Tag Archives: Central Bible College

October 3, 2025 · 3:32 pm

W. I. Evans: Pioneer Assemblies of God Educator

This Week in AG History — October 1, 1972

By Glenn W. Gohr
Originally published on AG-News, 02 October 2025

W.I. Evans, an early leader in the Assemblies of God, was a popular conference and camp meeting speaker, and he served as dean and as a faculty member at Central Bible Institute (now Evangel University) for 25 years. He is best remembered for his prayer life and spiritual influence.

Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to devout Methodist parents, William Irvin Evans (1887-1954) came to Christ at age 11 while kneeling at his mother’s knee in the kitchen of their home. After his conversion, he felt called into full-time ministry. He considered training in a Methodist seminary, but in 1906 he ended up enrolling in a Christian and Missionary Alliance (CMA) school — Missionary Training Institute in Nyack, New York. The next year at the CMA’s convention in Nyack, he and many others were baptized in the Spirit and spoke in tongues.

He continued with the CMA and pastored in Richmond, Virginia. He also studied for three years at the University of Richmond. During this time, he met his future wife, Hilda Mae Lindberg. They were married in 1914.

After his marriage, he traveled briefly as a song leader with Dr. Parr, a Baptist minister. In order to better support his wife and himself, he made plans to pastor a Baptist congregation in Philadelphia, where his mother and brother lived.

Once Evans arrived in the city, his mother, Frances, invited David McDowell to come for dinner and visit with her son and his wife. McDowell, a classmate from Nyack who had become an early Assemblies of God minister, happened to be in the area. When McDowell was ready to leave, he prayed a simple prayer, but the Holy Spirit began working, and the prayer continued. W.I. Evans’s unsaved brother, Albert Evans, and his wife were also there, and they both came under conviction and were converted in Frances’ living room.

W.I. Evans was also touched by the prayer. McDowell’s prayer helped to convince W.I. Evans that he wanted to minister in the power of the Holy Spirit. He decided to go with McDowell to Tottenville, New York, where McDowell was the pastor. Under McDowell’s influence, he rekindled his Pentecostal experience.

In January 1915, Evans pastored the Gospel Assembly in Ossining, New York, for a short time, and then moved to Newark, New Jersey, where he joined the faculty of Bethel Bible Training School (BBTS). This school was sponsored by Bethel Pentecostal Assembly in Newark. Many of its faculty members and students were members of the Assemblies of God.

W.I. Evans was ordained by Bethel Pentecostal Assembly on April 30, 1915, and transferred his credentials to the Assemblies of God on Dec. 24, 1917. In addition to serving on the faculty, Evans served as principal of BBTS in the last years of the school’s existence (1923-1929).

Bethel Bible Training School merged with Central Bible Institute (CBI) in Springfield, Missouri, and Evans moved to Springfield to serve on the faculty. Evans not only served as faculty, but he was the principal and dean of students at CBI for 25 years (1929-1954).

Evans is remembered for his life of prayer and keen insight into the moving of the Spirit, including the operation of the gifts of the Spirit during worship. One of his favorite illustrations, which he often shared with freshmen, referred to a trip he took through Kansas. He had observed that the “wheat stalks yielded even to the slightest moving of the air.” To him, this was a picture of what should be true in a Christian’s life. One should be yielded to God, and so sensitive to Him, that the slightest movement of the Holy Spirit would be obeyed.

At CBI, Evans started his daily schedule early, with extended prayer, Bible study, and meditation. Next, he went to his office to pray with the faculty before the chapel service. He was always there 30 minutes ahead of his colleagues and never looked up as they came into the room. However, he sensed that the spiritual atmosphere intensified as the number of prayers and people increased: “As each digit is added, the power is multiplied.”

