Jean Morrow
Salvation Experience
God has been incredibly good to me. It all began on July 26, 1939, when He brought me into an amazing Christian Family. My dad, Howard Critchfield, had been an Assembly of God (AG) traveling evangelist who had to find work during the depression years to provide for his family of now four. He took a job teaching at Monte Vista Christian School in Watsonville, and my mom, Laura, stayed home with my older sister, Anita, and me.
When World War II broke out everyone plunged into war work. We moved to the Bay Area so Dad could go to work at the Kaiser Shipyards in Richmond, building Victory Ships. We landed at his friend Irving Ford’s place in Oakland, where Dad helped milk the cow and assisted in Reverend Ford’s church.
In 1947 my parents decided to check out the new church they had watched being built on MacArthur Boulevard in Oakland: the Oakland Neighborhood Church. To Dad’s delight, his old AG friend, David Von Rotz, was playing the organ. While we had always attended Assembly of God churches, Dad commented “If it is good enough for Dave, it is good enough for me!”, and we made the move to Neighborhood, primarily for the excellent youth programming.
I recall the powerful pull of the Holy Spirit on my young, pre-teen life. In the late 40s we attended the evangelist faith-healing tent meetings of Oral Roberts in Alameda, where I went to the prayer tent and prayed to receive Christ. Then when Jacob Bellig became pastor in 1954, I went to the prayer room and counseled with Charlotte Bellig, where I made a more mature reconfirmation of my faith. Charlotte told me to read the Bible each day in the New Testament, which I began doing. I was off to a good start!
When I was in high school the church began the annual Kick-Off Rallies in the fall at the beginning of football season. They were a very popular event among high schoolers, drawing big crowds. I was very active in the Omega ministry at that time, serving as president during my senior year. The church was my life! I played in the orchestra and then sang in the Choralaires.
In 1957 I moved to Berkeley to start college at U.C. I would say today that the devil works overtime on college kids, trying to derail their faith. It was my goal to be a missionary – a Wycliffe Bible Translator. Neighborhood Church sent me to Mexico during the summer between my sophomore and junior years to stay with a Wycliffe family, learn about missionary life, and bring back a report. I was excited and switched my college focus from my major in psychology, to linguistics. But things got “fuzzy” for my faith and future as I mentally wrestled with the teachings of my atheistic professors, especially in psychology and anthropology. I began questioning my faith. I thought unbelievers “had more fun”. I wanted in on that fun, and I made some really bad choices. And I had a boyfriend. Missionary work just wasn’t going to blend in with what I wanted for my life. I wanted to marry Ray and stay home. Ray lived a very exciting life of symphonies, operas, and world travel. While he was a Christian, there was no missionary future for him. Somehow I ended up throwing out my faith with my missionary ambition and married Ray.
While I gave up on God for awhile, He never gave up on me. Oh, I continued to attend church, Ray saw to that. But I was confused and skeptical. I considered myself to be an “intellectual agnostic”. In fact, I had chosen to disbelieve because it was convenient. I had been tricked and duped by Satan.
Ray took a job in Colombia, South America, in 1969, where we lived for two years. While there I completed my Ph.D. thesis, writing a grammar of the Car Nicobarese language (spoken on the island of Car Nicobar, annexed to India. I had visited India twice to do research, and while I was there, I had the amazing privilege of a personal sit-down meeting with Jawaharlal Nehru, the Prime Minister of India.)
Upon our return to California, we moved in with Ray’s parents. While it was home to Ray, it was suffocating to me! To get out, I quickly got a real estate license and went to work in my dad’s (then vacant) real estate office in Castro Valley. I loved selling real estate – it was so practical and down to earth – not acerbic and aimless as I considered college teaching to be (I had taught briefly – even having California governor Jerry Brown as one of my students!).
