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Pastor Chuck Smith has suffered a ‘minor stroke’ and is ‘doing well’

ReligionNewsBlog.com • Monday December 28, 2009

COSTA MESA, CA (ANS) — Pastor Chuck Smith, 82, senior pastor of Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa, California, and the father of the “Jesus People” phenomenon in Southern California, has suffered a “minor stroke” and is in a local hospital.
“I have just been to visit him today in the hospital and he is doing well,” said Brian Brodersen, who serves as associate pastor to Chuck Smith at Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa, and is married to Cheryl, one of Chuck and Kay Smith’s daughters.
Chuck Smith, Dec. 2008
“Pastor Chuck suffered a minor stroke at his home and a medical person staying there called ‘911’ and he was taken to the hospital.”
Greg Laurie, senior pastor of Harvest Christian Fellowship, Riverside, California, said on his blog (http://blog.greglaurie.com), “Last night, Pastor Chuck Smith was taken to the hospital and had what was described by his doctor as a ‘mini-stroke.’ His doctor expects him to make a full recovery.”
Laurie, who runs the massive Harvest Crusades around the world, added, “Let’s remember this beloved man of God in prayer, that the Lord would touch, bless, and heal him.”
Like Greg Laurie, Mike MacIntosh, senior pastor of Horizon Christian Fellowship in San Diego was also discipled by Chuck Smith.
Mike told ANS, “Pastor Chuck Smith is strong and will recover from this physical ailment. It is difficult to see someone you love be in the hospital.
“Our prayers should be for their children, Jan, Jeff, Cheryl and Chuck Jr., and their many grandchildren. We must not forget Kay who has adored Chuck for 50 plus years of marriage.”
Mike MacIntosh was one of the early converts in those early days of the “Jesus People” and, because of personal problems, he was divorced from his wife, Sandy. After both Mike and Sandy found Christ as their Savior, they were re-married at Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa, by Pastor Chuck.
Background on Chuck Smith
Back in the late sixties and early seventies, a quietly spoken pastor called Chuck Smith became the surrogate “Father” of thousands of hippies who flocked to the “Big Tent” at Calvary Chapel of Costa Mesa, California, and found Jesus Christ as their Savior.
Thousands of these new converts were baptized at Pirates Cove, Corona del Mar, California, including my two sons, Andrew and Peter, who were not old enough to be hippies.
Out of this extraordinary move of God was birthed the modern-day worship music and contemporary Christian music when the converted hippies began writing their new music and then, after auditioning each song before “Pastor Chuck”, they played it in the tent scores of Jesus People bands were born and soon Maranatha! Music was born, which brought this music to a wide audience.
The hippies, many of who lived in communes around the church, were then schooled in the Bible by Chuck Smith with his verse-by-verse teaching through the Scriptures and many have gone on to pastor some of the largest churches in America. Also, Calvary Chapel has spawned many churches, not just in the United States, but around the world.

- Pastor Chuck Smith has suffered a ‘minor stroke’ and is ‘doing well’, Dan Wooding, Assist News Service, Dec. 27, 2009 — © ASSIST News Service. Published in Religion News Blog by permission.