Dr Phillip Rice writes:
DR GEORGE VERWER was the founder and a former international director of Operation Mobilisation (OM), and thus played a prominent part in evangelical mission work for more than 64 years. There are now 6500 OMers worldwide.
George was born in New Jersey, though later adopted England as his home base. In 1957, he trained at the Moody Bible Institute. He was later awarded honorary doctorates of divinity from both here and Biola University, in Los Angeles, for his 50 years in Christian leadership. His passion was challenging Churches, their leaders, and their members into world missions: “I am hungry for God; hungry to reach the world with the gospel.”
George was well known in the Anglican Evangelical world. He travelled incessantly to take more than 300 church meetings a year, across the UK or internationally, working with Billy Graham and the Lausanne Covenant to support churches, and on the big church stage in his native America. He also led church-planting in India, Central Asia, and other difficult to reach regions.
George was passionate about distributing Christian literature, tracts, and Bibles, and arranging for good translations for local use. The main blockage, he saw, was in recruiting the workers for travelling with the literature, especially to the unreached villages of Asia. To do this, he kept up an incredible volume of personal letter writing, supported by a deep prayer life.
He carried out this work as international director of OM for 40 years, then continuing as an alumnus for 15 years, until he was 80. In his last four years he slightly slackened the pace. Latterly, he spent more time at home in West Wickham, and was able to take communion regularly in his parish church.
This was a refreshing time for George. He wrote two books, both close to his heart: Messiology: The mystery of how God works when it does not make sense to us and Confessions of a Toxic Perfectionist and God’s Antidote. He was still teaching via blogs, but he struck a more reflective note while seeking to use his counselling experience.
George died on 14 April, aged 84, with his wife and close family beside him.
