Dr. Brown’s move to Phoenix was a crucial turning point in his life. If he had continued with the seminar work full-time, as he had originally hoped, he wouldn’t have had time to study geology and work on his book. Although his seminars had been useful in getting out the creation message, Dr. Brown’s book has reached a much wider audience.
His book, In the Beginning: Compelling Evidence for Creation and the Flood, more closely resembles an encyclopedia than any other kind of book. Here he summarizes the evidences for creation and explains his hydroplate theory of the flood. Based on this theory, he has found that twenty-five major features of the earth can be explained logically. Scientists who have taken the time to understand the theory have often converted to flood geology, because Dr. Brown gives them a scientifically acceptable approach that is intellectually satisfying. Scientists are struck by diverse problems the hydroplate theory solves.12
Dr. Brown plays a vital function in the creation ministry. He keeps current with the latest scientific data and analyzes the implications for creation and publishes it in a format that lay readers can understand. Early on he decided not to write a lot of books. He felt he needed to improve and expand his original book that had started out as a guide for those attending his seminars. In this guide he had summarized the evidences for creation and against evolution so that people weren’t frantically taking notes. Then people who hadn’t been to the seminar started asking for copies. So every few years, Dr. Brown has had to publish a new edition. Each edition has been larger and more popular.
In the Beginning has now reached the seventh edition and is widely in demand because it is the most complete reference work covering the broad subject of origins from a scientific standpoint.13 For scientists who want to follow his calculations, he has included technical notes explaining how he arrived at his conclusions. But the pictures and graphics make it interesting for young people, and the explanations are understandable to lay people. The entire book is meticulously footnoted so that a reader can delve into the sources and not just take Dr. Brown at his word.
His book is on his website, and anyone can access the complete volume from there or print it out at no cost.14 When people ask Dr. Brown how he can earn any money if he makes his book free to everyone, he replies, “My purpose is not to make money. My purpose is to get the information out. Nothing could make me happier than if this evolution problem ended and I was unemployed. I would probably take up golf again.”
Dr. Brown receives much mail from people who have read his book or visited his website. About five percent of the feedback is negative, and Dr. Brown carefully considers each hostile letter to see whether it is pointing out an error of his. If it does, he is grateful for the helpful criticism. But the vast majority of the mail is encouraging and motivates him to continue with his ministry.
One day while opening the mail, Dr. Brown found a letter from Hai Lam, his friend from Vietnam! Thirty-three years after Walt Brown left Vietnam, Hai found him! He had suffered a great deal because of his involvement with the Americans. After two failed attempts to escape Vietnam, Hai did finally make it to America and was living in California with his wife and three children.
In his letter to the Browns, Hai enclosed a water-stained picture that he had kept all those years. It was a picture of himself and Dr. Brown standing in the village of Phouc Hiep. A few months later, Hai sat in the Brown’s living room, smiling at his long lost friend, saying, “I so happy. I so happy.”