You will know them by their fruits. Mt.

7:16

The Healer: Dr. John Graham Lake

Editor's Note: The following biography of Dr. Lake is taken fro P !ifi! "orthwest by !ard M. Tannenb"rg# $h.D Let Light Shine Out: The Story of The Assemblies of God in the

The an who %ordon Lindsay de&lared was# in his opinion# 'the greatest issionary that has appeared sin&e the period of the early (h"r&h#' was also a an who profo"ndly i pa&ted the Northwest Distri&t with the essage )e*en tho"gh he hi self was ne*er a e ber of the +sse blies of %od. ,is na e was -ohn %. Lake. -ohn %raha Lake was born at .t. Mary's# /ntario# (anada# on Mar&h 10# 1071. !hen yet a s all boy# he a&&o panied his parents to the 2nited .tates# settling at .a"lt .ainte Marie# Mi&higan. 3 a fa iliar with .t. Mary's. 3t is a @"aint &o"ntry town of big trees with it's ain street going "p a steep hill. + h"ge (atholi& (athedral with an i pressi*e spire is on another hill. .t. Mary's is fa ed for it's h"ge deep swi ing pool within a s all li estone @"arry. .tone @"arrying and &e ent aking by the large plant of AThe .t. Mary's (e ent (o.B still "ses the lo&al li estone. The town has a great n" ber of period ho es that are b"ilt fro stone and bri&k# with great steep roofs of slate. 3 was doing roofing at the ti e# 5147;6 so we had a &ontra&t to repair so e of the be&a"se so e of the original s@"are iron nails had r"sted away. .o e slate was eroded by freeCe and thaw# b"t ost of it was still e:&ellent# e*en after a f"ll &ent"ry. 3t is in the prospero"s &o"ntry north of London# /ntario# getting o*er toward .tratford# whi&h is internationally fa ed for it's .hakespearean Theatre. T$ 3n /&tober 1041# he was ad itted in the Methodist inistry in (hi&ago and appointed to a &h"r&h in $eshtigo# !is&onsin. ,e finally de&ided against going there and instead went into the newspaper b"siness. 3n the town of ,ar*ey# 3llinois# he fo"nded the # r$ey %iti&en. 5This town was na ed after D. L. Moody's brother in law6 3n 7ebr"ary 1048# at age twenty)one# he arried Miss -ennie .tephens of Newberry# Mi&higan. Three years later# she was prono"n&ed in&"rable of &ons" ption by se*eral physi&ians who had gi*en her the best treat ent then possible. They ad*ised Dr. Lake to take her north. /n that ad*i&e# they ret"rned to .a"lt .aint Marie. 7i*e years later on +pril 90# 1040# she re&ei*ed an instantaneo"s healing "nder the inistry of -ohn +le:ander Dowie. 3n .a"lt .aint Marie# Lake opened a real estate offi&e. +s a sales an and a &ontra&tor# he re ained there "ntil 1411. D"ring this ti e# together with %eorge +. 7eris# he fo"nded the SOO Times' a lo&al newspaper. 3n 141;# he o*ed to (hi&ago and bo"ght a seat on the (hi&ago <oard of Trade with oney borrowed fro a friend. D"ring this ti e# he handled -i ,ill's western (anadian land and ade a long ti e personal friend of this great railroad finan&ier. The first day he opened his offi&e# he ade =9#>11 on a real estate deal. +t the end of twenty)one onths in the real estate b"siness# he had o*er =111#111 in the bank# a =81#111 paid)"p life ins"ran&e poli&y# and real estate *al"ed at =41#111. 5%ordon Lindsay# Sket!hes from the Life nd (inistry of )ohn G. L ke 5.hre*eport# Lo"isiana: ?oi&e of ,ealing $"blishing (o.# 14>96# p.

