When Buddy and I first began Harrison House in the early 1970s, we had no thought of building a publishing company or leaving a legacy.
We were responding to what we believed the Lord had asked us to do.
At the time, there was very little print teaching on faith available. There were messages by my father, Kenneth E. Hagin, along with a handful of books from earlier generations. But there were not many resources that helped believers understand how to live by faith in their everyday lives. The Lord impressed our hearts with the importance of making such practical truths more widely available, and we were honored that He would entrust us with such an assignment.
At first, we didn't see ourselves as book publishers. We were obeying what God told us to do, getting the teaching on faith into the hands of people who needed it. Books were a way to continue teaching long after a sermon was over. And people could read it again to receive the Word in their hearts. To us, it was as simple as that. Every manuscript was another opportunity to strengthen someone's faith, answer a question, encourage a weary believer, or help someone discover for themselves the faithfulness of God and the power of the Holy Spirit.
One of the earliest confirmations that the Lord was pleased with our attempts to walk out what God told us to do came when Dr. Frederick Price Sr. approached Buddy and asked if Harrison House would publish his books. Buddy didn't hesitate.
"Of course," Buddy said. "I'd be honored. You have wonderful teachings."
Dr. Price smiled and replied, "You're the first publisher willing to publish my books."
Moments like that reminded us that God's assignments for us can often begin by opening doors for others. We just wanted to say "Yes, Lord" whenever He entrusted another voice to us.
Our first publications were small, thirty-three-page books written by Mom and Pop Goodwin. Their ministry focused on the Holy Spirit and the operation of His gifts. Before long, Harrison House was also publishing books by ministers such as Frederick Price, Roy Hicks, Charles Capps, and many others whom God had equipped to teach His Word with clarity and revelation so good. It was a tremendous privilege.
Looking back, I don't remember those books by their titles or sales. I remember the messages they carried. Each one reflected a facet of God the Father. Together, they helped believers grow in their understanding of His Word and discover how completely we can depend upon His promises.
Over the years, many people have told us how much those books meant to them. Most said they reread them while studying the Scriptures. Truths that once seemed difficult to understand had become clear through the teaching and explanations in those books. Others said they kept them beside their Bibles, reading them often for encouragement and instruction.
Those were the kind of testimonies that reminded us that the printed page has a ministry of its own. Long after a conference ends or a sermon has been preached, God's Word on the printed page continues to speak into people's lives, strengthening their faith.
That realization humbled us deeply.
Like most God-given assignments, Harrison House had a small beginning. And small beginnings can be interesting. Yet we did not despise those days. We encountered challenges that we didn't expect. And, yes, there were many days that it took all the faith we had for the simplest decisions. Through every season, God gave us the grace and provision we needed to keep going.
We learned not to look at what we lacked. We learned to look unto the Author and Finisher of our faith who promised to meet all our needs—and He did. We came to understand that God's provision always follows God's purpose. If He truly speaks, He also makes a way for His will to be accomplished.
Buddy was a remarkable businessman, but even more than that, he was a visionary. He could see a situation, identify potential, and know just what to do. It was amazing to watch him flow in that gift so skillfully. The Lord would often show him what needed to be done, and Buddy could almost immediately begin envisioning practical ways to move toward it.
Yet what impressed me even more than Buddy's visionary gift was his willingness to wait. Buddy had a God-given quality to operate in wisdom and discernment with patience. Before taking a step, Buddy always sought the Lord. He wanted more than just a good plan. He wanted God's direction, God's wisdom, and God's timing.
Sometimes the Lord confirmed exactly what Buddy had seen. Other times God adjusted the details a bit. Watching that process taught me an important lesson: Vision produces lasting fruit when that vision remains surrendered to the Holy Spirit. God's ideas never need our striving to make them happen. All He requires is our willingness to follow Him one step at a time.
Truthfully, Buddy and I never spent time wondering how large Harrison House might become. Our attention stayed focused on a simpler question: "Lord, what would You have us do next?"
That question shaped every season that followed.
Looking back, I realize that is how God built Harrison House: Not through one big event. But through countless small acts of obedience and surrender. Each "yes" prepared the way for the next.
As the years unfolded, the Lord continued to expand our assignment in ways Buddy and I never dreamed. We weren't pursuing growth for its own sake. Our desire remained the same as it had been from the beginning: to place sound, biblical teaching into the hands of believers.
Only later did we begin to understand that every new author, every new title, and every new opportunity was a continuation of the same vision.