Prepared now for the morning chapel, the faculty and Evans took their seats on the platform. In leading the service, he encouraged times of prayer and “waiting before the Lord.” When revival came, he kept things moving in the right direction by urging the students to “hold steady” and not to quench the Spirit. He also understood the meaning of “the joy of the Lord.” There were times of Pentecostal blessing when he would begin to “laugh in the Spirit.”

During the summer months, Evans usually laid aside his school responsibilities and went to minister in various parts of the United States and Canada. Multitudes of people — young and old — were enriched spiritually by his camp meeting and conference Bible studies.

After Evans passed away in 1954, a new administration building was built at CBI and named W.I. Evans Hall. It was used for offices and classrooms.

For W.I. Evans, affectionately known as “Pop” Evans, holiness and spirituality went hand in hand. Milton T. Wells, president of Eastern Bible Institute (now the University of Valley Forge) said, “We looked to him as a champion of our Movement in the things of the Spirit and of the old paths of Pentecost.”

Evans was a Spirit-filled educator whose ministry was to bless thousands of students and countless thousands more in conventions and camp meetings where he spoke. Few people in the formative years of our Movement have had a greater influence on the Pentecostal spirituality of the Assemblies of God than W.I. Evans.

Read about W.I. Evans in “Power to Shake the World,” on pages 12-13 of the Oct. 1, 1972, issue of the Pentecostal Evangel.

Also featured in this issue:

• “Be Filled,” by Thomas F. Zimmerman

• “Jesus Is Coming,” by Emil A. Balliet

And many more!

Click here to read this issue now.

A collection of W. I. Evans’ sermons and writings, This River Must Flow (GPH, 1954), is accessible for free in digital format on the Consortium of Pentecostal Archives website.

Pentecostal Evangel archived editions courtesy of the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center.

Do you have Pentecostal historical materials that should be preserved? Please consider depositing these materials at the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center (FPHC). The FPHC, located in the Assemblies of God national offices, is the largest Pentecostal archive in the world. We would like to preserve and make your treasures accessible to those who write the history books.

Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center
1445 North Boonville Avenue
Springfield, Missouri 65802 USA
Phone: 417.862.1447 ext. 4400
Toll Free: 877.840.5200
Email: archives@ag.org
Website: https://ifphc.org/

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May 30, 2024 · 4:02 pm

H. Maurice Lednicky: Assemblies of God Pastor, Educator, Missionary, and Author

This Week in AG History — May 30, 1976

By Glenn W. Gohr
Originally published on AG News, 09 May 2024

H. Maurice Lednicky, former president of Central Bible College, has a wide variety of ministry experiences. This year marks 60 years of being ordained, and 50 years from when he was elected head of the National Youth Department. He held three pastorates, was active in radio and television ministry, and has spoken at many camps, conventions, and ministers’ meetings across the U.S., as well as training conferences overseas.

Lednicky was born and raised in Houston, Texas, the son of Rev. and Mrs. C. F. Lednicky. He says that he was called into the ministry at a junior boys Sunday school class at age 9. He preached his first sermon when he was 13. Lednicky attended Southwestern Assemblies of God College (now Nelson University), where he met his wife, Marcia Louise Allen. They were married at First Assembly of God in Bastrop, Louisiana, on September 1, 1962. She is the daughter of Rev. and Mrs. James E. Allen. She is also the sister of Marigold Cheshier and a first cousin of Cecil Janway, longtime Louisiana District Superintendent.

Maurice Lednicky graduated with a Bible and Theology degree from Southwestern in 1963, and he was valedictorian of his class. He was ordained with the Assemblies of God on June 10, 1964, and then was an evangelist for one year.

His first pastorate was First Assembly (Crossett, AR), where he served for 3 years. He served as Arkansas District Christ’s Ambassadors President from 1967-1972. Next, he pastored First Assembly (Bastrop, LA), for two years before he was elected secretary of the National Youth Department in 1974. From 1976-1980 he pastored First Assembly (North Little Rock, AR), before serving as president of Central Bible College for 21 years (1980-2001).

