H. Maurice Lednicky: Assemblies of God Pastor, Educator, Missionary, and Author

This Week in AG History — May 11, 1952

By Glenn W. Gohr
Originally published on AG News, 09 May 2024

H. Maurice Lednicky, former president of Central Bible College, has a wide variety of ministry experiences. This year marks 60 years of being ordained, and 50 years from when he was elected head of the National Youth Department. He held three pastorates, was active in radio and television ministry, and has spoken at many camps, conventions, and ministers’ meetings across the U.S., as well as training conferences overseas.

Lednicky was born and raised in Houston, Texas, the son of Rev. and Mrs. C. F. Lednicky. He says that he was called into the ministry at a junior boys Sunday school class at age 9. He preached his first sermon when he was 13. Lednicky attended Southwestern Assemblies of God College (now Nelson University), where he met his wife, Marcia Louise Allen. They were married at First Assembly of God in Bastrop, Louisiana, on September 1, 1962. She is the daughter of Rev. and Mrs. James E. Allen. She is also the sister of Marigold Cheshier and a first cousin of Cecil Janway, longtime Louisiana District Superintendent.

Maurice Lednicky graduated with a Bible and Theology degree from Southwestern in 1963, and he was valedictorian of his class. He was ordained with the Assemblies of God on June 10, 1964, and then was an evangelist for one year.

His first pastorate was First Assembly (Crossett, AR), where he served for 3 years. He served as Arkansas District Christ’s Ambassadors President from 1967-1972. Next, he pastored First Assembly (Bastrop, LA), for two years before he was elected secretary of the National Youth Department in 1974. From 1976-1980 he pastored First Assembly (North Little Rock, AR), before serving as president of Central Bible College for 21 years (1980-2001).

Upon his retirement from Central Bible College, Lednicky encouraged students to exhibit seven words in their Christian walk by having: holiness in both heart and behavior; humility before God and men; integrity in every activity; discipline before God and men; gentleness toward others; appropriateness in decisions and behavior; and adaptability in life. He said, “If you observe these very basic principles in your life and ministry, your experience will be one of peaceful contentment in the blessings of a loving God.”

Sharon Faisson, who served as Lednicky’s administrative assistant at CBC, commented, “He loved and cared for all of us who served with him, as well as the students—always making time for anyone who walked into the office and needed prayer, or just an encouraging word.” He coined the phrase, “God’s choice servant” when speaking of someone he admired. “I can say without hesitation,” declares Sharon, “Brother and Sister Lednicky were then, and continue to be, two of God’s choicest servants!”

Lednicky is a man of principle and a man of his word. One time he was scheduled to speak at a small, rural church one weekend. He had given his word that he would be there. In the meantime, a friend of his offered him and his wife a free, all-expense paid trip to Hawaii for a week which would have conflicted with this speaking engagement. Someone else probably would have tried to reschedule. But being a man of integrity, he turned down the trip to Hawaii so that he could fulfill his prior obligation. Berl Best, former director of admissions at Central Bible College, says, “Dr. Lednicky was always very consistent in his leadership style.”

After retiring from CBC, Dr. and Mrs. Lednicky served for 17 years as appointed AG missionaries. They traveled for five years with a teaching ministry in Thailand. Then for five years Dr. Lednicky pastored the International Christian Assembly, an English-speaking Assemblies of God congregation in Bangkok, Thailand. The Lednickys moved back to the United States in 2010, where they continued traveling to Africa and other countries for short-term missionary assignments. The Lednickys now have ministered in over 65 nations and reached out to many different culture groups. Lednicky also has made a difference through speaking engagements and writing, soon to be a total of 13 books.

Read “A Thank You from the Third Generation,” by Maurice Lednicky, on page 2 of the May 30, 1976 issue of the Pentecostal Evangel.

Also featured in this issue:

• “Three Challenges to Christian Living,” by Roger L. Culbertson

• “With Signs Following,” by J. Bashford Bishop

• “In Memory of Mollie Baird.”

And many more!

Click here to read this issue now.

Pentecostal Evangel archived editions courtesy of the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center

Do you have Pentecostal historical materials that should be preserved? Please consider depositing these materials at the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center (FPHC). The FPHC, located in the Assemblies of God national offices, is the largest Pentecostal archive in the world. We would like to preserve and make your treasures accessible to those who write the history books.

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