Early in my sales experience a woman from Neighborhood Church - Elaine - contacted me about relocating. Elaine and her husband had four children (I had none and that was just fine) and she had a very visible faith in God. She prayed about everything. At that point, I had a gnawing emptiness in my soul and a longing for something more. I had turned away from God. Ray and I had travelled until I was tired and I could have anything I wanted, but nothing could satisfy me. Elaine was such a contrast. She hadn’t been anywhere and had to struggle to figure out how they would buy the house, but she exuded contentment and joy. I wanted what she had! On inquiry I learned that she attended a weekly Bible study which she said was just wonderful and gave her strength. She offered to pick me up and take me. I asked her where it was and told her I would be there! And I was – the very next meeting!
I will never forget that day, April 23, 1972. When I arrived – late, as was my style – there were probably 300 women on their feet singing joyously. My heart surged with the feeling that I was coming home – that this was what was missing in my life and here I would get back on track with God. And I was right. I was assigned to a small group led by Jonette Richardson. Their group was having a luncheon after class in the home of one of the women; they urged me to attend. Meanwhile, after the small group the big group reassembled in the main hall of the church (First Pres, Hayward) and, after singing a song, we listened to a forty minute lecture explaining the lesson the ladies had just discussed in the small group. After the lecture I found the house where the luncheon was being held and enjoyed a kind of fellowship that I had never known. It was simply wonderful. I reaffirmed my faith that day.
One of the things the lecturer, Sandy Blackmun, said was, “If anyone wills to do His will, he shall know concerning the doctrine, whether it is from God or whether I speak on My own authority.” John 7:17. Hearing this verse made me realize that my lack of faith was not resultant from lack of evidence. It was due to a lack of will on my part to obey. I realized it was also due to my pride and willfulness, a desire to be my own master and not be answerable to anyone. I had determined that God was not knowable because He could not be found through the scientific method, and I considered myself to be a scientist. But when I humbled myself and said “yes” to God, that I would obey Him, He revealed to me that He was much greater than my mere, finite mind could dissect and analyze and “find”. He will be found by those who seek Him in truth with a humble, willing heart. (Jeremiah 29:14) To those, He will reveal Himself. He revealed Himself to me. Salvation is a gift – even the ability to find God is a gift from Him. I am forever grateful for His grace to me.
God put a song in my heart that day, and He definitely “Keeps Me Singing”. Since then, life has been good: walking with Jesus every day, reading His Word, fellowshipping with His people. I can’t imagine a better life than I have had. And I owe it all to Him.
Since coming back into fellowship with Jesus it has been my desire to get the word out about His great salvation. Through the years God has given me many wonderful opportunities to serve Him, among them:
Calling on visitors to the church to make them welcome
Beginning and coordinating a bus ministry to pick up children for Sunday school
Going door-to-door in Castro Valley inviting people to attend the church
Playing trumpet in the church orchestra
Leading small group Bible studies for over forty years
Beginning and coordinating a guest reception ministry on Sundays in the church
Serving as Bay Area Women’s coordinator for the 1996 Billy Graham Crusade
Joining and serving with the Auxiliary of the Gideons International, which continues to be a wonderful motivator and enabler to sharing my faith
Working these past few years as an online missionary with Global Media Outreach, through which I have worked with 672 people throughout the world to date
To those who know Christ, I would say God has not called us to sit and stew. We are to “occupy until He comes” Luke 19;13. We are never too old to serve the Lord.
To those who think they “don’t need God” I would say I found it was possible to have a fairly good life apart from God. But when I allowed Christ into my life I became dramatically more contented and full of joy. The emptiness was gone. And on top of that, I have assurance of eternal life. This is life at its best!
To those who say they can’t find God or don’t know if there is a God, I would say “Yield!” Humble yourself, and yield as much of yourself to God to as much of God as you can understand. Ask Him to reveal Himself to you, and tell Him – and yourself - you will believe and obey Him when He does. And He will reveal Himself to you.
To everyone, I would say God is good! He is “what” makes life worth living. Take Him as your own Lord and Savior!
If you are a senior and would like to submit your testimony, we invite you to contact us for details on how you can participate. We would love to include your story!