Upon his retirement from Central Bible College, Lednicky encouraged students to exhibit seven words in their Christian walk by having: holiness in both heart and behavior; humility before God and men; integrity in every activity; discipline before God and men; gentleness toward others; appropriateness in decisions and behavior; and adaptability in life. He said, “If you observe these very basic principles in your life and ministry, your experience will be one of peaceful contentment in the blessings of a loving God.”

Sharon Faisson, who served as Lednicky’s administrative assistant at CBC, commented, “He loved and cared for all of us who served with him, as well as the students—always making time for anyone who walked into the office and needed prayer, or just an encouraging word.” He coined the phrase, “God’s choice servant” when speaking of someone he admired. “I can say without hesitation,” declares Sharon, “Brother and Sister Lednicky were then, and continue to be, two of God’s choicest servants!”

Lednicky is a man of principle and a man of his word. One time he was scheduled to speak at a small, rural church one weekend. He had given his word that he would be there. In the meantime, a friend of his offered him and his wife a free, all-expense paid trip to Hawaii for a week which would have conflicted with this speaking engagement. Someone else probably would have tried to reschedule. But being a man of integrity, he turned down the trip to Hawaii so that he could fulfill his prior obligation. Berl Best, former director of admissions at Central Bible College, says, “Dr. Lednicky was always very consistent in his leadership style.”

After retiring from CBC, Dr. and Mrs. Lednicky served for 17 years as appointed AG missionaries. They traveled for five years with a teaching ministry in Thailand. Then for five years Dr. Lednicky pastored the International Christian Assembly, an English-speaking Assemblies of God congregation in Bangkok, Thailand. The Lednickys moved back to the United States in 2010, where they continued traveling to Africa and other countries for short-term missionary assignments. The Lednickys now have ministered in over 65 nations and reached out to many different culture groups. Lednicky also has made a difference through speaking engagements and writing, soon to be a total of 13 books.

Read “A Thank You from the Third Generation,” by Maurice Lednicky, on page 2 of the May 30, 1976 issue of the Pentecostal Evangel.

Also featured in this issue:

• “Three Challenges to Christian Living,” by Roger L. Culbertson

• “With Signs Following,” by J. Bashford Bishop

• “In Memory of Mollie Baird.”

And many more!

Click here to read this issue now.

Pentecostal Evangel archived editions courtesy of the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center

Do you have Pentecostal historical materials that should be preserved? Please consider depositing these materials at the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center (FPHC). The FPHC, located in the Assemblies of God national offices, is the largest Pentecostal archive in the world. We would like to preserve and make your treasures accessible to those who write the history books.

Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center
1445 North Boonville Avenue
Springfield, Missouri 65802 USA
Phone: 417.862.1447 ext. 4400
Toll Free: 877.840.5200
Email: archives@ag.org
Website: https://ifphc.org/

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September 29, 2022 · 7:49 pm

100 Years Ago: Central Bible Institute Opened in Springfield, Missouri

This Week in AG History —September 30, 1922

By Ruthie Edgerly Oberg
Originally published on AG News, 29 September 2022

One of the reasons for the formation of the Assemblies of God in 1914 was to establish schools to train ministers and missionaries. Eight years later, the Sept. 30, 1922, issue of the Pentecostal Evangel announced the opening of Central Bible Institute (CBI, later Central Bible College) in Springfield, Missouri, to address that need.

Local efforts to establish ministerial training schools had been undertaken in various parts of the country. However, it was soon determined that individual effort could never hope to achieve the results possible through united endeavors.

The first ministerial training school owned and operated by the General Council of the Assemblies of God opened its doors in 1920 in the small town of Auburn, Nebraska. Midwest Bible School remained open for only one year. The school’s remote location made it difficult to attract faculty or to provide jobs for students.

