr. Charles Stanley is best represented in In Touch’s mission statement: To lead people worldwide into a growing relationship with Jesus Christ and to strengthen the local church. Dr. Stanley’s heart’s desire is to get the Gospel to “as many people as possible, as clearly as possible, as irresistibly as possible, and as quickly as possible–all to God’s glory.”