It was a privilege to work alongside men and women God uniquely anointed to communicate His truth. Each one carried a distinct voice, yet they shared a common commitment to the authority of the Word and the work of the Holy Spirit. Harrison House became the place where those voices could be compiled in print and carried far beyond the reach of a single sermon or meeting. I don't have words to describe how wonderful it was to see that come to pass.
Among the many books the Lord entrusted to Harrison House, Prayers That Avail Much by Germaine Copeland became one of our earliest flagship titles and eventually grew into an entire series. Those books have trained and transformed the prayer lives of countless believers worldwide.
Germaine demonstrated something both practical and profoundly important. She taught people that effective prayer begins by agreeing with God. As believers learned to pray God's Word about everything rather than merely expressing their own thoughts, they began approaching prayer with greater confidence and expectation, strengthened by a deeper understanding of His will.
The influence of that message spread throughout the Body of Christ worldwide. It was a wonderful reminder that God's Word never returns void. Once it is released into the hearts of people, it continues producing fruit in ways we may never fully know this side of heaven. You may never meet the person whose life is changed by a book you helped place in their hands. You trust that God's Word will accomplish exactly what He sent it to do.
As I reflect on fifty years, I am overwhelmed by the quality of teaching the Lord entrusted to Harrison House. Looking back, I don't think first about the number of books published or the nations they reached, as notable as those things are. Instead, I think about the countless lives that were strengthened when someone opened a book and discovered a truth that changed how they understood God. To know that believers around the world have grown in faith through those resources is deeply humbling.
I've been told that over the years, more than 100 million books have been published in 42 languages and distributed in more than 175 countries.
Only God could have accomplished something like that.
Those numbers certainly testify to His blessing, but they are not the true measure of Harrison House's influence. The real legacy lies in lives transformed. That is the fruit that truly matters.
Long before Harrison House existed, the Lord had already begun teaching me that lesson personally.
Growing up, I watched my parents, Kenneth and Oretha Hagin, take every circumstance to the Lord in prayer. Whether the decision seemed large or small, they sought His direction first. Watching them taught me that prayer was never intended to be a last resort. It was simply the way we lived. That example shaped my own walk with the Lord.
Whenever I faced uncertainty, I prayed before doing anything else. Often, the Lord would bring a particular Scripture to my heart. At other times, He would impress just a few simple words upon my spirit. Those quiet moments became anchors that held me steady in seasons of uncertainty or trial.
One experience early in our marriage remains especially meaningful because it taught me something about the Holy Spirit that has stayed with me ever since.
At that time, Buddy was growing in the Lord, and one day, I sat down with every intention of praying for him.
I remember saying, "Lord, I'm going to pray for my wonderful husband."
As I began praying in the Spirit, something unexpected happened. Instead of speaking to me about Buddy, the Lord began speaking to me about myself. He gently showed me attitudes I could adjust, responses I could change, and practical ways I could strengthen our home.
Finally, I interrupted Him.
"Lord," I said, "I'm praying for Buddy, not for me."
His response has remained with me throughout my life.
"Yes," He seemed to say, "but you can help this situation by doing these things."
In that moment, I understood something about the Holy Spirit: He is not simply interested in changing our circumstances. He wants us to allow Him to produce change in us. As I responded to what He showed me, I watched our circumstances begin changing as well. That experience taught me that cooperating with the Holy Spirit is less about asking Him to fix everything around us and more about allowing Him to transform our own hearts first. It was a simple lesson, but one I will never forget. I carried it into every area of life. And in many ways, that same principle shaped Harrison House.
We were never trying to accomplish something impressive. We were learning to follow the Holy Spirit one step at a time, trusting that as we obeyed Him, He would accomplish far more than we ever could on our own.
That conviction has woven into every decision we have made and continues to inform every resource Harrison House has published over the past fifty years.
As Harrison House continued to grow, one truth remained constant. Our deepest desire was never just to publish books. It was to help believers know the Lord more intimately through His Word and to cultivate daily fellowship with the Holy Spirit.
Every manuscript we accepted, every author we partnered with, and every message we released was measured by one simple question: Would this help people know God more deeply and live more fully in the light of His Word? If the answer was yes, then we wanted to be part of bringing that message to the Body of Christ.
Along the way, the Lord surrounded us with excellent people. Each brought unique gifts, remarkable abilities, and commitment to the assignment God had entrusted to Harrison House. I remain deeply grateful for every administrator, editor, designer, writer, and team member who faithfully served through the years. Their integrity and devotion helped build a small publishing ministry into a trusted source of biblical teaching for believers worldwide.
