Mrs. Penn-Lewis: A Memoir: Foreword to the First Edition

This is the Foreword from the First Edition of Mrs. Penn-Lewis: A Memoir by Mary N. Garrard

This book is largely compiled from diaries and notes collected by Mrs. Penn-Lewis with the intention of writing her autobiography, and placed at the disposal of the council of The Overcomer Testimony by her literary trustees. Much that was only stored in a retentive memory must now remain untold, but the author has linked up the material available as simply as possible; and the council, at whose request she has acted, believe that this life story will be of service to others desiring to follow the same pathway of devotion to God and love to his people. It is the spiritual history of one suffering under great weakness of body, to whom God taught the deep lesson of life out of death—the lesson of the “grain of wheat” given to death in its sowing, that by the reproductive power of the life of God, life more abundant might spring forth in others.

In spite of her great natural gifts of mind and personality, the frailty of her body was such that, but for the strengthening power of God, much that Mrs. Penn-Lewis was enabled to accomplish would have been physically impossible. Her almost childlike confidence, too, in the love and loyalty of her fellow-workers was not invariably justified, and this also drove her more entirely upon the divine resources. The story of her life, like that of every saint, is the story of her Lord’s sufficiency. Only those who have known her longest and most closely can fully appreciate how strongly their friend influenced much that was deepest in the evangelical life and thought of her time. They too will realize most readily the assured place that is hers in that succession of “honorable women” who in all ages have been accounted mothers in Israel. Surely such a blessed succession ends in those upon whom was promised, in these latter days, the outpouring of the Spirit of God.

May one who was honored by Mrs. Penn-Lewis’ friendship only toward the end of her life give thankful expression to his sense of such a privilege, and the hope that this book will convey something of the inspiration of personal intimacy to that wider circle who for so long knew and loved her, both as speaker and writer? It remains for me to express the grateful thanks of the council to their colleague, Mr. J. Gordon Logan, for so kindly advising on and reviewing the manuscript before going to press, as also for his selection of quotations from Thy Hidden Ones at the beginning of each chapter.

Bernard W. Matthews
Parkstone
June 1930