It is no secret

I grew up in the Los Angeles area of California. We didn’t exactly live within LA’s city limits. My family was one of the many pushing the boundaries outward in the city’s great suburbanization.

Entertainment-wise, black-and-white TV was commonplace in homes by the 1950s, 33rpm long-playing vinyl albums were popular, and the more affordable two-sided 45rpms made listening to the latest hits affordable for many teens.

And then there was AM radio, with a variety of programming, from live serial dramas, to early talk-radio, to ball games, to popular music.

My favorite station was KLAC, and one of my favorite programs in the 1970s was Stuart Hamblen’s Cowboy Church of the Air, and everyone knew to leave me alone for that hour.

Hamblen was a fixture of the Western-themed programming of that era.

Cowboy Church offered a melange of faith, spirituality, country/western music, stories, and Hamblen’s Christian message.

He made it very clear that he wasn’t a preacher. Rather, Hamblen said, he told stories instead of sermons. He mixed religious songs with homespun tales and a Christian message.

He also was a songwriter, with one of his best-known being It is No Secret.

Hamblen was a friend of a popular Hollywood cowboy, John Wayne. As the story goes, the two were visiting late one night at Wayne’s Orange County home. Hamblen was down in the dumps, and the Duke was trying to cheer him up.

The gist of Wayne’s message was: “God is good and we all know examples of God’s goodness. It’s not like it’s a secret…” Or words to that effect.

Later that night, now in his own home, Hamblen reflected on the conversation with his good friend.

Just then, the clock on his mantle started to chime its countdown to midnight.

Hamblen grabbed a pencil and started writing:

The chimes of time ring out the news, another day is through.

Someone slipped and fell, was that someone you.

You may have longed for added strength, your courage to renew. Do not be disheartened

I have news for you… It is no secret what God can do, what he has done for others he’ll do for you

With arms wide open he’ll pardon you. It is no secret what God can do.

Here is a link to one of the most popular recordings: