A woman healed in 1927 at one of George Jeffreys’ campaigns

Elim historian Des Cartwright recounts the fascinating event of
a woman healed in 1927 at one of George Jeffreys’ campaigns

To God be the Glory!

In June 1958 I bought a secondhand
copy of a book that had
been published 30 years earlier.
Written by ECW Boulton
(1884–1959), it was entitled
‘George Jeffreys: A Ministry of
the Miraculous’ and told the history
of the founding and growth
of what became known as the
Elim Foursquare Gospel Alliance.
The main focus of the book was
the ministry of George Jeffreys
(1889–1963), founder and leader
of the Movement, told in words,
pictures and press cuttings.
In the following years, I tried
to obtain the autographs of those
people whose photographs
adorned the book’s pages.

In addition to those of numerous
ministers, there were also many
photos of people who had been
healed of various illnesses and
diseases during some of the
mighty meetings that were held
during this period.
Among them were two of a
lady called Chrissie Jardine. The
first picture bears the caption,
‘Crippled’; the second, ‘Healed’.
In 1969 I met this lady at the Elim
Conference, and she signed
the book, adding the words,
‘Before and after healed by the
[power] of God. To God be the
Glory. 1927–1969.’
Miss Jardine lived in Southsea.
Prior to attending one of
George Jeffreys’ meetings, she
had been ill for many years.
Specifically, she suffered from
‘sleeping sickness’ (encephalitis),
which caused her to lose the
sight in her left eye and develop
a twisted spine. The medical authorities
were unable to give her
any further help.

When George
Jeffreys held meetings in Southsea
and Portsmouth in September
1927, she was taken there
in a wheelchair. After prayer
she was touched by the power
of God and instantly healed.
The two pictures published
in the book bear testimony to
this. Another book, Robert E
Darragh’s ‘In Defence of His
Word’, published in 1932, also
records this testimony. Recently,
another testimony to this came
in a most unexpected way.
One of our retired ministers
sent me a copy of Miss Jardine’s
testimony on a recording, made
years later when she was an
elderly lady. It transpired that
when she was very ill, her doctor
was exceptionally kind to
her and did all he could to help
her – not only as her physician
but also as a friend. After she
was healed, he came to see her
and offered her a job as nanny
to his children.

On the day that the recording
was made she was waiting
for the doctor’s son to come
and collect her to take her to a
special family occasion. She said
that as a result of her healing,
the doctor had made his own
commitment to Christ. She
had remained in close contact
with the children to the end of
her days.