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John G. Lake Ministries - Canada
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Dr. John G. Lake
1870 - 1935
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Healing in any department of the nature, whether
spirit, soul or body, is but a means to an end. The object of healing
is health, abiding health of body, soul and spirit.
The healing of the spirit unites the spirit of man to God.
The healing of the soul corrects psychic disorder and brings the soul
processes into harmony with the mind of God.
The healing of the body completes the union of man with God when the
Holy Spirit possesses all.
......Dr. John G. Lake
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The Life and Times of John G. Lake
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| John G. Lake, known as the "Apostle to Africa" was born in St. Marys, Ontario, Canada in
1870. In his late teens his family relocated to Sault Ste. Marie in Northern Michigan where he grew up. He
began his ministry as a Methodist preacher, turning later to insurance work. Because of a history of chronic
illness in his family he turned to the ministry of John Alexander Dowie where his brother and two sisters
were miraculously healed of fatal diseases. In 1898 his wife was also miraculously healed of tuberculosis
under the same ministry. After this Lake joined Dowie's fast growing "Zion Catholic Apostolic Church." where
he became grounded in the reality of Divine Healing.
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The African Years |
| In April 1908, God sent him to Africa, where his anointed miracle ministry resulted in what has
been described as "the most extensive and powerful missionary movement in all Africa." As Gordon Lindsay wrote,
"during that time he spent five history-making years in South Africa, engaged in a ministry which in some
respects rivaled that of the Early Church." Accompanying Lake was his wife and seven children as well as
evangelists Thomas Hezmalhalch and J.C. Lehman. Before the end of his first year in South Africa Lake's wife
died, some believed through malnutrition. Lake nevertheless succeeded in founding two large and influential
Pentecostal churches in Southern Africa. The Black branch eventually developed into the "Zion Christian Church"
(ZCC) which by 1993 claimed no less than 6,000,000 members and, despite some doctrinal and cultural variations,
was recognized as the largest Christian church in the nation. The white branch took the name "Apostolic Faith
Mission" (AFM) in 1910, borrowed from the name of the famous mission on Azusa Street. It was at this church,
Smith Wigglesworth prophesied the coming world wide harvest to young David duPlessis.
Lake would often greet people as they came into the crusade meetings. In South Africa, this posed a problem
because the power of God was so great upon him that people would fall under it in the doorway when he shook
hands with them. There were times when people who came within six feet of him would fall, so to ensure people
would not be deceived into thinking he was pushing them, Lake got into the habit of raising his hand about two
feet from them. David duPlessis described the healing crusades of Dr. John G. Lake in Africa: "Every morning a
parade of dump trucks would come to the Crusade grounds to pick up crutches, wheel chairs, stretchers and other
medical instruments literally by the ton load.... this went on morning after morning, week after week for six
straight weeks uninterrupted."
In retrospect, the work of Lake was the most influential and enduring of all the South African Pentecostal
missions' endeavors. According to Cecil Rhodes, "Lake's message swept Africa. He has done more toward South
Africa's future peace than any other man." Perhaps the highest accolade was given by no less a personage than
Mahatma Ghandi who said of Lake, "Dr. Lake's teachings will eventually be accepted by the entire world."
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Life After Africa
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| After his African missionary tour of 1908-1912, Lake returned to the United States where he founded
churches and healing homes in Spokane, Washington and Portland, Oregon. Between 1915 and 1920, in the Healing Rooms
in the Rookery Building in Spokane, Washington, there were over 100,000 documented healings which led to the city
being named the 'healthiest city in the U.S.' He then established a similar work in Portland, Oregon with similar
results which also attracted widespread attention.
In his later years John G. Lake pastored a church in Spokane, Washington where he ministered right up to his death
resulting from a stroke in 1935. At his memorial service, the Reverend B. S. Hebden had this to say about John G.
Lake, "Dr. Lake came to Spokane. He found us in sin. He found us in sickness. He found us in poverty of spirit. He
found us in despair, but he revealed to us such a Christ as we had never dreamed of knowing this side of heaven. We
thought victory was over there, but Dr. Lake revealed to us that victory was here, a present and possible reality.
We regarded death almost as a friend, but Dr. Lake came and revealed to us the Christ, all-glorious and all-powerful,
that is triumphant , compassionate and lovely, and our night was turned into day and despair was turned into laughter.
