Lighthouse Ministries International: Following Hard After God

In the heart of Tampa, Florida is a ministry that has been reaching the needs of the hurting for over fifty years, Lighthouse Ministries International. Founded on December 12, 1952 by J.A. Lennard, what is now known as Lighthouse Ministries International began as the Lighthouse Gospel Mission and Faith Home.

J.A. Lennard was radically converted and with a heart full of love for lost souls, he began preaching to the homeless and skid row of Tampa. With assistance from an attorney who had favored the preacher's radical style, J.A. Lennard purchased the first building structure that would be the Lighthouse Gospel Mission and Faith Home. By 1961, J.A. Lennard established the Lighthouse Gospel Mission and Faith Home in Riverview, Florida where he dispensed, soup, soap, and salvation.

Today, Bishop Hank Furr and his wife, Alison Furr, operate Lighthouse Ministries International. They are bishops because Lighthouse Ministries International is much more than a restorative facility for the hurting and homeless. It is a launching or birthing pad for future ministries. Since Bishop Furr took over the Lighthouse Gospel Mission and Faith Home in 1991, there have been amazing testimonies of lives being set free from drugs, alcoholism, and other addictions.

The ministry has grown tremendously and continues to grow. Today, there is a facility for men as well as one for women. There are numerous outreaches that branch forth into the surrounding communities touching and transforming lives for Jesus Christ. When J.A. Lennard started the Lighthouse Gospel Mission and Faith Home, he always desired that it would be a true church. Today, Lighthouse Ministries International houses the faith home, as well as the Lighthouse Revival Center, a church that flows and operates in the power and giftings of the Holy Spirit. It is the vision of the Lighthouse Revival Center, to see lives changed and transformed as they run hard after God, as clearly expressed in Psalms 63:8. My soul followeth hard after thee: thy right hand upholdeth me.