Assemblies of God leaders sought a more suitable location to establish a new school. In the summer of 1922, they decided to locate the school in Springfield. D.W. Kerr and his son-in-law, Willard Peirce, offered themselves for this work. Just six years earlier, Kerr served as the primary drafter of the Statement of Fundamental Truths. Kerr and Peirce had a track record of stabilizing educational institutions and had set Assemblies of God schools in Los Angeles and San Francisco on sure footing. They moved to Springfield to form the nucleus of the faculty and management of CBI.

It was felt that the move to Springfield, the new headquarters city of the General Council, afforded this new school several advantages. Close proximity to the executive leadership would provide counsel and oversight. The Fellowship’s paper, the Pentecostal Evangel, would offer information and publicity. Ministers and missionaries traveling to the area would be available for encouragement and as an example for the student body.

Outside of those advantages there were few other expedient assets to offer to the fledgling school. There were no buildings or dormitories available. The Fellowship had followed a “pay as you go” policy and there was little willingness to shoulder debt for new buildings. All there was to offer to Kerr was the basement of a local church, Central Assembly of God on the corner of Campbell and Calhoun Streets, and the homes of church members who were willing to house students.

Kerr and his team set about plastering and painting the basement rooms to prepare for the influx of the first class of students, numbering about 50. They fitted out one classroom, a kitchen, a dining area, and office. Kerr admitted in the Evangel’s announcement, “While we are necessarily crowded and handicapped in our limited temporary quarters, yet we are sure of the continued blessings of God on these humble beginnings … great oaks from little acorns grow.” Kerr encouraged contributions for the young people studying for ministry as “two hundred and fifty dollars will support a student for one school year, meeting all expenses.”

Two years later, 15 acres on the northern outskirts of the city had been secured through the generous donations of local businessmen. Three of the leaders, Kerr, J. W. Welch, and E.N. Bell, knelt in prayer on this tract of land at North Grant Avenue, consecrating it to God for the “training of ministers and missionaries.”

With the funds in hand and further offerings received in response to appeals made through the Pentecostal Evangel, the first building was erected in 1924 and a student body of 106 moved onto the new campus. Adding to its growth was the merging of other smaller schools, such as Bethel Bible Training Institute of Newark, New Jersey, in 1929, with the Springfield school.

Kerr later testified that he had some misgivings whether the project would be successful, given its meager beginnings in 1922, but he felt the Lord ask him as He did Moses, “What has thou in thine hand?” He responded, “Just a basement, Lord!” He felt the assurance that the same Lord who wrought wonders with Moses’ staff would be faithful to do great things with that tiny basement school at Central Assembly of God.

The history of the Pentecostal movement can testify to God’s faithfulness as the graduates of Central Bible Institute and Central Bible College (now consolidated with Evangel University and Assemblies of God Theological Seminary) continue to provide the Assemblies of God with thousands of pastors, evangelists, missionaries, and teachers impacting the world with the Pentecostal message they were taught in the classrooms of the basement at Central Assembly, the campus at 3000 North Grant, and the current university on North Glenstone.

Read Kerr’s announcement about CBI on page 4 of the Sept. 30, 1922, issue of the Pentecostal Evangel.

Also featured in this issue:

• “Be Filled with the Spirit” by W.T. Gaston

• “Questions and Answers” by E.N. Bell

• “A New Heavens and A New Earth” by S.A. Jamieson

And many more!

Click here to read this issue now.

Pentecostal Evangel archived editions courtesy of the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center.

Do you have Pentecostal historical materials that should be preserved? Please consider depositing these materials at the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center (FPHC). The FPHC, located in the Assemblies of God national offices, is the largest Pentecostal archive in the world. We would like to preserve and make your treasures accessible to those who write the history books.

Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center
1445 North Boonville Avenue
Springfield, Missouri 65802 USA
Phone: 417.862.1447 ext. 4400
Toll Free: 877.840.5200
Email: archives@ag.org
Website: www.iFPHC.org

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January 31, 2020 · 6:10 pm

Opal Reddin Collection Deposited at Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center

Reddin

Dr. Opal Reddin

Jewel van der Merwe Grewe, president of Discernment Ministries, has deposited the Opal Reddin Collection at the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center. Opal Reddin (1921-2005) was an Assemblies of God minister and longtime educator at Central Bible College in Springfield, Missouri.