,e tra*eled to New Dork representing the (hi&ago <oard of Trade. There he et To Lawson# together with Mr. ,arri an and Mr. Eyan# all &elebrated finan&iers. 5the na e ,arri an is still big on !all .treet. T$6 ,e was e ployed by Eyan to f"rther his negotiations# a o"nting to =l71#111# in an effort to for a large ins"ran&e tr"st between the New Dork Life# E@"itable# and M"t"al 3ns"ran&e &o panies. ,e also represented Mr. Lawson on the New Dork <oard of Trade.
1;. 6

+bo"t this ti e# a h"ge s&andal er"pted in New Dork in relation to ins"ran&e &o panies. Dr. Lake# together with se*eral others# organiCed the $eople's Life 3ns"ran&e (o pany of (hi&ago. ,e was appointed anager of agen&ies and wrote a illion dollars worth of b"siness in his first year. ,e had re&ei*ed a g"arantee of =>1#111 a year to &ontin"e in this b"siness# b"t it was d"ring this ti e that %od dealt with hi in s"&h a way that the &o"rse of his life was definitely altered. + n" ber of years had passed sin&e %od had healed his wife# -ennie. D"ring this ti e# he had &ontin"ed pra&ti&ing the inistry of healing. E*ery answer to prayer and ira&"lo"s to"&h of %od &reated within hi a greater longing for the deeper things of the .pirit. D"ring his b"siness life# he ade it a habit of speaking so ewhere pra&ti&ally e*ery night. +fter the ser*i&es# he was in the habit of Foining with friends who# like hi self# were deter ined to re&ei*e the baptis in the ,oly .pirit as they belie*ed the early dis&iples had re&ei*ed it 5+&ts 9:1);6. ,is prayer was# '%od# if Do" will baptiCe e in the ,oly %host and gi*e e the power of %od# nothing shall be per itted to stand between e and one h"ndredfold obedien&e.' .o eti e after this# he a&&o panied a inister to pray for an in*alid lady who had had infla atory rhe" atis for ten years. !hile the inister talked with the lady# -ohn Lake sat at the opposite side of the roo deeply o*ed in his spirit. ,e testified that he s"ddenly felt as tho"gh he had F"st passed "nder a deep shower or war tropi&al rain that fell not only on hi # b"t thro"gh hi . ,is whole being was soothed into a deep stillness and &al . +n awe of the presen&e of %od settled o*er hi . +fter o ents passed# he see ed to hear the Lord say# '3 ha*e heard yo"r prayers# and 3 ha*e seen yo"r tears. Do" are now baptiCed in the ,oly .pirit.' Then Dr. Lake testified to '&"rrents of power' that began to r"sh thro"gh his being# in&reasing so greatly at his entire body began to *ibrate intensely. +t this ti e# the inister friend asked hi to Foin hi in prayer for the wo an. ,e fo"nd it diffi&"lt to walk a&ross the roo ) the presen&e of the Lord was so intense. +s he to"&hed the sister's head with his hand# her &len&hed hands opened and her Foints began to work. The wo an who had been an in*alid for so long arose fro her wheel&hair and was perfe&tly healedG' +s a res"lt of this baptis # Dr. Lake testified to seeing ankind thro"gh 'new eyes.' ,e had a great desire to pro&lai the essage (hrist and to de onstrate ,is power in the world. +pril 1417# he &losed his offi&e door for the last ti e and disposed of his bank a&&o"nt by gi*ing to *ario"s religio"s and ed"&ational instit"tions. 7red E. <"rr of !ina a&# 3ndiana# who was his fnan&ial agent# assisted hi in disposing of e*erything# in&l"ding his real estate holdings. Dr. Lake started o"t in independent e*angelisti& work with a single dollar# being absol"tely dependent "pon the Lord ) along the faith lines of %eorge M"eller of England and ,"dson Taylor of the (hina 3nland Mission. D"ring the ne:t se*eral onths# he prea&hed ea&h day to large &ongregations with o"tstanding res"lts. Many people a&&epted (hrist as their Lord and .a*ior# others were healed of diseases# while still others re&ei*ed the baptis in the ,oly .pirit. !hile in a eeting in northern 3llinois# the Lord spoke to hi and dire&ted hi to go to 3ndianapolis to prepare for a winter &a paign. ,e was instr"&ted to a&@"ire a large hall# and then he was told that in the spring he wo"ld to +fri&a. /n +pril 14# 1410# he left 3ndianapolis# 3ndiana# for -ohannesb"rg# .o"th +fri&a. ,e needed =9#111 for e:penses b"t had not one &ent. 3n answer to pri*ate prayer in his own roo # an "nknown donor fro Monro*ia# (alifornia# a pla&e he had ne*er *isited nor known of anyone li*ing there# sent to a friend fo"r =>11 drafts. ,e told the friend that %od had "rged hi to send Lake =9#111. 3t was needed for a spe&ial p"rpose# altho"gh that p"rpose was "nknown to the donor.

