Here's your chance to get to know a little more about us all here at the Tapes ministry - from who we are to how we came to be. There's also a mission statement outlining the core of what we do and why we do it, while we we've includede a more detailed Statement of Doctrine for those of you who want to know more of what we, as a ministry, believe.
We, at CCF Tapes, believe strongly in the power of the Word of God and in the priesthood of all believers. We believe that the Bible is "inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness" (2 Tim 3:16 NASB) and therefore is the bedrock for our lives as believers. As such we feel our mission is to provide sound biblical teaching to as wide an audience as possible for the purposes of "the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ" (Eph 4:12 NASB).
1972-1987
Our Formation
The tape ministry started in 1972 in an unofficial form as soon as the first bible studies given by Roger Price were copied from one portable cassette recorder (set up in Mike Levett's spare room) to another to satisfy a demand for those not able to join the throng listening live. Ralph Page, using his skills as a BBC engineer, produced the first mulitple copying system. Mike Bower became our first voluntary Tape Secretary and was responsible for the distibution of the tapes to a rapidly growing audience. He also produced the first few catalogues of studies.
Growth of CCF and the Tapes Ministry
Demand from around the country continued to grow and with it both the quality of our equipment and the size of the catalgoue. With the Fellowship growing, and more and more people ministering it became evident that the ministry couldn't survive on part-time labour, nor could the equipment be housed in Mike's spare room forever. So in 1984 Keith Cline became our first full-time Tape secretary and we moved into the rooms above the Bible Bookshop in Bognor Regis which was owned and managed by one of the Fellowship's elders. As well as Keith, the ministry employed two packing clerks and two order clerks as well as a number of part-time copy technicians.
1987-2007
A Continuing Legacy
At its peak, with Roger travelling all over the UK and abroad, the ministry was dispatching over 30,000 tapes annually across the globe. However, with Roger's passing in 1987, this number gradually declined. Nonetheless, the tape catalogue continued to expand with new material being produced by the many skilled teachers the fellowship produced, a testament to the basis that had been laid.
Getting Up-to-date
The tape ministry continued to change and in 1991 Keith left the ministry to pursue other aspects of Christian ministry with Ralph Page taking the helm as manager. Since then, the ministry has tried to convert a lot of the material that it has into a number of modern formats, first MP3 and now CD. Some of the later studies had also been recorded on VHS video and are being transferred onto DVD. In the Autumn of 1998 the ministry launched itself onto the internet and with the new website just finished there is the hope that we can provide more information than ever before on our talks, our speakers and on the aims of the ministry.
Our Plans for the Future
The update of the website has been one of many projects that we have had on our heart to do for some time. For the minute we are busily updating the format of much of our material while trying to keep up to speed with the daily demands of business. However, we would appreciate your prayers that we would have wisdom regarding how we can increasingly provide relevant biblical resouces to the church today. One thing is for sure, whatever plans we have or projects we take on, this ministry will always be based on the strong biblical teaching that gave rise to it back in 1972.
Ralph & Maggie Page.
As members of The Chichester Christian Fellowship they have been associated with the Tape Ministry from its inception in 1972 when the copiers were simply a batch of ordinary cassette recorders connected together - engineered by Ralph and operated by Maggie, among others.
Keith Cline and Ralph between them recorded all of Roger Prices Bible studies given at CCF meetings & conferences together with those of the other Elders & Ministers of CCF.
Ralph, an electronics design engineer with the BBC and Marconi, took over from Keith as Ministry Manager in December 1991 although Maggie, a Midwife and Special Care Baby Nurse, had been one of the team of part time "high speed copyists" for some time before. (The "high speed" refers to the machines used rather than physical movement!)
Ros Price
As well as being a contributor to the catalogue of studies (having recorded 4 talks at conference workshops) Ros is a very effective member of our team as one who constantly beseeches God for the material we have to be made known to as many people as possible. The number of times that she has prayed for a large order that has obviously been sent before she prayed is a wonderful testimony to her heart for the ministry, or rather, the effectiveness of prayer.
There are a number of people who put in invaluable work for us and we want to mention just a few:
Ed Rigg
From being an ardent customer, Ed has become one of our most valued co-workers. Ed has spend a vast amount of time over the last 3+ years transfering many of the talks from Tape to CD. He has probably become more familiar than anyone else with the contents of our studies!
Alan Manchester
As editor of the BBS Books 'Salvation' & 'Grace and Judgement' he has provided both invaluable reference guides for our most popular tapes as well as the encouragement and friendship that often keep us going!
Martin Thompson
As well as recording some of our talks on chronology, Martin also heads up Bible Voice Broadcasting which uses talks by Roger Price & Peter Michell on short wave radio over India.
Peter Michell
Our Auditor, Peter spent 10 years as the director of the International Christian Commerce as well as producing a number of booklets and tapes on various aspects of Christian Life. Amongst the subjects Peter has covered are Chronology and Money, with many in conjunction with Martin Thompson.
Malcolm Coulson
Malcolm has always had the tapes ministry at the heart of his Christian interests and constantly prays for the continuance of a ministry based on the truth of the Word of God.