This Is My Task

Aimee Semple McPherson was undoubtedly the most famous evangelist of the early 20th Century. Through the use of radio, hers was the most recognizable voice in the world, and she preached to thousands before “mega-church” and “the world-wide web” was created. Her whole desire was to “reach the most people in the shortest possible time” with the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Beginning her evangelistic ministry in 1915, Aimee Semple McPherson’s tent revivals swept across North America. Crowds grew as accounts of the miraculous spread, forcing her to relocate many planned services to outdoor venues in order to accommodate the growing crowds.

After building Angelus Temple in 1923, Sister’s illustrated sermons grew elaborate, incorporating moving sets, costume changes, live animals, and sound and light effects. The city arranged for extra police and trolley cars on the Sunday nights that Sister debuted a new illustrated sermon.

In August of 1927, Aimee opened the Angelus Temple’s Foursquare Commissary. Through this ministry, she kept tens of thousands of people from starving during the Great Depression. The Commissary was virtually the only place in town a person could get food, clothing, and blankets with no questions asked. When the government shut down the free school lunch program, Aimee took it over.

As thousands came to Christ, Sister recognized the great need to see the multitudes (numbering 16,000 on Sundays) trained and involved in Gospel work. Within three months after the Temple was opened, a Bible institute was begun. By 1927, the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel was founded, presently one of the fastest growing Pentecostal denominations in the world.