On July 14, 1940, at the age of 16, Ben Bates gave his life to the Lord while attending a small Baptist revival in Little Rock, Arkansas. But by 1945, he had wandered so far away from the Lord and become so disillusioned that he contemplated taking his own life. Placing a note in his pocket, he began walking to the Main Street Bridge... when someone on the street handed him a gospel tract. Instead of jumping from the bridge, he walked to the First Baptist Church of Little Rock and gave his life back to the Lord.