Missions
I am inadequate to paint a word portrait on my paper canvas of Miss Bertha Smith, who served as a Southern Baptist Foreign Missionary to China. My childlike admiration of this godly lady leads me to honor her in my small way. Miss Bertha touched my life when attending Ridgecrest's Foreign Missions week, during the summer of 1976. Knowing her would become a spiritual landmark in my life. Under the leadership of our church youth director, adults and youth combined for a close encounter with missions.
People often speak about mountain top experiences with God. The majestic North Carolina Mountains setting at Ridgecrest, in the midst of missionaries gives greater meaning to that phrase. Shortly after our arrival a friend pointed out Bertha to me in the crowded large sanctuary. I know she would never desire people to speak of her as a celebrity; but in our circle she held that persona.
Sitting under Miss Bertha’s private teaching would be the highlight of our Ridgecrest experience. Our youth group from Louisiana joined another from Kentucky to hear a message from Bertha's heart. She reverently spoke on the Old Testament Tabernacle; but she focused on our need to honestly confess our sins. She hit home with God's authority and anointing. God's children need continuous cleansing.
We were instructed to return to our rooms and search our hearts for sin, listing specific sins on paper, along with names of those we had sinned against. The next step would be to ask forgiveness from them and God. If necessary that would be followed by making restitution. With clean hearts God's Holy Spirit could empower and equip us to walk in the Spirit and serve Him. I met with Miss Bertha later and asked her to pray for my mother to be saved. She carefully wrote down the request as a reminder of my specific heart desire and burden.
The conference ended; but Miss Bertha's influence lives on. Reading her books opened me to more information about her vast ministry. Both “Go Home and Tell,” and “How The Spirit Filled My Life” brought me into a more intimate relationship with Jesus. To read her works is to experience revival! Miss Bertha's life story began in the small South Carolina town of Cowpens. At an early age God began His call on her life, leading her to later surrender to foreign missions and service in China during World War II.
Her sacrificial prayer relationship with the Lord is an inspiration to me. She wrote in a segment from one of her books of waking before daybreak in bitter cold temperatures. Daily she added layer after layer of clothing to provide warmth and protection, before going outside to walk and talk with Her Lord!
The face and life of Bertha Smith reflected The Lord Jesus. After her retirement as a career missionary she followed God's new calling to challenge and encourage Pastors. They were sent to their rooms with instructions to repent and write! Yes, Miss Bertha spoke with fire, like John The Baptist! A couple years after my introduction to Miss Bertha, God answered my prayer request; my mother trusted Jesus as her personal savior! I tried to contact Bertha; but the post office returned my letter… Those two little ladies are now together in heaven. This little lady says thank you...
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