The Opal Reddin Collection includes both Reddin’s personal research collection and research materials collected by Discernment Ministries. The collection consists of about 30 boxes of books, booklets, periodical runs, research materials, audio and video recordings, and correspondence. Materials chiefly relate to the Assemblies of God, revival movements within Pentecostalism (including the New Order of the Latter Rain, the charismatic movement, the Toronto Blessing, and the Brownsville Revival), and various contemporary movements and issues (including the New Age movement, the prosperity gospel, the signs and wonders movement, modern day apostles and prophets, and the ecumenical movement).

Opal Reddin accepted Christ and was baptized in 1933, was called into full time ministry in 1942, and married Thomas Reddin in 1943. They were ordained by the Assemblies of God in 1946 and pastored several churches in Arkansas. She graduated from University of Arkansas at Little Rock (B.A. in Education, 1965), Southwest Missouri State University (M.A. in English, 1969), Assemblies of God Theological Seminary (M.A. in Biblical Studies, 1977), and Fuller Theological Seminary (M.Div., 1977; D.Min., 1980).

Reddin was known for her engaging personality, fiery preaching, and strong defense of Pentecostal faith and doctrine. From 1968 to 1996, she taught over 15,000 students at Central Bible College. In the classroom, she frequently shared stories of Pentecostal people (lay and clergy) and the powerful moves of God they experienced.

In 2005, towards the end of her life, the Opal Reddin Biblical Research Library was created by Discernment Ministries and was located at Pinebrook Assembly of God in Naugatuck, Connecticut. The library was moved in 2010 to Michiana Christian Embassy in Niles, Michigan. Finally, it was deposited in 2019 at the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center in Springfield, Missouri. A large number of theological books in the library did not fit the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center’s collection parameters and were given to Africa’s Hope for placement in Assemblies of God Bible college libraries in Africa.

The Opal Reddin Collection at the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center includes research materials collected by Discernment Ministries, which was founded in 1989 by Travers and Jewel van der Merwe. Longtime Assemblies of God pastors in South Africa and the United States, they were concerned with what they perceived to be a shift away from the authority of scripture within certain segments of Pentecostalism and evangelicalism. They began assembling a library of publications and newsletters from various ministries. Using this library as source material, in 1990 they began publication of Discernment Newsletter, which documented what they viewed as harmful, unbiblical trends in Pentecostal and evangelical churches. Discernment Ministries also published several books and pamphlets. Discernment Ministries publications extensively cite rare ministry newsletters and recordings, which have been placed in the Opal Reddin Collection. Many of these source materials are not found in other archives or libraries.

_________________

Do you have Pentecostal historical materials that should be preserved? Please consider depositing these materials at the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center (FPHC). The FPHC, located in the Assemblies of God national offices, is the largest Pentecostal archives and research center in the world. We would like to preserve and make your treasures accessible to those who write the history books.

Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center
1445 North Boonville Avenue
Springfield, Missouri 65802 USA
Phone: 417.862.1447 ext. 4400
Toll Free: 877.840.5200
Email: archives@ag.org
Website: http://www.iFPHC.org

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October 3, 2019 · 9:21 pm

97 Years Ago: Central Bible Institute Opened in Springfield, Missouri

CBC

Faculty and students of Central Bible Institute, second class, 1923-1924, in front of Central Assembly of God, Springfield, Missouri; spring 1924

This Week in AG History — September 30, 1922

By Ruthie Edgerly Oberg
Originally published on AG News, 03 October 2019

The founding of the Assemblies of God in 1914 was marked by an emphasis upon the need for the training of ministers and missionaries. Eight years later, the Sept. 30, 1922, issue of the Pentecostal Evangel announced the opening of Central Bible Institute (CBI, later Central Bible College) in Springfield, Missouri, to address that need.