%od s"pplied the e:penses needed.

ARRIVAL IN SOUTH AFRICA

,e arri*ed with his issionary party in .o"th +fri&a# on May 1># 1410. <efore he &o"ld &o e ashore# it was ne&essary for hi to pla&e =19> with the i igration depart ent. ,e# again# had not one &ent. +s he stood in the line of people who were aking their pay ents# awaiting his &han&e to e:plain his dile a to the i igration offi&er# a an walked "p# tapped hi on the sho"lder# and &alled hi o"t of the line. ,e handed hi a tra*eler's &he&k for =911 and said# '3 feel led to gi*e yo" this to help yo"r work.' %ordon Lindsay# The )ohn G. L ke
Sermons 5.hre*eport# Lo"isiana: ?oi&e of ,ealing $"blishing (o.# 14>96# pp. 19)18.

/n arri*al at -ohannesb"rg# he and his fa ily had nowhere to go. They were strangers with no friends or a&@"aintan&es there. +s they stepped ashore# Mrs. (. L. %oodeno"gh# an + eri&an issionary and a &o plete stranger# walked "p to Dr. Lake and said# '!hile in prayer last night# %od told e to eet this boat and that there wo"ld be "pon it an + eri&an issionary with a fa ily of nine# &onsisting of two ad"lts and se*en &hildren# and that 3 was to gi*e the a ho e.' +t three o'&lo&k that afternoon# the Lakes were li*ing in a f"rnished &ottage in -ohannesb"rg that %od had pro*ided for the . .o e ti e later Dr. Lake went on an e:ploring trip in the Halahari Desert. ,e ret"rned to -ohannesb"rg to find his wife dead. + s"dden stroke had instantly killed her. .he had no other illnesses. 3n God*s Gener ls' $astor Liardon goes
into ore detail. D"e to the stren"o"s de ands of inistry# -ennie Lake was e:ha"sted and alno"rished# whi&h probably &a"sed her stroke.

Early in 1414# Dr. Lake et <ishop 7"rCe# the bishop of the (h"r&h of England for +fri&a. +t the bishop's re@"est# Dr. Lake arranged a series of eetings for the &h"r&h of England inisters. ,e was to tea&h the along the lines of di*ine healing. These eetings res"lted in the establish ent of the E an"el .o&iety for the $ra&ti&e of Di*ine ,ealing by the inistry of the (h"r&h of England in +fri&a. +s word of these eetings and the work of the so&iety &ontin"ed to go forth# a &o ittee fro England &a e to e:a ine and report "pon Dr. Lake's work. ,e later a&&o panied that &o ittee to England and &ond"&ted si ilar eetings in London "nder the dire&tion of <ishop 3ngra . This &onferen&e a"thoriCed a &o ittee to f"rther *isit other healing instit"tions in England and E"rope. 3n the &o pany of this &o ittee# he *isited healing instit"tions in London and went to Lo"rdes# 7ran&e. There# they *isited a (atholi& instit"tion where healing was rep"ted to take pla&e by the waters of Lo"rdes and where they aintained a board of two h"ndred physi&ians whose b"siness it was to e:a ine all &andidates and report "pon the . +t Lo"rdes# they were pri*ileged to *isit the then greatest hypnoti& instit"tion for healing in the world. This instit"tion sent its representati*es to de onstrate their ethods to the (atholi& board of two h"ndred physi&ians# and hearing of the &o ittee# they were in*ited to go along. Dr. Lake agreed to take part if he were allowed to ake the final de onstration. The &o ittee sele&ted fi*e &andidates who had been prono"n&ed edi&ally in&"rable. The hypnotists tried their *ario"s ethods witho"t s"&&ess. Dr. Lake then had the fi*e &andidates pla&ed in &hairs in a row "pon the platfor in *iew of the a"dien&e of physi&ians and s&ientists. ,e prayed o*er ea&h one of the separately. Three were instantly healed# a fo"rth re&o*ered in a few days# and one passed away. Dr. Lake ret"rned to the 2nited .tates for si: onths# holding e*angelisti& &r"sades in (hi&ago# $ortland# /akland# and Los +ngeles for the p"rpose of re&r"iting issionaries to take with hi to .o"th +fri&a. D"ring these &r"sades# he a&@"ired eight en b"t needed =8#111 for their e:penses. !hile in $ortland# praying alone in his roo # he re&ei*ed ass"ran&e that the answer was on the way. 7o"r days later in Los +ngeles# a letter arri*ed at his hotel fro %eorge <. .t"dd of Los +ngeles.

