Howard Carter was a missionary to
missionaries, a friend to Smith Wigglesworth and Lester
Sumrall, and a leading speaker at international Pentecostal
conferences throughout the world. But Carter was most
distinguished for his teaching on the gifts of the Holy
Spirit.
Carter was born in Birmingham, England in 1891. His father
was British and his mother was a descendant of French
nobility. Despite his dignified roots, Carter suffered much
embarrassment over a speech impediment as a schoolboy. Even
with speech therapy he still had difficulty throughout his
life pronouncing the letter “R.”
Nonetheless, Carter had a passion for learning and a love
for art. He eventually studied portraiture and life drawing
in art school, and by the time he was 18 years old he gained
employment as a designer at Thursfields and Company in
Birmingham. There he sought every opportunity he could find
to preach the Gospel. When he was 25 years old he left the
design firm and entered the full-time ministry – only to be
interrupted by the Great War.
In 1916, Great Britain introduced compulsory military
service. It was two years after the start of World War I.
Carter should have been exempt from service because he was a
full-time minister of religion. His application to be
excused, however, was dismissed on the grounds that he was
not a minister of a recognized denomination.
Still refusing to enter the military, Carter was imprisoned
in solitary confinement in the famous Wormwood Scrubbs
prison in London some 100 miles from Birmingham. Carter
feared he would break under the strain of incarceration but
God brought him through. While in prison Howard kindled his
passion to study the Word of God and focused his studies on
the supernatural gifts of the Holy Spirit. Later he would
write his book, “Questions and Answers on Spiritual Gifts.”
In 1918, at the end of the war, Howard was freed from prison
and returned to his home town of Birmingham.
Some time later, six Pentecostals had a prayer meeting in
London. A young visitor from Birmingham interpreted a
message in tongues. That visitor was Carter. The prophecy
declared, “Gather my people from the North, South, East and
West and build for me. They will come on horses, mules and
camels and there will be heaps of money.” That same evening
a businessman, convicted for not paying his tithes, gave
£2,500 to Carter. The offering would launch him into a
worldwide apostolic ministry.
Carter was well known for his love for God and as one who
networked with many different Gospel ministers. He was one
of 13 people who signed the founding documents of the
Assemblies of God in Birmingham on February 1st, 1924. In
May of that same year he would attend the first Assemblies
of God conference held in London. Carter helped many people
receive the baptism in the Holy Spirit and develop various
gifts of the Spirit. He studied and yielded himself
particularly to the gift of prophecy and interpretation of
tongues.
The first Pentecostal Bible School in the United Kingdom was
founded in the Hampstead area of London by the Pentecostal
Missionary Union and later became known as the Hampstead
Bible School. In 1927 Carter reluctantly agreed to serve as
the school’s principal for a few months. He stayed for 27
years. Under his direction the school focused on training
evangelists, pastors and teachers who were sent into various
mission fields around the world including Europe, Asia and
Africa.
One time, when Carter was feeling discouraged, God gave him
the words which were to become the motto of the Bible school
and encourage many of its students; “Let me never lose the
all important truth that to be in thy will is better than
success and grant that I may ever love thyself more than thy
service.” Then on May 24th, 1928 he received a prophetic
word declaring, “Mark the day for the blessing will come and
you will be astonished.” One year later to the day Carter
was elected vice chairman of the Assemblies of God in
Britain and on May 24th, 1934 was elected chairman.
That same year Carter was invited to minister at two camp
meetings in the United States. He was 43 years old. With
encouragement from others and confirmation from God, this
developed into a world tour that spanned 60,000 miles. In
America he would meet a 17-year-old young lad named Lester
Sumrall who met him later in Australia for an around the
world tour visiting many of Carter’s former Bible school
students. Much of the trip focused on China.
At the conclusion of the tour Carter said, “We started with
nothing, we had nothing [to spare], we returned with
nothing, and we desire nothing but the privilege of
proclaiming that our Lord God omnipotent reigns.” The
chronicles of his journey are written in his book “When Time
Flew By.” In this book he even describes the end of the tour
when he was suffering from malaria on a bed in Amsterdam,
Holland.
The Second World War brought his travels to an end until
1946 when he visited South America. Howard kept detailed
statistics of his ministry and estimated that he covered
150,000 miles. Finally, in 1948 Howard handed over the
Hampstead Bible School to George Newsholme, who turned it
over to the Assemblies of God just two years later.
In 1952 at the third World Pentecostal Conference in London,
the Superintendent of the Assemblies of God, U.S.A., Wesley
Steelberg died unexpectedly. Howard had known Wesley and his
wife, Ruth, for many years. At the time Carter was
considering a fine young lady in the London church as a
potential candidate for his wife. God told him that she
wasn’t the one, however, and he should wait for God’s
choice. In 1955 the Holy Spirit put Carter and Ruth together
and they married a year later. Right after the marriage they
embarked on a two-year world tour.
During the war the Bible school building was bombed, burned
and subsequently moved to Kenley. From 1965 to 1969 Carter
and his wife assisted Carter’s brother, John, at the Bible
school’s new location. But when Ruth’s health began to
diminish the couple moved to Springfield, Mo. They continued
to minister together until Carter’s death January 22nd,
1971. He was 80 years old.
David Powell conducted the memorial service, which was held
in London. Echoing the sentiments of many, he testified,
“Howard had faith in me and launched me out on God.” In a
special memorial edition of Redemption Tidings dated April
15th, 1971 there were many tributes to Carter, including one
from Alfred Missen, who described him as a man of great
personality, genius, faith and the Spirit. And that is just
how is remembered by many today.
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