Podcast Episode 8
Assemblies of God
with Dr. Lisa Millen & host Nick Walters
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In this episode of This Week in Christian History, host Nick Walters, founder and director of the Center for Christian History at Mississippi College, welcomes listeners to another installment exploring key people, places, and moments that have shaped the global Christian story. Each episode is produced for students, scholars, and anyone who wants to understand the deep and complicated ways Christianity has influenced cultures, institutions, missionary movements, and communities around the world. As always, the aim is to offer a meaningful blend of timeless history and thoughtful reflection for modern audiences.
Every week, the podcast features a Deep Dive interview with a subject matter expert who brings authoritative historical insight to a specific turning point in Christian history. For Episode 8, Nick interviews Dr. Lisa Millen of the Assemblies of God Theological Seminary at Evangel University. Dr. Millen joins the program to discuss the convening of the Assemblies of God in 1914, an event that helped establish one of the most significant Pentecostal fellowships in the world. Her academic background and denominational expertise provide scholarly context for understanding how early twentieth-century Pentecostal leaders organized, structured, and articulated their shared identity during those formative days. This Deep Dive continues the podcast’s mission of connecting listeners with knowledgeable experts who illuminate the broader historical landscape in ways that are accessible, wide-ranging, and historically grounded.
Each episode also includes two historical highlights drawn from the same week in Christian history. These stories represent the diverse traditions, missionary movements, and devotional lives found within the global church across centuries.
The first highlight for this week comes from April 1, 1826. On this date, Baptist missionary Jonathan Goble arrived in Japan, beginning a chapter of service that would lead to an unexpected and practical innovation. Eleven years after his arrival, his wife became seriously ill, and Japanese doctors recommended she spend more time outdoors and be transported by bearers. Goble believed there must be a better and less burdensome method, so he constructed a two-wheeled cart with long poles that could be pulled rather than carried. This design became the rickshaw. Goble never patented his invention, but the idea shaped everyday transportation in Japan and improved the lives of countless workers who operated the carts.
The second highlight is from April 3, 1826, and centers on the life of Reginald Heber, later bishop of Calcutta. Prior to his early death at age 42, Heber traveled extensively through Scandinavia and Russia before entering his long-term missionary service in India. He was also a poet of remarkable talent, a passion that began during his years at Oxford University. His literary skill is remembered most vividly through his hymns, the best-known of which is “Holy, Holy, Holy.” That hymn was published posthumously on April 3, 1826, and has since become one of the most enduring and beloved works of Christian worship in the English-speaking world.
These highlights reflect the broad and varied nature of Christian history, from missionary innovation in nineteenth-century Japan to poetic devotion that shaped generations of congregational singing. Together with the Deep Dive interview, they form the core purpose of This Week in Christian History: connecting listeners with the wide sweep of the Christian past and the individuals whose lives left lasting influence.
For students, teachers, and anyone exploring how Christianity has developed across cultures and eras, Episode 8 offers another opportunity to engage with expert insight, meaningful stories, and carefully selected historical moments that continue to resonate today.