Local efforts to establish ministerial training schools had been undertaken in various parts of the country. However, it was soon determined that individual effort could never hope to achieve the results possible through united endeavors.

The first ministerial training school owned and operated by the General Council of the Assemblies of God opened its doors in 1920 in the small town of Auburn, Nebraska. Midwest Bible School remained open for only one year. The school’s remote location made it difficult to attract faculty or to provide jobs for students.

Assemblies of God leaders sought a more suitable location to establish a new school. In the summer of 1922, they decided to locate the school in Springfield. D. W. Kerr and his son-in-law, Willard Peirce, offered themselves for this work. Just six years earlier, Kerr served as the primary drafter of the Statement of Fundamental Truths. Kerr and Peirce had a track record of stabilizing educational institutions and had set Assemblies of God schools in Los Angeles and San Francisco on sure footing. They moved to Springfield to form the nucleus of the faculty and management of CBI.

It was felt that the move to Springfield, the new headquarters city of the General Council, afforded this new school several advantages. Close proximity to the executive leadership would provide counsel and oversight. The Fellowship’s paper, the Pentecostal Evangel, would offer information and publicity. Ministers and missionaries traveling to the area would be available for encouragement and example for the student body.

Outside of those advantages there were few other expedient assets to offer to the fledgling school. There were no buildings or dormitories available. The Fellowship had followed a “pay as you go” policy and there was little willingness to shoulder debt for new buildings. All there was to offer to Kerr was the basement of a local church, Central Assembly of God on the corner of Campbell and Calhoun Streets, and the homes of church members who were willing to house students.

Kerr and his team set about plastering and painting the basement rooms to prepare for the influx of the first class of students, numbering about 50. They fitted out one classroom, a kitchen, a dining area, and office. Kerr admitted in the Evangel’s announcement, “While we are necessarily crowded and handicapped in our limited temporary quarters, yet we are sure of the continued blessings of God on these humble beginnings … great oaks from little acorns grow.” Kerr encouraged contributions for the young people studying for ministry as “two hundred and fifty dollars will support a student for one school year, meeting all expenses.”

Two years later, 15 acres on the northern outskirts of the city had been secured through the generous donations of local businessmen. Three of the leaders, Kerr, J. W. Welch, and E. N. Bell, knelt in prayer on this tract of land at North Grant Avenue, consecrating it to God for the “training of ministers and missionaries.”

With the funds in hand and further offerings received in response to appeals made through the Pentecostal Evangel, the first building was erected in 1924 and a student body of 106 moved onto the new campus. Adding to its growth was the merging of other smaller schools, such as Bethel Bible Training Institute of Newark, New Jersey, in 1929, with the Springfield school.

Kerr later testified that he had some misgivings whether the project would be successful, given its meager beginnings in 1922, but he felt the Lord ask him as He did Moses, “What has thou in thine hand?” He responded, “Just a basement, Lord!” He felt the assurance that the same Lord who wrought wonders with Moses’ staff would be faithful to do great things with that tiny basement school at Central Assembly of God.

The history of the Pentecostal movement can testify to God’s faithfulness as the graduates of Central Bible Institute and Central Bible College (now consolidated with Evangel University and Assemblies of God Theological Seminary) continue to provide the Assemblies of God with thousands of pastors, evangelists, missionaries, and teachers impacting the world with the Pentecostal message they were taught in the classrooms of the basement at Central Assembly, the campus at 3000 North Grant, and the current university on North Glenstone.

Read Kerr’s announcement about CBI on page 4 of the Sept. 30, 1922, issue of the Pentecostal Evangel.

Also featured in this issue:

• “Be Filled with the Spirit” by W.T. Gaston

• “Questions and Answers” by E.N. Bell

• “A New Heavens and A New Earth” by S.A. Jamieson

And many more!

