W. Ian Thomas (13 September 1914 - 1 August 2007) was an evangelist, Christian evangelical writer,

theological Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the s ...

teacher and founder of the Torchbearers

Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts ...

schools.

Early life

Ian Thomas was born in London on 13 September 1914. At the age of 12, he was invited to a Bible study group of the Crusaders Christian Youth Movement by a friend. The following summer he was converted to Christ at a Crusaders Union camp. At the age of 15, he was convinced that he should devote all of his life to serving Jesus Christ. He began to preach out in the open air at Hampstead Heath. He was also actively engaged in Sunday School work as well as in the Crusaders' Bible class.

Studies

He decided to become a doctor and studied at university where he became a leader in the

Inter-Varsity Fellowship Universities and Colleges Christian Fellowship (UCCF) is a UK-based charity that was founded in 1928 as the Inter-Varsity Fellowship of Evangelical Unions. UCCF's dual aims are: #To advance the evangelical Christian faith amongst students, gr ...

group. He started a slum club in the East End of London "out of a sheer desire to win souls, to go out and get them. I was a windmill of activity until, at the age of 19, every moment of my day was packed tight with doing things. Thus by the age of 19, I had been reduced to a state of complete exhaustion spiritually, and I felt that there was no point going on." "Then, one night in November, that year just at midnight, I got down on my knees before God, and I just wept in sheer despair. I said, 'With all my heart I have wanted to serve Thee. I have tried to my uttermost and I am a hopeless failure.' That night things happened. The Lord seemed to make plain to me that night, through my tears of bitterness: 'You see, for seven years, with utmost sincerity, you have been trying to live for Me, on My behalf, the life that I have been waiting for 7 years to live through you.'" Thomas later reflected: "I got up the next morning to an entirely different Christian life, but I want to emphasize this: I had not received one iota more than I had already had for seven years!"

Military Career

Thomas served in the British Expeditionary Force in Belgium at the outset of World War II and taking part in the evacuation at Dunkirk. He would also spend time during the war in France, Italy, and Greece (often, fighting). He was decorated with the D.S.O. (Distinguished Service Order) for conspicuous gallantry in taking out a German machine gun nest, and the T.D. (Territorial Decoration). When the Germans surrendered at the Battle of Monte Cassino, Major Thomas went and took the flag of surrender.

Later life

After World War II, Thomas was probably best known as a Bible teacher, author, and as the founder of both

Capernwray Missionary Fellowship of Torchbearers The Capernwray Missionary Fellowship of Torchbearers (CMFOT), is an evangelical Christian educational organisation based at Capernwray Hall in north Lancashire, England. In 1998 the organisation was incorporated as a UK charitable company. CMF ...

(based at

Capernwray Hall Capernwray Hall is a former country house situated 3 miles east-northeast of Carnforth, Lancashire, England, and is currently used as a Christian Bible school and holiday centre. The house is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as ...

, England) and subsequently

Torchbearers International Torchbearers International consists of an affiliation of 25 centers around the world. Torchbearers International was founded by evangelist and author Major W. Ian Thomas, in England, in 1947. Torchbearers International's goal is to provide pra ...

(based in US). He moved to Colorado, US in the late 1980s.

Personal life

Thomas was married to Joan from

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdom ...

. They had four sons, who continue the work of Torchbearers.

Books

* ''The Saving Life of Christ'', Zondervan Publishing, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1961. * ''The Mystery of Godliness'', Zondervan Publishing, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1964. * ''If I Perish, I Perish'' : the Christian Life as seen in Esther'', Zondervan Publishing, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1968. * ''The Indwelling Life of Christ'' : All of Him in All of Me'', Multnomah Publishers Inc, Oregon, 2006. His first book, ''The Saving Life of Christ'', had a profound effect on Bert Harned, M.D., as can be seen in Harned's book, ''Any Old Bush - Christ Living in Us''.

Death

Thomas died on 1 August 2007 at the age of 92.