Heidi Baker
| Heidi Baker | |
|---|---|
 Heidi Baker in one of the Iris Global children's centers | |
| Born |
August 29, 1959 Laguna Beach, California |
| Nationality | United States |
| Occupation |
President and CEO of Iris Global Missionary Author Speaker |
| Spouse(s) | Rolland Baker |
| Children | Elisha Baker (born July 15, 1982) and Crystalyn Human (born May 11, 1987) |
| Website | irisglobal.org |
Heidi Baker, PhD (born August 29, 1959) is a Christian missionary, itinerant speaker, and the CEO of Iris Global, a Christian humanitarian organization. She is the author of several books on Christian spirituality.
In 1980 Heidi and her husband Rolland founded Iris Global,[1] a non-profit Christian ministry dedicated to charitable service and evangelism, particularly in developing nations.[2] In 1992, after twelve years ministering in Asia, Heidi and Rolland moved to England to pursue graduate studies at King's College London. In 1995 they moved to Mozambique in order to begin a new ministry focused on the care of orphaned and abandoned children.[3]
Iris Global negotiated with the Mozambican government to assume financial and administrative responsibility for a former government orphanage in Chihango, near the capital city of Maputo. There were roughly 80 children present.[3] Since that time Iris Global's operations have expanded to include well-drilling, free health clinics, village feeding programs, the operation of primary and secondary schools, cottage industries and the founding more than 5000 churches in Mozambique, with a total of over 10,000 Iris-affiliated churches in more than 20 nations.[1]
Their ministry is known for its reports of miracles,[3] and in September 2010 the Southern Medical Journal published an article presenting evidence of "significant improvements" in auditory and visual function among subjects exhibiting impairment before receiving prayer from the ministry.[4]
Heidi and Rolland live in Pemba, Mozambique. Beyond their administrative duties they are active authors and frequent conference speakers,[5] traveling worldwide to speak on Christian ministry and spirituality. Candy Gunther Brown, professor of religious studies at Indiana University, has called the Bakers "among the most influential leaders in world Pentecostalism"[2]
Biography
Heidi Baker grew up in Southern California, becoming a Christian after hearing a Navajo preacher's message while volunteering on a Choctaw reservation. During her time at Vanguard University, Heidi led a Street Theater/Ministry team on a number of short term missions, including two trips to Mexico, Europe and Hawaii, as well as all around Southern California, between 1978 and 1980. She met Rolland, the grandson of missionary H. A. Baker,[3] in 1979. They married six months later in 1980, leaving for the mission field two weeks after that.[6] They were ordained as ministers in 1985, after graduating from Vanguard University.[7]
After reading in the newspaper about the brutality of the Mozambican Civil War, where even trucks from the Red Cross were blown up in battles, Heidi and Rolland Baker decided to move to Mozambique in 1995. A year later, Heidi became very sick with tuberculosis and pneumonia, but despite her doctor's recommendation she went for a healing meeting in Toronto, Canada. There, she claims to have had a vision where Jesus showed her thousands of children to feed; when she exclaimed that it was impossible to help them all, he said "There will always be enough, because I died." After which, she was healed. [8]
Education
- Bachelor of Arts, Vanguard University (1984)[7]
- Master of Arts, Vanguard University (1985)[7]
- Doctor of Philosophy (Systematic Theology), King's College London (1995)[7]
Bibliography
- There Is Always Enough, with Rolland Baker. Chosen Books (2003) ISBN 1-85240-287-3
- The Hungry Always Get Fed, with Rolland Baker. New Wine Press (2007) ISBN 978-1-903725-85-6
- Expecting Miracles: True Stories of God's Supernatural Power and How You Can Experience It, with Rolland Baker. Chosen Books (2007) ISBN 978-0-8007-9434-7
- Compelled by Love, with Shara Pradhan. Charisma House (2008) ISBN 978-1-59979-351-1
- Learning to Love: Passion, Compassion and the Essence of the Gospel with Rolland Baker. Chosen Books (2013) ISBN 978-0-8007-9552-8
- Birthing the Miraculous: The Power of Personal Encounters with God to Change Your Life and the World. Charisma House (2014) ISBN 978-1-62136-219-7
Videos
- Riches of The Poor, Peripheral Vision Video
- Mama Heidi, Eric Velu Productions
- The Face of Revival: Stopping for the One, Cornerstone Films
- The Finger of God, Wanderlust Productions
- Compelled by Love, Released 2014, CompelledByLoveTheFilm.com
References
- 1 2 "Iris Global webpage". Retrieved 4 January 2016.
- 1 2 Stafford, Tim. "Miracles in Mozambique: How Mama Heidi Reaches the Abandoned". http://www.christianitytoday.com/. Christianity Today. Retrieved 31 January 2015. External link in
|website=(help) - 1 2 3 4 Christy Biswell. "Heidi Baker: Intimacy for Miracles". Christian Broadcasting Network. Retrieved 14 May 2009.
- ↑ Brown, Candy Gunther; Mory, Stephen C.; Williams, Rebecca; McClymond, Michael J. (2010). "Study of the Therapeutic Effects of Proximal Intercessory Prayer (STEPP) on Auditory and Visual Impairments in Rural Mozambique". Southern Medical Journal. 103 (9): 864–869. doi:10.1097/SMJ.0b013e3181e73fea. ISSN 0038-4348.
- ↑ "Official Speaking Schedule". Iris Global Website. Retrieved 14 May 2009.
- ↑ Compelled by Love: How to change the world through the simple power of love in action by Heidi Baker and Shara Pradhan
- 1 2 3 4 Miracles in Mozambique by Hope Flinchbaugh, Ministry Today, Mar/Apr 2002
- ↑ Baker, Rolland and Heidi, There Is Always Enough. Chosen Books (2003) ISBN 1-85240-287-3, p. 50