Click here to read this issue now.

Pentecostal Evangel archived editions courtesy of the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center.

Do you have Pentecostal historical materials that should be preserved? Please consider depositing these materials at the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center (FPHC). The FPHC, located in the Assemblies of God national offices, is the largest Pentecostal archive in the world. We would like to preserve and make your treasures accessible to those who write the history books.

Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center
1445 North Boonville Avenue
Springfield, Missouri 65802 USA
Phone: 417.862.1447 ext. 4400
Toll Free: 877.840.5200
Email: archives@ag.org
Website: iFPHC.org

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June 11, 2007 · 4:47 pm

Amanda Benedict remembered after 82 years

Amanda Benedict Memorial Service

Participants at the Amanda Benedict memorial service (l-r): Assistant Archivist Glenn Gohr; Rev. Hubert Morris of Central Assembly; FPHC Director Darrin Rodgers; Dr. James Bradford, pastor of Central Assembly; General Secretary George Wood; Jewell Woodward, adminstrative assistant to George Wood; National Prayer Center Director John Maempa; and Archivist Joyce Lee.

Benedict Grave Stone 1

Front of marker

Benedict Grave Stone 2

Back of marker

Photographs by Sharon Rasnake


As part of the celebration of 100 years of Pentecost in Springfield, Central Assembly chose to honor one of the early leaders in the church, Miss Amanda Benedict, who is remembered as a fervent prayer warrior.

Educated in New York, her home state, she later conducted a rescue home for girls in Chicago and was connected with a faith home for children in Iowa. She moved to Springfield, Missouri, sometime before 1910 and met Mrs. Lillie Corum while working as a door-to-door salesperson. The two ladies and others began praying together regularly, and soon Amanda Benedict received the baptism of the Holy Spirit. She had a burden for lost souls and that God might bless the gospel work in Springfield, Missouri.

Sister Benedict would fast and pray for days on end, until a burden was lifted or victory came. Often, like Napoleon, she would say, “There shall be no Alps!” She had a tremendous burden that God would make Springfield a center from which his blessings would flow to the ends of the earth. At one point she felt led to fast and pray for Springfield for one entire year — living only on bread and water.

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June 6, 2007 · 4:15 pm

Dr. David Allen Lewis (1932-2007), noted author and lecturer, passes away


Dr. David Allen Lewis of Springfield, Missouri, well-known author and lecturer on eschatology and Israel, passed away Saturday, June 2, 2007 at the age of 74. Dr. Lewis was ordained with the Assemblies of God in 1956 and served in the ministry for over 50 years. He graduated from Central Bible College in 1954 and subsequently earned a master of arts in theological studies and a doctorate of theological studies.

As a clergyman, lecturer, researcher, and publisher, he had been active in national and international circles in promoting the welfare of the Church, of Israel, and of the Jewish people. He felt God called him to be a Christian ambassador to the nation of Israel. And in 1975 he founded Christians United for Israel (CUFI). He also was one of the founders of the National Christian Leadership Conference for Israel, and was the current chairman of the board.

He authored over 40 books, produced 39 television documentaries on location throughout Israel, and traveled to the Middle East 67 times, promoting the welfare of the Church, Israel and the Jewish people. He is remembered for his radio program, God’s Word For Today’s World, and his publications, Jerusalem Courier and Prophecy Digest, Prophecy Watch, Audio Prophecy Digest, and his Tape of the Month Service. He also operated the Prophecy Research Center and directed the Springfield Regional Eschatology Club.

Dr. Lewis is survived by Ramona, his wife of 52 years; daughters, Rev. Rebecca J. Brimmer and Rev. Cassandra Lewis Howell; two sons-in-laws, several grandchildren; and a multitude of family, friends and loved ones.