A light shone in the darkness and we, who found Christ at last as He really is, only have words as the words of
Thomas, who said, "My Lord and my God".
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Everything that Jesus did was the Will and Word of the Father. So everything that the
Christian does, if he is a real one, should be the Will and Word of Jesus Christ.
......Dr. John G. Lake
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Healing Room Ministry
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| The John G. Lake Healing Rooms were originally started in 1914 when Dr. Lake began teaching on the
subject of Divine Healing in a local church in Spokane, Washington. Dr. Lake rented rooms in the Rookery Building
that he converted into "Lake's Healing Rooms".
He then began praying for the sick on a daily basis and soon became so overwhelmed by the sheer numbers of those
coming for healing that he was forced to train others in what he called "the Science of Divine Healing".
The people he trained were of various ages and were both men and women. They were taken through a "series of
lectures" on Divine Healing that were designed to impart faith and knowledge to the hearers in order to bring healing
to the sick.
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Divine Healing Technicians
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| Dr. Lake had an ability to impart faith into his hearers. He did this by teaching what he knew to
be true from the Word of God concerning Divine Healing and the Authority of the Believer.
The Divine Healing Technicians were trained by Dr. Lake both by teaching and practical application. Upon completion
of the training they were given a name of a terminally ill patient and told to go to them, ministering to them until
they were healed.
If they were not able to get the person healed they were not to return to the Healing Rooms to continue in ministry.
According to Healing Room records this situation never arose.
Dr. Lake continued ministering in Spokane until 1920. From 1915 until 1920 the team of 16 Divine Healing Technicians
and Dr. Lake recorded over 100,000 healings.
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Healing Rooms Today
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| John G. Lake Ministries is still establishing Healing Rooms around the United States, Canada and
overseas. Training is provided on a regular basis for anyone interested in becoming a Divine Healing Technician.
Dr. Lake went home to be with the Lord in 1935 but the mandate and vision given to him is still being carried on
today by Rev. Curry Blake, General Overseer of John G. Lake Ministries. This vision includes establishing healing
rooms in every major city in the United States and Canada.
The Canadian National Directors of John G. Lake Ministries, Noel and Denise Dunn are currently conducting Divine
Healing Technician Training Seminars across Canada and overseas. As Healing Rooms are established, testimonies of
believers operating in a new boldness as they go outside the walls of the church and lay hands on the sick become
commonplace as do the reports of the sick being healed by the power of God
God is the same yesterday, today and forever. He worked through people like Dr. Lake in the past and He is looking
for people to work through today. God is looking for those who can teach from experience the generation of tomorrow.
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According to the degree of faith in your soul, so that action or interaction of the Spirit
of God in your life for healing will be great or small.
......Dr. John G. Lake
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Divine Healing Technicians
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| The heartbeat of John G. Lake Ministries is to work with local churches and groups of believers
who have a desire to minister the healing power of God to the sick and needy.
To this end, we will go wherever there is that desire with the sole intention of 'equipping the Saints for the
work of the ministry'.
We have gone to churches, mission outreach ministries and groups of individual believers who have a hunger to
not only be hearers of the Word but doers as well, making themselves available to minister healing at anytime,
anywhere and to whosoever needs it.
A Mission in Regina, Saskatchewan where, as a result of Divine Healing Technician Training, now have a healing
room open. Their original purpose was to feed the hungry and to help the needy in any way they could and, now,
they have added the Healing Room Ministry as an additional outreach.
So this outreach is not just for churches but can be incorporated anywhere where there are believers prepared to
expand the Kingdom of God.
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Training Schedule
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| We try to be as flexible as possible when we are setting up DHT Training realizing that people
are not usually available through the daytime. The initial training can be completed over two weekends and this
has proved successful where the location is within reasonable commuting distance from our base. For longer
journeys we have to do the training all at one time.
The initial training sessions take approximately 20 hours with follow-up advanced sessions as the need arises.
If you have a group of people who are interested in participating in the Healing Room Ministry then your first
step is to contact us and we will work with you to get you started.
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School of Ministry
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| See the information on the John G. Lake School of Ministry here. This
is a new facet of the ministry designed to meet the needs of a greater number of people.
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