Bob Lepine recalls when his love of radio first began. With a transistor radio tucked safely underneath his pillow, a pre-teen Lepine would stay up past his 10 o’clock bedtime to sneak one last listen of Herman’s Hermits’ number one hit, “Mrs. Brown, You've Got a Lovely Daughter.”
“I know that dates me a little bit, but I know that friends of Truth For Life will understand that Alistair [Begg] and I share a love for the theology of pop music from the 60s and 70s. So I think I’m in good company there,” laughs Bob Lepine, the co-host of Truth For Life who began introducing the daily and weekend programs in September of 2010.
A fondness for pop music isn’t all that Lepine shares with Alistair. “I share an enthusiasm for the ministry of Truth For Life and want to see it expanded,” says Lepine. “The first thing that brought me to Truth For Life is my great respect, and love for, Alistair’s teaching. I’ve benefited from it personally, so when the opportunity to be a part of Truth For Life came along, my first impulse was to do whatever I can to help advance the teaching ministry.”
Extending an Invitation
Lepine will introduce the program each day with the primary goal of whetting the appetites of listeners who have just tuned in. “In my role at Truth For Life, I want to encourage and provoke the listener so that they are already engaged in the subject matter that Alistair will be speaking to,” explains Lepine. “Howard Hendricks, a long-time professor at Dallas Seminary, used to tell his students that his goal was ‘to dust their minds with itching powder.’ So, I hope that as I begin the program each day, I’ll do a little dusting and that folks will start to scratch their heads, and then as Alistair begins to preach, clarity will come.”
A Life In Broadcasting
Having studied communications at the University of Tulsa as an undergraduate, Lepine originally intended to go to law school. “Somebody told me that you could just study something that you like and get good grades because that’s what matters if you want to go to law school,” says Lepine. “The summer I was headed to law school, I took a summer job at a local radio station and halfway through they asked me to stay on and postpone law school. With a boost in pay from $750 a month to $850 a month, the big bucks were starting to roll in,” jokes Lepine. “And law school is still on hold!”
Throughout his career in broadcasting, Lepine has worked in mainstream radio, talk radio, as well as on a local news talk show in Tulsa, Oklahoma. From 1992 until 2021, Lepine was the co-host of the radio program Family Life Today with Dennis Rainey. Since 2022, listeners across the country have heard him as the morning show host on Family Radio, a national network of more than 70 stations. “Somebody asked me the other day, ‘How are you able to add Truth For Life to your schedule?’ I said, ‘Well, I had some open time between 2 and 4 in the morning where all I was doing was sleeping, so I decided I should be productive,” laughs Lepine.
The Intimate Nature of Radio
With an easy manner and thoughtful perspective on the nature of radio, it is clear that Lepine enjoys and appreciates the unique capabilities of the broadcasting mediums. “One of the things I love about radio is how intimate and how personal a medium it is. When I have my radio on, listening to a Bible teacher, or to a conversation … it’s like I’m there one-on-one with the person who’s speaking,” reflects Lepine. “I’m drawn in. When radio is done well, it’s not like you’re shouting to a large group. It’s more like you’re talking to an individual. It’s one of the things that I love about Alistair’s preaching. It’s not only practical and relevant and on-target, but it’s also very personal. And as I listen to him, he’s talking to me. I don’t know how many other folks are listening, but I know he’s talking to me. And that’s one of the great things about radio, and now podcasting, just the personal, intimate nature of that kind of communication.”
A Central Focus
As a lay pastor at his church, Lepine has the privilege of preaching on a regular basis. From this vantage point, he is able to identify with the goals of Truth For Life’s teaching ministry. “I think Alistair is calling us to something that people are starting to embrace in a fresh way, and that is that the gospel message is the central message for all of our lives. I see signs of a re-awakening to the core message of Christianity, and the gospel message being the central message that we are to proclaim. And so, I see that in our church as we try to make that central, and I see it as the central focus of Truth For Life and Alistair’s preaching.”
From his office in Little Rock, Arkansas, Lepine will prepare to introduce each Truth For Life program by spending time in the Word to enrich his heart, as well as keeping tabs on current, topical issues. “That natural curiosity is what helps me be prepared when the microphone turns on. In my role of introducing Alistair’s messages, I want to be like that guy on the street corner who says, ‘Hey, this is going to be good. Listen up.’ And hopefully the crowd will gather and Alistair will do what God has anointed him to do and the ministry will happen.”
It is our pleasure to introduce you to Bob Lepine, the co-host of Truth For Life.