a little bit about George Whitefield

 

"You see, my brethren, my heart is full;

I could almost say it is too big to speak,

and yet too big to be silent,

without dropping a word to you."

~George Whitefield

 

I believe I never was more acceptable to my Master than when I was standing to teach those hearers in the open fields.  I now preach to ten times more people than I would if I had been confined to the churches.  Whitefield

A true faith in Jesus Christ will not suffer us to be idle. No, it is an active, lively, restless principle; it fills the heart, so that it cannot be easy till it is doing something for Jesus Christ.  Whitefield

It is better to wear out than to rust out.  George Whitefield

Press forward. Do not stop, do not linger in your journey, but strive for the mark set before you. 

And now let me address all of you, high and low, rich and poor, one with another, to accept of mercy and grace while it is offered to you; Now is the accepted time, now is the day of salvation; and will you not accept it, now it is offered unto you?  ~G.Whitefield


The famous outdoor preacher, George Whitefield, a small and weak man, was born in England but traveled to America seven times in order to preach the gospel.  He had an amazing preaching ability and could make his voice carry for a mile, preaching up to 30, 000 people at a time.   Because he mainly preached outdoors, he was able to share the gospel with people of any denomination at once, of all types of background and social status.  His oratory skills were such that people couldn't help but weep to hear him, resulting for those who came to Christ a salvation experience of great emotion.  Whitefield was credited for starting the Great Awakening, a time of spiritual revival in America. 

On Saturday, our pastor invited the congregation to meet him at a historical George Whitefield preaching location (a large rock) in West Brookfield, MA, to hear him give a short talk on Whitefield's life and then listen to him give an open air gospel message.  Both the talk and the message were taped for the local TV station, and will be on youtube.

Rich and Ethan were away for a wedding, so I took the other children with me and we drove almost an hour to get to the field, which is privately owned.  It was a drizzly morning and Gary had to teach and preach in the rain.  He did a great job and we all enjoyed the time together very much.  I was thankful for the way this piece of church history came alive for the children.



I wonder, as Whitefield was standing on such a large rock, if he thought of this verse from Psalm 62;

Truly he is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.