1981 Interview with Everett Phillips

Everett L. Phillips, former missionary to Nigeria, West Africa and former field secretary for Africa, is interviewed by Dr. Delbert H. Tarr at the Assemblies of God Graduate School, Springfield, Missouri, January 21, 1981.
ID: V014

Review: Assemblies of God in Guyana

The History of the Assemblies of God in Guyana, by Alfred S. Cockfield. Brooklyn, NY: Christian Times, 2008.

Dr. Alfred Cockfield, senior pastor of God’s Battalion of Prayer Church, an Assemblies of God congregation in Brooklyn, New York, has written a history of the Assemblies of God in Guyana. Cockfield, who was born in Guyana, has personal knowledge of many of the people, churches, themes, and events significant in the history of the Guyanese church. Cockfield supplemented these experiences with additional research and the resulting volume contains a treasure trove of information, which will be welcomed by church leaders, historians, and the people who lived the history.

Existing Pentecostal histories primarily document the stories of North American and European believers, paying inadequate attention to the development of the movement in non-Western lands. The challenge to the next generation of Pentecostal historians is to document these non-Western stories, so that Pentecostalism can be better understood from a global perspective. Cockfield’s work helps fill this need by documenting previously unpublished information about the Assemblies of God in Guyana. According to Cockfield, his book “will clearly affirm the fact that God is equally interested in the people and nation of Guyana as He is in the people and nations of the United States, Canada, England, or any other nation” (p. vii).

Reviewed by Darrin J. Rodgers

Softcover, 159 pages. $15.00 plus $3 postage to U.S. addresses. Order from: Dr. Alfred Cockfield, God’s Battalion of Prayer Church, 661 Linden Blvd, Brooklyn, NY 11203 (phone: 718-774-5447; email: Battalionp@aol.com).

Review: The Ambassadors

The Ambassadors : A History of Two Airplanes and the Men Who Flew Them – Christ’s Ambassadors, by Bill Taylor. Seminole, FL: Sirena Press, 2005.

Few ministries in the Assemblies of God created as much visibility as two converted World War II planes that the Division of Foreign Missions operated worldwide between 1948 and 1951. Now called Assemblies of God World Missions, the ministry converted a C-46 cargo plane and made several trips to Africa, South America, India, and domestic flights — including the 1949 General Council in Seattle.

Late in 1949, the DFM, headed by Noel Perkin, traded the C-46 for a converted 4-engine B-17 bomber and operated it for the next two years. The copilot, Bill Taylor, researched and pulled together the amazing stories of a courageous crew that flew into exotic airports around the world. If you want adventure, inspiration, close calls over the oceans, and great missionary stories, The Ambassadors is for you.

Review: Java and Justice

Java and Justice: Journeys in Pentecostal Missions Education, edited by B. Brenneman, W. R. Brookman, and N. Muhovich. Minneapolis, MN: North Central University Press, 2006.

Sponsored by the Department of Intercultural Studies and Languages at North Central University, this handy volume presents foundational issues in educating students for missions in the 21st century by presenting 19 essays by 17 contributors.

Essays in this volume include:

• The shame and the glory of being a Pentecostal: a personal journey / Bob Brenneman
• A legacy of Pentecostal missions education at North Central University: 1936-2006 / Dan Notely
• Story telling: a Biblical model of missions education / Nan J. Muhovich
• Planting ethnic churches in urban America / Richard and Farella Shaka
• Prepared in the fire: Argentine revival and missionary training / Rocky Grams
• The explosion of spiritual gifts and fervor in Celtic missions / Carolyn Tennant
• Spirit, mission, and the religions: toward a p(new)matological/Pentecostal theology of religions / Amos Yong
• Biblical justice: caring for the poor and oppressed / Nan Muhovich
• Ministry in hostile areas / Mark Hausfeld
• The veil worn and the veil torn: reflections from the inside / Myra Crane
• Sexual slavery and the gospel / Beth Grant
• From Noah to Saddam: the story of the Kurds / Bob Brenneman