ADear Dr. Lake: There has been a windfall in yo"r fa*or today. + person who does not wish to be known ga*e e a draft of =8#111 saying# A%od wants e to gi*e this to Lake of .o"th +fri&a.B 3 a sending yo"# en&losed# therefore a draft for =8#11># the => being y personal &ontrib"tion.B 3n -an"ary 1411# he ret"rned to .o"th +fri&a with his issionary party *ia London# where he prea&hed in Dr. 7. <. Meyer's &h"r&h and spoke in %. (a pbell Morgan's weekly <ible &lasses. ,e then re ained in .o"th +fri&a for se*eral years# d"ring whi&h ti e he fo"nded the +postoli& 7aith Mission with head@"arters at -ohannesb"rg. ,e was ele&ted its president and &ontin"ed for years after that to be its honorary president. D"ring his inistry# he organiCed 19> white &ongregations and >11 bla&k &ongregations. 3n 1491# the +fri&an fe*er ra*aged the area in whi&h he li*ed# and in less than a onth# one)@"arter of the bla&k and white pop"lations died. +gen&ies of e*ery des&ription were &alled into a&tion to &o bat the epide i&. Dr. Lake worked there with se*eral assistants# fo"r of who died of the fe*er# b"t he ne*er had a to"&h of the disease. Later in -ohannesb"rg# he was in*ited by Lo"is <otha# pre ier of Trans*aal# to *isit the Trans*aal $arlia ent# where resol"tions were passed re&ogniCing his ser*i&es d"ring the se*ere epide i&. D"e to the strain of o*erwork with the +postoli& 7aith Mission# he "lti ately ga*e "p his inistry in .o"th +fri&a to ret"rn to the 2nited .tates. There# he et and arried Miss 7loren&e .witCer of Milwa"kee# !is&onsin# on No*e ber 97# 1418. 3n addition to the se*en &hildren born fro his first arriage# fi*e ore &hildren were born into his se&ond "nion. -ohn %. Lake was on hand at the organiCational eeting of the +sse blies of %od on +pril 9# 141;# in ,ot .prings# +rkansasG 53rwin !ineho"se# The Assemblies of God A Po+ul r Sur$ey 5New Dork: ?antage $ress 14>4# $. 816 ,e did not be&o e a e ber# howe*er# neither at that ti e nor at any ti e later. That s" er# -i Lake et -i ,ill while walking along the street one day in .t. $a"l. !hen asked abo"t what he was doing# Dr. Lake replied that he was si ply trying to gather his health and that he was prea&hing where*er he went. Mr. ,ill in*ited hi lines. to his offi&e and ga*e hi &o pli entary passes that were good o*er all of his railroad

Dr. and Mrs. Lake began tra*eling# stopping at .pokane where he was in*ited to open a healing roo . ,e a&&epted the in*itation and inistered to the si&k for abo"t si: onths. Th"s# he was to begin the inistry that was really the &li a: of his life's work.

