Year: August 1915
Jonathan Goforth-56 years old
Jonathan Goforth's Journal
I must admit, that as I get older, the diseases that run rampant here in China catch up to me quicker. I have been ill, but kept working, more than I should have. I became so weak the doctor admitted me to the hospital and said if I returned to the fast-paced work in Changte where the weather was harsh, I would be committing suicide.
I didn't want to do that, of course. So, for a time I agreed to return to my home in Canada with my family. All our supporters told us to retire. They tried to encourage us by saying we had worked hard and had accomplished a lot.
In truth, I just wasn't ready to stop. The fire still blazed inside me to return to China and tell more people about the living God who loved them.
When I asked to return, the mission board agreed only if I went to a location farther south where the weather would be gentler on my system. They suggested Kikungshan which is located on a high plateau three hundred miles south of Changte. I agree.
At the end of our furlough, we returned to China and wanted to spend time settling into our new home and see what new ministry we could have there.
One morning, I received a message from a General Feng. I knew him from long ago. During the Boxer Rebellion he wanted to show his enthusiasm for the Chinese cause by ridding the country of foreigners. He was a very cruel man who searched for any foreigner. He showed no mercy when burning homes with men, women, and children inside. He laughed when gunning down foreigners. And, his tyrant behavior gained him the position in the army that he wanted.
He continued his cruel, unforgiving ways into leadership with his men who learned to despise him with fear instead of honoring him with respect for great leadership. As the years passed, though, General Feng couldn't get the memory of one woman out of his mind. Her name was Miss Morrell.
Miss Morrell, a young missionary stood outside the mission compound and pleaded with him to take her life in exchange for the others inside. He killed her--then set all the buildings on fire, trapping all those missionary families, men, women, and children.
No one had given their life for him as she offered for the others with her. No one had given so much for him.
As far as he knew.
Her face. Her words. Her voice appeared again and again in his memory. The Boxer Rebellion ended, and General Feng had questions. What drove this woman to do that? He heard about a gathering of Christians and went to get his questions answered. And when he heard those answers, he became a new man. One who believed in the living God who truly loved him and had given His Son to take the punishment for the sins of everyone, including him.
General Feng became an advocate for missionaries. He sent a message to me, asking me to speak to his officers. I spoke with him and was amazed at the 180 he made in his life. Over four thousand soldiers who served under General Feng chose to believe in the living God and were baptized at the meetings he set up for me to speak at.
Wow! I am continually amazed at what God can do.
Jonathan has many stories to share. Come back each Monday to find out what happened next.
Resources Used for This Series
Being, Janet, and Geoff Benge. Jonathan Goforth: An Open Door in China. Seattle. WA: YWAM Pub., 2001.Print
Doyle, G. Wright. Builders of the Chinese Church: Pioneer Protestant Missionaries and Chinese Church Leaders. Eugene Oregon: Pickwick Pub, 2015. Print.
Goforth, Jonathan, and Rosaline Goforth, Miracle Lives of China, London" Marshall, Morgan & Scott, 1931, Print.
Goforth, Jonathan. "By My Spirit" Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1942. Print
Goforth, Rosalind. Climbing; Memories of a Missionary's Wife. Chicago: Moody Pub, n.d. Print
Goforth, Rosalind, How I Know God Answers Prayers; The Personal Testimony of One Life-time, New York: Harper & Brothers, 1921. Print
Goforth, Rosalind. Jonathan Goforth. Minneapolis, MN: Bethan House, 1986. Print
Goforth, Rosalind, How God Answers Prayer: The Mighty Miracles of God from the Mission Field of Jonathan Goforth. USA: Revival, 2016. Print Original copyright not stated.
Jackson, Dave, and Neta Jackson. Mask of the Wolf Boy: Minneapolis, MN: Bethany House, 1999. Print.
McCleary, Walter. An Hour with Jonathan Goforth: A Biography. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1938. Print.
Meloche, Renee Taft., and Bryan Pollard. Jonathan Goforth: Never Give up. Seattle, WA: YWAM, 2004. Print.
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