The Fate of the World
By Dick Eastman


Writing in his classic book “Destined for the Throne,” Dr. Paul E. Billheimer reminds us that “the fate of the world is in the hands of nameless saints.” Billheimer was speaking of the unseen servants and soldiers in the battle for men’s souls who give, go and pray, but rarely get the credit. Billheimer’s quote always reminds me of F.C. Case, a quiet woodcutter who lived his entire life in the same North Carolina cabin where he was born.

FC. Case was not a man of great means. In fact, even when he was well past 70, he still read by the light of a kerosene lantern. Only a few years before his death at age 86 did Frank finally bring electricity into his cabin. The old man’s diet often consisted of little more than a ten-dollar bag of pinto beans, which he said might last him almost a month. His sole income in his later years came from cutting and chopping wood in the Carolina hills and selling it in nearby towns. Yet this man was responsible for providing printed gospel messages for more than eight million people in scores of countries around the world. F. C. Case entered life, as he put it, “a full-blooded Baptist.” He tithed faithfully to his church and often doubled and tripled that amount to missions.

During the Depression, Frank earned as little as fifty cents a day working on bridge construction, even less when he made bricks or sold wood. By the end of the Depression, he was giving $10 a month to missions—a remarkable sum when you consider that it was equivalent to the price of two months of food.

Early in the 1950s, at a church missions convention, the Lord spoke to F.C. Case about giving a thousand dollars to buy literature for India. Until then he had never heard about the impact of literature in evangelism. Now he felt God leading him to give a huge sum for this purpose. A few weeks later Frank heard EHC founder Jack McAlister over the radio talking about conducting Every Home campaigns throughout the world, using gospel literature. Frank sent an initial gift of two dollars. He considered it a small down payment toward his overall goal. Through the years Frank’s gifts grew remarkably. It often seemed he was giving everything he had except the few dollars he needed to eat. Many months Frank sent as much as $600, earned from cutting wood in the North Carolina hills. And always he covered his gifts with prayer.

When Frank Case heard about how inexpensive and effective systematic literature evangelism is, he was inspired to do much more. He calculated how many people he could reach with a dollar (at that time, 100 families could be reached), and he set a personal goal of reaching ten million people with the Gospel in his lifetime. When F.C. Case died in 1976, he was two million short of reaching his goal. But he knew that eight million people had been given access to the Gospel because of his faithfulness. The self-giving life of F.C. Case reminds me of the apostle Paul’s words: “Brothers, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth” (1 Corinthians 1:26).

These words of Paul’s, coupled with Paul Billheimer’s wise insight, remind us that it really is a host of “nameless saints” like F.C. Case who will make possible the ultimate fulfillment of the Great Commission. These are the behind-the-scene senders without whom the fulfillment of the Great Commission would remain a dream. They are the givers and prayers, the nameless saints who, in Jesus, control the destiny of human beings and nations.

“The Fate of the World” is an edited excerpt from Chapter 19 of Dick Eastman’s book Beyond Imagination."

Chariots of Fire
By Dick Eastman


I know we’d all be shocked if we could see what’s happening in the spiritual realm that surrounds us. The apostle Paul reveals that our daily lives are part of an intense struggle, “not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 6:12).

Daniel chapter 10 gives unique insight into the nature of this spiritual warfare. In this chapter an angel who came to minister to Daniel says that his journey had been hindered for 21 days by “the prince of the kingdom of Persia” (Daniel 10:13). There is obviously more going on in the world around us than meets the eye. In the book of II Kings we get another amazing glimpse of the invisible realm. In an attempt to capture the prophet Elisha, the king of Syria sends troops by night to surround the city of Dothan. The next morning, Elisha’s servant sees the army and despairs, telling Elisha that they are trapped. Elisha’s calm response to the situation is at first puzzling to the servant: “Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them” (II Kings 6:16). As far as the servant could see, there were no troops on their side to fight the Syrian army. Elisha then prayed that the servant’s eyes would be opened so he could see something unusual in the spiritual realm. In verse 17 we read, “And the Lord opened the servant’s eyes and he saw; and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.” Once again, the “invisible” hosts of heaven were there. In Daniel and II Kings we get just a glimpse of the spiritual powers who are battling over the nations. It’s just a glimpse, but enough of one to make us aware that there is a very real war being waged around us.

As members of Christ’s Body, and as people who are actively involved in reaching the lost with the Gospel, we have entered into this deadly battle. The only way I know how to survive is by spending a lot of time on our knees in prayer. In answer to Daniel’s prayers, an angel appeared. Who knows how many angels the Lord sends out in answer to our prayers that we are never even aware of. That’s why it’s so important to pray for EHC workers who are on the front lines, invading enemy territories and reaching the lost with the Gospel day to day. They can use some powerful angels on their side! In league with our prayers, our gifts provide the physical “weapons of warfare” EHC workers use in the battle—gospel booklets, Bible-study lessons and basic field support to help sustain them through the daily battles they face. The spiritual battle around us is very real and very deadly, but we can win great victories if we pray with humility and fight on as if we had angels beside us, leading the way. Who knows—maybe we do!