THE HEALING MISSION IN SPO ANE

Dr. Lake's entire inistry had been profo"ndly affe&ted by his e:pos"re to -ohn +le:ander Dowie. Dr. Lake had been an elder in the Iion +postoli& (h"r&h when Dowie was at the height of his power. Th"s he# together with *ario"s other persons e:posed to the Dowie approa&h to (hristian li*ing# be&a e dyna i& dis&iples and issionaries of the %ospel of -es"s (hrist# &o ing west thro"gh the Dakotas# Montana# and into !ashington. Dr. Lake had ade no preparation or st"dy that prepared hi for issionary work# nor was he parti&"larly trained in a theologi&al perspe&ti*e# as were ost inisters. <"t he was a an of strong and for&ef"l personality who see ed to ake his way to the forefront in whate*er sit"ation he fo"nd hi self. ,is inistry had its weaknesses as well as its strengths. 3t was belie*ed by so e that his fail"re to properly anti&ipate the hea*y responsibilities his wife had to &arry was an "nfort"nate istake that &ontrib"ted to her

"nti ely death on the ission field. This fa&t# pl"s the responsibilities he now had in order to &are for a large fa ily# was one of the pri ary &ontrib"ting fa&tors to the &lose of his inistry on the ission field. ,owe*er# his days of glory were not yet finished. ,is early inistry in the &ity of .pokane be&a e a de onstration of the power of %od that res"lted in ore than one)h"ndred tho"sand healings being reported d"ring a period of fi*e or si: years. .o e de&lared that Dr. Lake# thro"gh his inistry of di*ine healing# had ade .pokane the healthiest &ity in the world. This# of &o"rse# was si ilar to a do&" ented report that &a e o"t of !ashington# D.(.# so e years earlier regarding Iion# 3llinois# d"ring the peak days of -ohn +le:ander Dowie's inistry. ,is a&ti*ity in .pokane had s"&h i pa&t that the S+okesm n , ily -e$iew' &arried f"ll)page ad*ertise ents ea&h week regarding his inistry and the ira&"lo"s a&ts of do&" ented healing. The f"ll)page ad*ertise ents in the S+okesm n -e$iew were often as follows: 5The S+okesm n -e$iew' ( y ./' ./.0.1

The (h"r&h at .pokane -ohn %. Lake# /*erseer Di*ine ,ealing Eoo s# 8;1 Eookery <"ilding /pen ea&h weekday fro 11 to ;. $ersonal inter*iews and inistry Thro"gh prayer and laying on of hands. $"bli& ser*i&es on ."nday at The Masoni& Te ple at 11 a. . and 8 p. . /"r inistry is pri*ate and &onfidential. $ersons desiring to %i*e p"bli& testi ony "st arrange with the inisters in ad*an&e. Then wo"ld follow letters of testi ony fro arti&les by Dr. Lake. those who had re&ei*ed healing andJor their physi&ians# as well as

