“Son, I have never been happier than I am right now,” Mother told me. I was 31, and we were preparing for what would be her last sermon, although none of us knew it at the time.
Together, Mother and I visited the auditorium in Oakland, Calif., where she was scheduled to speak to thousands of supporters. This is the same city where God gave her the clarity of vision years before about the fourfold ministry of Jesus Christ as the Savior, Baptizer with the Holy Spirit, Healer and Soon-Coming King. This is where the Foursquare name was first used to describe our ministry.
Mother was excited to preach in these meetings and felt that her message was of great significance to our pastors and leaders. The message she had prepared warned of a potential danger if the church should ever minimize any of the four cardinal doctrines.
“Don’t cut off any corners of the Foursquare Gospel,” she exhorted. She pleaded with leaders to maintain a balance of the whole gospel that she faithfully preached all her life.
Mother preached wonderfully that night and experienced a great move of God as people flocked to the altars for prayer. As she always did, she prayed for each one even when she became exhausted and could barely stand up.
We helped her return to her hotel, and I knew she was exhausted. She told me she wanted to visit with some friends in the hotel dining room before going to bed. I kissed her goodnight and went up to my room. It was the last time I saw Mother alive. I tried to wake her the following morning, but when I entered her room, I realized she was gone. It was a horrible blow.
For more than a decade, she fought ill health and resisted her doctor’s assessment that she would never be well again in the natural. At the age of 53, Mother preached many times with a fever of over 100 degrees due to kidney and intestinal infections she contracted through years of global ministry.
-Rolf K. McPherson
For more than a decade, she fought ill health and resisted her doctor’s assessment that she would never be well again in the natural. At the age of 53, Mother preached many times with a fever of over 100 degrees due to kidney and intestinal infections she contracted through years of global ministry.
Although I was terribly sad at her passing, I saw her in that hotel room—tranquil and at peace—and I knew she was whole again. Mother was with the Lord.
The ever-present press was quick to release the news. I notified leaders of the church and attempted to work with authorities to return Mother’s body to Los Angeles for burial. Investigators and medical examiners took over and quickly separated me from her body so they could do their work.
Rumors circulated that she had committed suicide—a ridiculous accusation since she had been so involved in the meetings that week and was preparing another sermon for the following night. She loved to help others start new churches, and several were in the works. She was looking forward to working with these new churches, and I know she had no intention of ending her life.
The official cause of death included respiratory failure from an accidental overdose of sleeping capsules and shock due to adrenal hemorrhage. The coroner told us at the time that the sleeping tablets Mother took would not have been fatal to the average person, but because of her physical condition, including perforations in the intestinal track, the medication went directly into her bloodstream, causing a fatal reaction. Oakland’s chief coroner, who was out of the city when Mother died, told us later that if he had been available, the cause of death would read, “natural causes.”
So many other times before this, the Lord had spared us the pain of losing Mother. So many other times, He had spared me the weight of the ministry that I knew was due to come my way. This time, things would be different. This time, the Lord must have known that I was ready.
This article is adapted from a video interview prior to Rolf K. McPherson’s passing in 2009.
