Miss
Bertha: Woman of Revival by Lewis Drummond
Seldom
does such a
person come along as Bertha Smith. She served the
Lord for almost a full century and touched the lives
of millions. Even more seldom does a biographer appear
who seems to really understand the heart of the person
they are writing about. Lewis Drummond does indeed
capture the life and the heart of Miss Bertha.
Beginning
with her early life Drummond does a good job of revealing
the spiritual foundations of Bertha Smith's life.
Miss Bertha was a faithful believer early in her life
but this work shows how she came to realize how much
she lacked depth in her walk with God. Biographers
do us no favor by glossing over the weaknesses of
their subjects. Just as Scripture reveals to us the
flaws as well as the successes of its subjects, Drummond
does the same here. Chapters 6-8 detail the famous
Shantung Revival in China and how it changed Bertha
Smith's life. During this time Bertha came to see
her spiritual pride and her need to deepen her faith.
Thankfully,
Drummond takes a good deal of time to detail the life
of Bertha Smith after her retirement as a missionary
in China. Miss Bertha lived another 30 years after
retiring in 1958 and became a mentor to many aspiring
missionaries and young pastors. Chapter 19 covers
the influence Bertha Smith had on Baptists in the
United States. Subjects such as prayer and tongues
are dealt with effectively.
One
could wish that Drummond had spent more time considering
the theology of Bertha Smith. She was greatly influenced
by R.A. Torrey and Ruth Paxson and the Keswick movement.
Some in the reformed tradition are quick to discount
these influences. However, Bertha Smith seems to have
kept the proper doctrinal balance throughout her life.
This
reviewer, like many other Baptist pastors, only knew
Miss Bertha in her later years. I well remember her
prayers at the Southern Baptist Conventions the last
few years of her life. Our thanks go out to Drummond
to introducing to her entire life which covered a
full century from 1888-1988.
Miss
Bertha: Woman of Revival by Lewis Drummond
(Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1996), paper 292
pages.
Lewis
Drummond is the former president of The Southern Baptist
Theological Seminary.
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Miss
Bertha arrived
in China with a good grasp of the evangelical Christian
faith. Yet something was lacking ... Even the missionaries
themselves - Miss Bertha included - confessed to a need
for a deep movement of God in their own lives. (p.4)
The
Shantung Revival, with
its emphasis on confession of sin and restitution, brought
in its wake a sense of genuine freedom in Christ's grace
and forgiveness ... Personal relationships that had
suffered were revived .. Consequently, multitudes of
Chinese came to saving faith in Jesus Christ. That constitutes
true revival. (p. 67)
Miss
Bertha always always
warned pastors to be prepared for the crowds to decrease
each night during a revival . As to the spiritual climate
of the church, the Lord has continued to prune and purge
the church. (p. 223)
One
close friend of
this author was praying with her one day. He was on
his knees pleading with the Lord to help him die to
himself ... Miss Bertha ... looked him straight in the
eye and said, "Young man, you don't have to beg
God to help you to die to yourself. You just tell Him
and He'll kill you." (p. 248)
Miss
Bertha was blunt
and frank at times ... Once while she was praying with
a very obese preacher, he prayed, "Lord, you know
I have a tendency to overeat. "Miss Bertha broke
in: "Don't try to fool God, just tell him you are
a glutton." (p. 256)
Just
five months before
her 100th birthday, she heard the trumpet and crossed
over. The Chinese age a person not by the birth date
but the year of birth. So Chinese style, Miss Bertha
was 100 years old when God called her to His side. And
that would have pleased her well.
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