3n a general letter p"blished .at"rday# 7ebr"ary 0# 1414# in the S+okesm n -e$iew' Dr. Lake indi&ated that they inistered to an a*erage of two h"ndred people per day in the healing roo s. ,e indi&ated that o*er si:ty tho"sand personal ' inistrations thro"gh prayer and laying on of hands' had taken pla&e d"ring the pre*io"s twel*e nonths. 3n addition# &alls for prayer and the inistry &a e by telephone# telegraph# letter# and &able fro all parts of the world. Ministry to the si&k in their ho es was another phase of work a&&o plished by the "se of two otor &ars in whi&h inisters were &on*eyed fro ho e to ho e# praying for those who were "nable to present the sel*es at the healing roo s. Dr. Lake indi&ated that at least one h"ndred tho"sand people were inistered to ea&h year either by &ar# telephone# telegraph# letter# or &able. Tho"sands of people wo"ld attend the ."nday .er*i&es held ea&h week at the Masoni& Te ple. Dr. Lake always liked to ake a point of e phasiCing that he did not spend oney b"ilding &h"r&h b"ildings and 'sep"l&hers for the dead.'. 7"nds gi*en to the &h"r&h at .pokane wo"ld be "sed to send forth the %ospel essage into the world# a&&ording to Dr. Lake. There were no fees &harged for any of the inistry# and the entire proFe&t was s"pported by eans of lo*e offerings. +n espe&ially appealing story was p"blished on .epte ber 91# 1414# in the S+okesm n -e$iew. 3t was testi ony shared by !alter -. !illia s# s&ien&e depart ent# &hair an of an eastern "ni*ersity. 3n the arti&le# he told abo"t two of his friends in the East who had tra*eled to .pokane and re&ei*ed a aCing healings. This s&ientist)ed"&ator was *ery ad*erse to anything sa*oring of what ight be &alled the s"pernat"ral# b"t he Fo"rneyed to .pokane to gather first hand infor ation. ,e *isited se*eral persons who professed to ha*e been healed "nder Dr. Lake's inistry. Then he *isited the an hi self. +fter an e:tended inter*iew# he was in*ited to stay and see for hi self what %od was doing there.

Dr. !illia s did. A3 saw the &o e# h"ndreds in a day. 3 talked to the # asking the @"estions ) the la e# the poor# the ri&h# the "ned"&ated# and the intelle&t"al. !ere they healedK Des# they were. !as 3 &on*in&ed that it was %odK 3ndeed# 3 was. The presen&e of %od was there and 3 left .pokane in@"iring if 3 was tr"e eno"gh to %od to be tr"sted with ,is power as Dr. Lake and his asso&iates were. 3 ha*e listened to so e of the greatest tea&hers on earth# both se&"lar and religio"s# b"t 3 ha*e ne*er heard s"&h re*elations of life or s"&h a re*elation of %od as 3 heard and witnessed at the ,ealing Eoo s in the Eookery <"ilding in .pokane.' The S+okesm n -e$iew' Se+tember 23' ././.

LA E AND DIVINE HEALING INVESTIGATED

/ne s" er# Dr. Lake and his staff were waited "pon at their healing roo s by a &o ittee of the <etter <"siness <"rea" of the &ity of .pokane. Their d"ty was to in*estigate the tr"thf"lness of the p"bli& anno"n&e ents that were &ontin"ing to appear in the &ity papers. 7or so e ti e# Lake's staff had been p"blishing any of the testi onies thro"gh the power of %od that had taken pla&e in the of their inistry. These testi onies were so asto"nding that &o plaints had rea&hed the <etter <"siness <"rea" to the effe&t that the testi onies "st &ertainly be "ntr"e. The <etter <"siness <"rea" i ediately "ndertook an in*estigation of the ,ealing Eoo s' inistry and Dr. -ohn %. Lake. The &o ittee e:a ined eighteen witnesses whose testi onies had appeared in p"bli& print. 7"rther na es of persons who had re&ei*ed healings within the &ity were gi*en to the &o ittee so that they &o"ld go personally and in*estigate for the sel*es whether or not these things were so. Dr. Lake s"ggested to the &o ittee that on ."nday# -"ne 98# at 11 o'&lo&k in the afternoon in a p"bli& ser*i&e# he wo"ld present one h"ndred &ases of healed persons for their in*estigation. ,e in*ited the to for a &o ittee &o posed of physi&ians# lawyers# F"dges# ed"&ators# and b"siness en who &o"ld render a *erdi&t. D"ring the inter*ening period between the inter*iew in the healing roo s and ."nday# -"ne 98# the &o ittee &ontin"ed their in*estigations. /n 7riday# -"ne 91# Dr. Lake re&ei*ed a letter fro the &o ittee ass"ring hi that they had no desire to interfere in any way with the good being done and had deter ined that their appearan&e at the ."nday eeting wo"ld not be ne&essary. Two e bers of the in*estigation &o ittee spoke pri*ately to Dr. Lake and his staff and said that the &o ittee was asto"nded. They had fo"nd o"t "pon in*estigation that 'the half had not been told.' /ne of the &o ittee e bers *isited at Da*enport# !ashington# and fo"nd printed anno"n&e ents ad*ertising a eeting Dr. Lake was abo"t to &ond"&t in the area. ,e in@"ired as to why these anno"n&e ents were being ade and the anager of the store replied: AThe whole &o"ntryside 'ro"nd Da*enport is afla e with s"rprise at the ar*elo"s healing of a girl in this &o "nity# well)known to e# and# 3 belie*e# well)known to yo"rself# Miss Lo"ise Eeinboldt da"ghter of Mr. -a&k Eeinboldt. +bo"t three and a half years ago# Miss Eeingold and her sister were operated on for what the do&tors tho"ght was appendi&itis. The one girl died as a res"lt of the operation. Lo"ise &a e o"t of it "nable to speak. .he was taken to throat spe&ialists# who prono"n&ed her &ase absol"tely in&"rable. Ee&ently she was taken to .pokane to Dr. Lake's ,ealing Eoo s and inistered to for twenty)si: days. /n the twenty)si:th day she startled her other and fa ily and# in fa&t# the whole &o"ntryside# by &alling her other on the long distan&e telephone and anno"n&ing to her in plain words the fa&t that she was 'healed.' !hile preparing for her daily *isit to the ,ealing Eoo s she heard herself

