VOICE OF TRUTH FOR TODAY
Henrietta Mears: A Life That Changed the World
As a teenager growing up in Minnesota in the early twentieth century, Henrietta Mears believed God was calling her to be a missionary in China.
Her friend pursued that calling overseas, but Henrietta’s path looked very different. After the loss of her mother during college, she struggled deeply with grief and feelings of inadequacy. During that season, she prayed a simple prayer: if God had something for her to do, He would need to provide the power.
While studying Scripture, she discovered a life-changing truth—that the power of the Holy Spirit was available to anyone willing to surrender fully to Christ.
That realization transformed her life.
Instead of traveling overseas, Henrietta eventually moved to California and became director of Christian education at First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood. There, she began teaching a college Sunday school class that would grow into a powerful ministry influencing thousands.
Her leadership helped shape many future Christian leaders, including Billy Graham, Bill Bright of Campus Crusade for Christ, and Young Life founder Jim Rayburn.
Henrietta also founded Gospel Light Publications and authored the widely known Bible handbook What the Bible Is All About, which continues to impact readers today.
What began as a young woman wondering how God could use her became a global legacy of faith and leadership.
Scripture reminds us of God’s ability to accomplish far more than we imagine:
“Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us.” (Ephesians 3:20)
Henrietta’s life is a reminder that when we surrender to God’s calling, He can use our lives in ways that reach far beyond what we ever dreamed possible.
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Excerpt from Voice of Truth Magazine
“Power Points: God at Work through Women Leaders Yesterday and Today” by Leecy Barnett