Revival Herald

A TRIBUTE TO BARBARA A. MASSIE

BY MICHAEL O’CONNOR

Beloved
friends and
readers:

We
greet you in the
precious name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ;

It
is with great joy
that we present unto you this new magazine entitled: Revival Herald, which is a
collection based upon the life and ministry of Sister, Barbara A.
Massie. Sister Barbara was born in Glasgow, Scotland, in the year 1919,
being the second child of Apostle, and Mrs., William Massie. Her beloved
parents served under the Welsh Apostolic
Church, and were used of our
Lord to pioneer the Pentecostal-Movement, in the North of Scotland. In those years, the
Movement was conservative and sound, being Bible-based and Christ-centered: It
was an outgrowth of the Welsh Revival of 1904, which was firmly established
upon Righteous principles and Holiness-standards.

Barbara’s
mother was
raised in the Plymouth Brethren Church, of Scotland, where as a child of
approximately nine years of age, she was greatly moved upon by the Holy Spirit,
during a church presentation (via old-fashioned “magic lantern”), of “The
Pilgrim’s Progress.” At the closing of this presentation, she then and
there surrendered her life unto Christ, and received Him as her Lord and
Savior. From that hour, her faith never wavered! She grew up to be a model wife
and mother, an outstanding Pastor’s wife, and a dedicated and powerful prayer
intercessor.

In
John Bunyan’s classic
narrative, “Pilgrim” struggled to ascend a great mountain, whilst bearing a
heavy burden, bound onto his back (portraying sin, in an unregenerate
state).  Suddenly he lifted his weary
head, to behold Jesus, the Lamb of God; agonizing upon the cross.  At once the
binding cords burst asunder and
his heavy burden dropped from his back, to go tumbling down the hill behind
him.  It was at this very instant that
Barbara’s dear mother was overwhelmed by the blessed Holy Spirit: Her
young-heart flew-open, and she received Christ as Lord and Savior of her
life!  As she did so (though a child),
she immediately felt her own burden break-free, and fall from her! She was
filled with joy amidst tears of thanksgiving. 
She was apprehended of the Lord instantly, and from that moment, she
became a prayerful and vigilant child, and a shining witness for Christ! (Oh,
how we need such conversions in this dark, Laodicean Day!)

I
strongly recommend the
reading of this marvelous book, which came in 1630, to Bunyan, via the agency
of visionary dreams.  There is also an
excellent video-version which was produced in Ireland, in the mid-1970’s.

Barbara’s
dear father
was likewise a statured Christian, and a powerful and dedicated man of prayer.
As an Apostle and Pastor, William Massie, Sr., was truly a paragon of exemplary
manhood, with uncompromising integrity. 
He was indeed a preacher of righteousness! William so strongly declared
the imminence of the return of Christ, that in Scotland, Wales, England, and
Ireland, he became known and referred to, “the man of the Second-Coming.” 
Brother Massie, preached this glorious
reality, powerfully and without compromise. 
(Oh! That earnest and consecrated men of God, would again preach the
whole counsel of God, as contained in the Fundamental Gospel of Jesus Christ!

Sister
Barbara committed
her life to Christ, and was baptized by full immersion, and was subsequently
baptized into the Holy Spirit while in her childhood; she was aware at an early
age of a Divine calling upon her life. She was highly blessed to be raised in a
home of such marvelous spiritual reality. Bible readings, prayers, singing of
hymns, memorization of Scripture portions, learning to testify, etc., were an
integral part of the upbringing and training of Sister Barbara and her
siblings. She was blessedly moved upon by the Holy Spirit upon numerous
occasions in her young life, but especially during the Hebrides Revival, when all of Scotland and the Channel Islands were mightily shaken
by
a visitation of the Holy Spirit. Our Lord Jesus used this vehicle to impress
upon His daughter in a new and powerful way, the claim He had made upon her
life, for ministry. These dealings culminated in the enrollment of Sister
Barbara at the Bible College of Wales, as the first
“lady-student,” to ever there be admitted.

We
feel it important to
herein share a treatise upon the Hebrides Revival of 1949-‘51, as related by
Brother Duncan Campbell, who so greatly influenced Barbara’s decision to
surrender her young life to the service of our Lord.  Truly, the ministry bestowed
upon Sister
Barbara, was brought to birth amidst the white-hot fires of Divine Visitation.
She would bear the marks of this precious identity, characterizing her
ministry, all the days of her life.  A
link is provided at the end of this tribute to: “The Price and Power of
Revival.”

Our
Lord’s great design
for her life would lead her to many places and People-Groups: In the British Isles,
in European Nations,
in Canada, and in America. (Barbara had also
significant ministry amongst Asians, Samoans, Native Americans, and Spanish
Folk.) Her last large trip would be in approximately 1988, when she and her
sister, Anne, traveled to the Antipoedes (Australia), New Zealand, and the Philippine Islands.

A
great honor and
privilege was bestowed upon myself and the congregation at New Haven, in August of 1991,
when Sister Barbara came and ministered unto us. That was to be her last
official church-ministry, although she did minister at prayer meetings, etc.,
thereafter, until the time of her home-going.

Although
her heart was
very weak, and her ocular vision failing; while at New Haven,
she ministered
eloquently and powerfully in the Word, as well as in personal ministry to the
people. There was a deep and dramatic stream flowing, as our beloved mother in
the Gospel, rallied to minister in the rich anointing of the Holy Spirit, for
which she had become legendary. It was necessary for her to rest and wait upon
the Lord for several days, in order to gain strength for the Sunday Night
service; but her ministry was indeed moving and unforgettable!