Yet even more amazing than their abilities was their shared desire to follow the Holy Spirit. In retrospect, I realize that was one of God's greatest gifts to us.
As Harrison House expanded, we continually depended on His wisdom, not only for the messages we published but also for the practical decisions that accompany growth. He faithfully directed us, brought order when new challenges emerged, and gave us the grace to steward each new season. Repeatedly, we witnessed His guidance in ways that reminded us this ministry belonged to Him. We just had the honor of watching over it.
Over the past fifty years, what distinguished Harrison House was not a particular author, or a publishing strategy, or even the number of books printed. The defining thread woven through Harrison House from the beginning has been an unwavering reliance upon the transforming power of God's Word and the indispensable ministry of the Holy Spirit.
The Word and the Spirit were never meant to be separated. That has been the message behind every resource Harrison House has ever published. That conviction has never changed.
As I reflect on these fifty years, I am overwhelmed by God's goodness. What began as one simple act of obedience has continued producing fruit in ways Buddy and I could never have imagined.
The Lord allowed us to serve our generation during one season of that story, but the story itself is the Lord's. One of the greatest blessings I have experienced in recent years is watching that vision unfold over time. Every ministry eventually reaches a moment when leadership is passed on to new hands. That is part of God's design. His purposes are always greater than any one generation, and His work continues through those who are faithful to follow Him. Seeing the progression of that transition has brought me tremendous gratitude and peace.
Methods have naturally changed over the years. Technology has advanced. New opportunities have emerged. New leaders have brought fresh perspective and renewed strength to the work. Yet the heart of Harrison House has remained beautifully consistent. The commitment to proclaim the power of God's Word and the operation of His Spirit remains as foundational today as it was when Buddy and I first said yes to the Lord all those years ago. Nothing could bring me greater joy.
Knowing that future generations will continue to receive biblical truth through Harrison House assures me that God's assignment is still bearing fruit. The books continue to point people to Christ. The messages continue strengthening faith. Lives continue to be transformed by the Word and the Spirit of God.
The legacy of Harrison House will not be determined by the number of books published or the nations they have reached, as wonderful as those blessings are to consider. Its true legacy will be discovered in people.
People who found hope when they were ready to give up.
People who received healing through the promises of God's Word.
People who learned to pray effectively with confidence that God heard and answered them.
People who encountered the Holy Spirit as everything Jesus said He would be and experienced Him as the faithful Helper who desires to walk with them every day.
Those lives are the enduring fruit of this assignment.
Looking back, I do not simply commemorate fifty years of publishing. I celebrate the faithfulness of God. I see His hand guiding every step, opening every door, and providing every need. I see His Word continuing to accomplish exactly what He promised. For that and the countless lives that His Word and His Spirit have touched, I am eternally grateful.
Looking forward, my prayer for the years ahead is simply this
May Harrison House always remain faithful to the vision God established from the beginning. May it continue to honor His Word without compromise, welcome the ministry of the Holy Spirit without reservation and serve the Body of Christ with humility, excellence, and unwavering integrity.
And may every generation that follows discover, just as Buddy and I did so many years ago, that when God speaks, and we choose to obey Him, He is faithful to accomplish far more than we could ever dare to ask for, hope, or think, according to the power that is at work within us when we believe in, Jesus' Name.
Jesus’ Peace Prevails over Every Storm
When trouble comes, it can turn your world upside down. It can feel like everywhere you look a problem stares you down and another one comes right behind to compound the chaos. But you can close the door on turmoil and the anxiety it brings!
If you’re born again, the Prince of Peace lives on the inside of you and has already given you His own peace (John 14:27 AMP). You just need to know how to tap into it!
In Peace: Living Undaunted in a Chaotic World, Pat Harrison, founding minister of Faith Christian Fellowship International with hundreds of churches in more than 30 countries, shares how you can live—even thrive—in the middle of upheaval. Pat shares powerful and encouraging truths from God’s Word to help you:
Rise above the turbulence of life
Cultivate and stir up the peace Jesus gave you
Recognize that peace or chaos is a choice
Be held fast by Jesus’ presence, His peace, and His Word
Live in peace every day of your life
Don’t face life’s storms alone! Rest assured that as you meditate on the message in this book, the peace of God will come on you, in you, through you, and over you.
