Teaching, Preaching, and Healing

About the Book

“It seems God had a way of communicating his will to me through daydreams.” Bill Guthrie is a natural storyteller. His rich, warm voice brought the gospel alive to congregations all over the world. He was also gifted in collecting and telling family stories. These gifts combine to create a body of knowledge with personal, spiritual, and religious significance. As Bill’s voice began to grow weak, it was feared that these stories, these unique observations and recollections of times of war, recovery, poverty, and prosperity would disappear. In 19xx Bill’s youngest daughter, W. June Holstrum, began to gather Bill’s stories on audio cassette. She transcribed them, then passed them on to her youngest daughter, Shawn M. Davis, to assemble and edit them into this volume. Inspirational in nature, this book is a testament to the power of faith and prayer.

From a rambunctious childhood, through the penniless depressions years, and into a ministry that led him throughout the United States and Korea, William T. Guthrie’s memoirs gives a personal look at one man’s relationship with God and how that guided him throughout his life. Wherever he went, he had the ability to look through outward appearances and connect with people, all people, regardless of age, race, circumstances or religious belief.

His journey begins in the hills and hollows of Missouri and Illinois. There, he transforms from a church skipping, pool-hall haunting youth into a somewhat over-serious young minister. No stranger to hard times, his story reveals occasions of near tragedy and despair averted through prayer. In clear and vivid details he recounts healings and other miracles which could only have been brought about by a loving God.

Although Bill believed in miracles and the power of prayer, he also believed in the value of hard work. He sawed wood, pounded nails, and did any manner of hard labor to ensure that people had a place to worship. When his ministry took him to war-torn Korea, he didn’t just save souls, but also changed lives. Whether allowing a young Korean woman to take a long, hot bath or arranging for a disfigured young boy to have reconstructive surgery on his face, Bill’s priority was always people, their welfare, and what he could do to help. And his wife, Jane, was always by his side

About the Author

Bill Guthrie was born in Nebo, Illinois in 1917. By 12 years of age he was doing a man’s work on his father’s farm. He married Jane at 17 and they were inseparable until her death in 2000. In 1938 he was ordained a priest in the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and in 1947 he became a full-time missionary. He didn’t just preach from the pulpit; throughout his ministry—whether in the United States, or abroad—he’d get his hands dirty helping build churches and lives. He died in 2003 at the age of 86.