Sister
Barbara,
ministered with such compassion to the needy souls present, and at one point
she stood fearlessly, toe to toe, against very strong evil spirits apparent in
one individual. When I beheld Sister Massie’s hand extended in the
“sword-posture,” I knew that our dear Mother, was not about to back-down! That
same old powerful authority was resting yet upon her life and ministry.
Hallelujah!

Sister
Barbara came
first to America in the Fall of 1956
(where she resided with, and worked in the Gospel Temple, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania), under the ministry of
Pastor, and Mrs., Fred Poole. The Poole‘s were close friends of
the Massie’s, and had known and loved Sister Barbara since her childhood.

In
time, the Lord would
send Sister Massie forth as a “torch-bearer,” to ignite fires of Revival in
many places, as she traveled extensively in America. It was my pleasure to
first meet her when she made her second visit to Elim Bible Institute in 1967.
Our Lord Jesus used her there in a blessed way, for nine weeks. She later came
to New York City to minister unto the
students who had been dispatched there in Elim’s New York City
outreach program.

Oh,
what blessed
memories, as we broke beneath the awesome overshadowing of the Holy Spirit!
With earnest tears of consecration, we were led into a deeper commitment unto
the calling of God upon our lives. While Sister ministered in joy and victory,
a very predictable element whenever she ministered, was that of a deep and
sacred brooding and breaking of the Holy Spirit, which arrested and captivated
lives for His calling and Divine purposes.

Indeed,
I have personally
observed her practice (when she perceived the atmosphere of a meeting becoming
too light, or when “flesh” was attempting to creep-in), to “pull-back on the
reins,” and bring the meeting into a deeper stream. She exercised an unusual
ability to do so, without grieving the Holy Spirit, nor injuring tender young
souls. Sister Massie was truly a Mother in the Lord (assuredly, she was the
undisputed mother of Pinecrest Bible Training Center, until her retirement
in 1991). She had also dynamic times of ministry there, early-on, from 1970,
and later in 1973 and 1975, when she took up permanent residency there, and
made Pinecrest her home and base of ministry. Some of the staff members who
helped open The School in September of 1968, had been greatly blessed under her
ministry at Elim the year before. It may safely be said that twenty-three
classes of students at Pinecrest were influenced either indirectly, or were
personally blessed, taught, and ministered unto, by this beloved mother in Israel.

She
had a deep and
committed love for the Lord’s people; especially young folk for whom she spent
much time in prayer and fasting, although she taught very clearly against
boasting or announcing the practice of fasting. Through such a close and
meaningful relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ, she had learned very well
the ways of His precious Holy Spirit. Her great harvest lives on in the Earth,
largely amongst those young generations and their spiritual progeny, whom she
so dearly loved, and whom were so drawn unto, and encouraged by her ministry.
These are numbered amongst various Nations and People groups, as well as across
a broad spectrum of Denominational-Lines, including those of the
Catholic-Renewal, amongst whom she was instrumental, beginning with the 1967
outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Notre Dame University, in Anne Arbor,
Michigan.

Our
Lord, Himself,
orchestrated a beautiful going-away party in Sister’s honor. She was in frail
health, but was bright and alert, and looked beautiful in her white ensemble.
Folk came from considerable distances, even though there had come a snow
blizzard. The Fellowship Hall at Pinecrest was nearly filled and there was a
mighty glory of God resting upon the place. She played the piano and sang
movingly, in a tribute to our late brother, Howard Adkins (recently deceased),
in honor of his dear widow, Sister, Bobbi. There was rousing congregational
singing, moving worship, and also special songs and tributes were rendered. The
meeting went on till nearly midnight, yet the people were
not anxious to go home. During a time of worship, Sister Barbara, and her dear
old friend, Pastor Claire D. Hutchins (Founder and Senior Pastor of the
Brooklyn Tabernacle), who had flown-in from Tampa, Florida, began to sing most
beautifully under a heavy anointing, followed by a deep and somber prophetic
message, which gripped us all, with a deep, searching conviction.

Dear
Sister Barbara
shortly thereafter, returned to her beloved Sister, Anne, and their cozy old
home at

I
could write volumes
concerning this dear soul, and hopefully I shall at some juncture, be enabled
to write a more fitting tribute. For this time, the above introduction must
suffice. I sincerely trust that you shall avail yourself to her Life-Story,
herein posted, and also unto the true life experiences, as told in her messages
dealing with her personal life.

We
are deeply indebted
to Sister Louise Flanders and Brother Jay Hearn, for their hundreds of hours of
labor in preparing and publishing the story of her life, and for the
unbelievable toil of Brother Hearn, over a several-year period, in extracting,
categorizing, and formatting her many sermon illustrations. Thankfully, by our
Lord’s grace, we have been enabled, to begin posting her audio recordings. Please
keep us in prayer as there are many recordings to be posted, and this is a
difficult and arduous task.  We wish to be able to live-stream them into
all the world. Please pray with us!

My
life was greatly
enriched by this remarkable servant of the Lord. Sister Massie was to me (for
28 years) a friend, sister, and a “Mom.” How great is my privilege to have
known her in this life. By our Lord’s grace, we shall all meet again, in the
next.

God
bless you and
greatly encourage you all, as you read and study the life of this remarkable
Woman of Faith!