By Sarah Levesque (Rated G)
John Vernon McGee was born in 1904 in Hillsboro, Texas. His family moved to Tennessee when his father died in 1918. Vernon, as he was known, graduated college then seminary, then became the pastor of a church first in Decatur, Georgia, and afterward in Cleburne, Texas. It was there that Vernon met his future wife, Ruth Inez Jordan. Later, Vernon was called to pastor Lincoln Avenue Presbyterian Church in Pasadena, California and it was at this position that he began recording a radio show, The Open Bible Hour in 1941. After moving to The Church of the Open Door in Los Angeles, Vernon began a new radio show called Thru The Bible in 1967. Even after he retired, he kept recording Thru The Bible, and his work continued after his death in 1988 and has not ceased. He describes his greatest compliment in these words, “”It was from a country boy wearing high buttoned, yellow shoes. After a morning service he came to speak to me. He groped for words, then blurted out, ‘I never knew Jesus was so wonderful!’ He started to say more but choked up and hurried out of the church. As I watched him stride across the field, I prayed, ‘Oh, God, help me to always preach so that it can be said, I never knew Jesus was so wonderful.’
May we, too, strive to bring the Good News to others, so that they can experience Jesus’ presence and gifts.
Image & information source: ttb.org/about/dr-j-vernon-mcgee
LogoSophia Magazine 