whistling and said# '!ell# if 3 &an whistle# 3 &an speak also#' and th"s dis&o*ered the paralyCed &ondition of her throat was tr"ly healed.' ' %ordon Lindsay# Sket!hes from the Life of )ohn G. Like' 3+' %it.' ++. .345..3. +fter the <etter <"siness <"rea" &o ittee ba&ked away fro f"rther in*estigation# Dr. Lake anno"n&ed that there wo"ld be no &hange in the progra . ,e indi&ated the eeting wo"ld take pla&e as anno"n&ed# and if the <etter <"siness <"rea" wo"ld not take their pla&e# he wo"ld appeal to the p"bli& for its *erdi&t. Tho"sands of people attended that afternoon in the Masoni& Te ple# while h"ndreds were ref"sed ad ittan&e d"e to la&k of spa&e. Testi onies by inisters and lay people alike of signifi&ant# do&" ented healings were gi*en thro"gho"t the re ainder of the afternoon. The p"bli&ity of this eeting was tre endo"s and was perhaps one of the high points in the so eti es &ontro*ersial# b"t always "ni@"e# inistry of -ohn %. Lake. 3n May 1491# Dr. Lake o*ed to $ortland# /regon# to establish a si ilar work to that of his &h"r&h in .pokane. !ithin a few years# this inistry in $ortland was aking a si ilar i pa&t in /regon as had the &h"r&h in the 3nland E pire. /ne of his &on*erts in $ortland was %ordon Lindsay# who later be&a e an independent $ente&ostal e*angelist of so e signifi&an&e and forer"nner of the present (hrist for the Nations inistry head@"artered in Dallas# Te:as. Dr. Lake's inistry was "n"s"al ) to say the least. ,e possessed a re arkable ability to &reate faith in the hearts of his hearers. %ordon Lindsay was no e:&eption. ,a*ing followed Dr. Lake's inistry with deep respe&t and ad iration# he one day had need of the great an's faith. ,e was stri&ken with a &riti&al &ase of pto ain poisoning and h"ng for days between life nd death. Dr. Lake offered prayer for %ordon# and altho"gh deli*eran&e did not i ediately &o e in a *isible anner# he professed &onfiden&e that indeed the Lord had answered prayer. Mrs. Lake bro"ght Ee*erend Lindsay so e of the typewritten ser ons her h"sband had re&ently gi*en# and while reading these faith s"ddenly sprang into his heart. ,e arose fro what any had tho"ght was a deathbed# instantly healed. !hile he was in $ortland# Dr. Lake entertained hopes for raising "p a &hain of healing issions on the order of his works in .pokane and $ortland. ,owe*er# tho"gh he was not yet ad*an&ed in age# he li*ed with an intensity that had taken its toll. + de&line in the strength and *itality that had &hara&teriCed his earlier inistry be&a e apparent. ,e see ed "nable to at&h his spirit"al *ision with the physi&al strength that was re@"ired to bring it to pass. 3n ,o"ston# Te:as# he had so e initial s"&&ess in the fo"nding of a &h"r&h# b"t was &alled away to the side of his eldest son who had s"ffered a serio"s a&&ident al ost took his life. ,e ne*er ret"rned to ,o"ston. 7or awhile# he inistered in &h"r&hes thro"gho"t (alifornia. ,owe*er# the dyna i& to"&h that he on&e had was la&king. ,e ret"rned to the &ity of $ortland# where he pastored for a ti e. +fterwards# he ret"rned to .pokane. There he pastored "ntil his death. /n Labor Day 148># Dr. and Mrs. Lake attended a ."nday s&hool pi&ni&. ,e &a e ho e *ery tired and after a hot s"pper# lay down to rest. + g"est speaker was at the &h"r&h that e*ening so Mrs. Lake pre*ailed on hi to stay at ho e. .he went to &h"r&h in his pla&e. !hen she arri*ed ho e# she fo"nd that he had a stroke in her absen&e. ,e lingered for abo"t two weeks# "n&ons&io"s ost of the ti e# "ntil .epte ber 16# 148># when he went to be with his Lord. ,is inistry was s" ser*i&e: ed "p in the brief testi ony of Ee*erend <. .. ,ebden who spoke at the e orial

