People of the Spirit

by Gary B. McGee, Charles E. Self (Afterword)

Who were the men and women who laid the foundation of The General Council of the Assemblies of God? They were ordinary people, many with little or no ministry experience or formal training, yet they were the raw material God used in the modern Pentecostal movement. Shaped by the Holy Spirit, they became His instruments of vision and revival from generation to generation. Their journey is a foundation we can build on.Ideal for classroom use or personal reading, this updated version includes updated bios; new material covering the timeframe since the original writing of the book in 2000; and fresh design for easy reading.Pick up where this book ends and your faith will be strengthened as you live the history that has changed the world."

Genres: Nonfiction

550 pages, Paperback

First published February 22, 2012

About the author

Gary B. McGee (1945–2008) received his PhD from St. Louis University and taught at the Assemblies of God Theological Seminary.

Reviews

[Petrichor · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think that somewhere inside this book was a semi-coherent narrative of the foundations, history, and primary characters of the Pentecostal movement, but that was buried underneath an agonizingly dull listing of every scrap of information that the author compiled during his research. It felt like the author had picked up the "Pentecostal White Pages" and worked his way through it without much regard for tying the stories together in a meaningful way.

All this to say: there are toooooons of names and dates in this book, and they start to become meaningless pretty quickly. Sometimes we have to kill our darlings, even if that means we can't include every scrap of information to be found about Aimee Semple McPherson.

(I may also be biased because I resent being forced to take a course on Pentecostal doctrine. Humbug.)

[Nicholas Seders · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lots of Interesting, Flat Stories

Great information! Unfortunately, this book reads like an endless directory of Pentecostal people. Rather than moving from important person to important person (highlighting major events along the way), the author should've focused on chronicling the major events of the fellowship's history (highlighting important persons along the way). I wanted narratives, not encyclopedia entries roughly organized by date.

McGee also mentioned Central Bible College and Evangel University wayyy more than any of the other AG colleges and universities - understandable, since he studied at CBC and AGTS. Still, as an UVF student, it would have been nice to hear more about our heritage...as well as that of SEU, SAGU, and NCU (I guess).

[Melissa Scruggs · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book gave me a foundation I didn’t even realize I was missing. I grew up church-hopping, so I never had a steady picture of what ministry was supposed to look like. The organized and resourceful textbook helped me finally understand Assemblies of God principles and even cleared up some doctrinal differences within Pentecostalism I had run into before. The stories of healing both stirred my faith and reminded me to keep trusting God’s grace in the waiting. I gave it four stars because while it was super helpful, I wish there were more examples of how all this plays out in today’s ministry world.

[Yolanda D Ursery · Rating 5 out of 5]

Moving, challenging, provoking

I absolutely enjoyed reading and learning the history of the A/G. I was touched by the mini biographies of amazing men and women whose ministries were foundational to the development of this fellowship. I was challenged by stories of faith while accepting the truths of human struggle as people learned how to live their faith. I am moved to pray for leadership like never before!

[Devon · Rating 2 out of 5]

The individual stories were good but it was not written as a flowing story but a long almost encyclopedia of people which is not my favorite way to read history. It made the book drag on even though the people were interesting.

[Daniel Anderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very informative and educational. Help me prepare for my ministerial license with the Assembly of God.