Funeral services are scheduled for 2 p.m. Friday, June 8 in Cornerstone Church, Springfield, Missouri with Reverends Thomas Trask and Jess Gibson officiating. Memorial contributions may be made to David Allen Lewis Ministries for the establishment of the David Lewis Memorial Research Library in Israel.

Additional information can be found in the Springfield News-Leader, June 6, 2007.

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May 25, 2007 · 9:42 pm

Celebrating 100 years of Pentecost in Springfield, Missouri

Corum Farmhouse


Farmhouse where Lillie Corum was baptized in the Spirit in 1907

June 1, 2007 marks 100 years of Pentecost in Springfield, Missouri.

Just after the Azusa Street revival broke out in Los Angeles in 1906, Evangelist Rachel Harper Sizelove began writing glowing reports to her sister, Lillie Corum, who lived in Springfield, Missouri. Mrs. Corum started reading copies of William Seymour’s Apostolic Faith paper, and she earnestly began seeking and praying to receive the baptism in the Holy Spirit.

The next May, Rachel Sizelove traveled from Azusa Street to Springfield to visit her sister and family. And in an all-night prayer meeting, Lillie Corum was baptized in the Spirit at her farmhouse in the wee hours of June 1, 1907. She is credited with being the first person in Springfield to receive the baptism in the Holy Spirit. And soon afterwards, the Corum family, rejected by their Baptist pastor, began holding prayer meetings in their home. This was the beginning of Central Assembly of God, the mother church in Springfield, Missouri.

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April 12, 2007 · 9:23 pm

Ralph W. Harris in photos and videos

[splashcast JEFV4151MC]
SplashCast with Flickr photos and YouTube Video.
Produced by iFPHC

Ralph W. Harris (1912-2004)


Ralph Harris, a talented youth leader, pastor and editor, was full of the zest for life and had creative genius which helped to shape and mold the Assemblies of God for decades.

Originally from Michigan, Harris graduated from Central Bible Institute with bachelor’s and master’s degrees. He pastored churches in Michigan, Washington, and Missouri. In 1943, he was appointed to establish a national office in Springfield for the Assemblies of God youth program, Christ’s Ambassadors. The next year he founded Speed the Light, a highly successful youth program that gathers funds to provide transportation for missionaries.

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February 27, 2007 · 3:53 am

Don Baldwin (1931-2007) former manager of the Couriers, passes on

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Don Baldwin, former Couriers Quartet founder and manager, died February 24, 2007 at his home in Florida. He was 75.

Donald Edward Baldwin was born Nov. 30, 1931 in Hamilton, Ohio, and was raised in Chicago, Illinois. While he was stationed in Las Vegas during the Korean War he developed an appreciation for gospel music. When he enrolled at Central Bible Institute in 1954, then, he parlayed this musical avocation into his vocation. That year, Baldwin rallied several fellow students to form a gospel group — The Couriers Quartet. The Couriers went on to be one of the most successful gospel music groups in the late twentieth century. Significantly, The Couriers helped to shift gospel music from an emphasis on entertainment back toward ministry and evangelism. Don Baldwin — and the other men of The Couriers — were Assemblies of God boys who proceeded to impact an entire generation for Christ.

After leaving the Couriers in 1965, Don established “Baldwin Sound Productions,” a recording studio facility and the home of Hymntone Records. Many of the major gospel groups recorded there over the years. During the 1970s, he also served as an emcee of the National Quartet Convention. In 2002, Don became one of the very first inductees into the Pennsylvania Southern Gospel Music Hall of Fame. In 2006 he was awarded the “Living Legend” award by the Grand Old Gospel Reunion.

A memorial service for Don Baldwin is scheduled at 1:00 p.m. Friday, March 9, at Victory Church (Assembly of God), 1401 Griffin Road, Lakeland, Florida.

The Baldwin family authorized a memorial website, which includes articles and photographs.

The Couriers were featured in the cover story for the 2007 edition of Assemblies of God Heritage magazine. Read the article, written by leading gospel music historian Jim Goff, on the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center website.

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