ADr. Lake was a strong# r"gged &hara&ter of lo*ing and winning personality# and he has left his ark indelibly "pon the world of %ospel Tr"th. Dr. Lake &a e to .pokane. ,e fo"nd "s in sin. ,e fo"nd "s in si&kness. ,e fo"nd "s in po*erty of spirit. ,e fo"nd "s in despair# b"t he re*ealed to "s s"&h a (hrist as we had ne*er drea ed of knowing this side of hea*en. !e tho"ght *i&tory was o*er there# b"t Dr. Lake re*ealed to "s that *i&tory was here# a present and possible reality. !e regarded death al ost as a friend# b"t Dr. Lake &a e and re*ealed to "s the (hrist# all)glorio"s and all)powerf"l# that is tri" phant# &o passionate# and lo*ely# and o"r night was t"rned into day and despair was t"rned into la"ghter. + light shone in the darkness and we# who fo"nd (hrist at last as ,e really is# only ha*e words as the words of Tho as# who said# 'My Lord and My %od.'

,ow 3 thank %od that <rother Lake &a e to .pokaneG ,ow 3 thank ,i that 3 e*er &onta&ted that an# "ni@"e# powerf"lG 3 will ne*er forget the day in the ,"tton <lo&k when 3 was si&k with se*eral &hroni& &o plaints and 3 heard that essage of (hrist# that ,is ar s were "nder e# and 3 kept it and the essage kept e and instead of y being long and long ago# gone and forgotten# 3 a here reFoi&ing and thanking o"r brother# Dr. Lake# who bro"ght that essage to e. 7riends# he sho"ld still speak in e# not by the pen b"t by the .pirit that is in e# by the Light that is in e# by the regeneration of -es"s (hrist that is in e. Let "s finish# friends# not to go and s@"ander it by hiding it in a napkin# b"t let "s keep it by gi*ing it o"t.B
N/TE: M"&h of the additional infor ation &a e fro i eographed essages. &on*ersations with *ario"s persons who knew hi and fro so e of his

This rti!le w s sour!ed from )ohn G. L ke5 The %om+lete %olle!tion of #is Life Te !hings %om+iled by -oberts Li rdon //6 + ges 7dited nd +ublished by T. 7. Plumb. 8e ho+e this sele!tion h s built your f ith to enter #is own -est... htt+:99www.7nter#is-est.org