Category: Biography

The Power of Focus: The Story of Lilias Trotter

Either choice would have been a good one. Lilias Trotter was a gifted artist. So gifted, in fact, that one of the premier art critics of 19th century Europe, John Ruskin, said that if she would devote herself to art, “she would be the greatest living...

The Plant Doctor

If you’d met George walking along a country road or hiking in the woods in the Deep South in the 1930s, it’s likely you would have underestimated him. In his later years, the gray-haired black man was thin, stooped and frail, and could often be seen...

The Mysterious Ways of God in the Life of Emily Chubbuck

Emily Chubbuck wanted to be a missionary—at least, that’s what she wanted when she was about 12 years old. The exciting reports from some of the first missionaries from the United States, Adoniram Judson and his young wife, Ann, captured the imagination of the whole country,...

Robert Chapman: Famous for Love

Early in Robert Chapman’s ministry, his friends were not impressed with his preaching. They told him to give it up. Chapman replied: “There are many who preach Christ, but not so many who live Christ. My great aim will be to live Christ.”1 Chapman did become...

Selina, the Less-than-Perfect Servant

Selina was discouraged. The evangelist John Wesley, her friend, had assured her that it was possible for Christians to attain a state of sinless perfection in this life. Try as she might, the strong-willed and devoted Selina could not accomplish this lofty goal. She felt her...

Serempore Sorrows: Finding Courage in Catastrophe

William Carey’s associates at the Serampore Mission in India were unsure how the fire started. Perhaps it was a workman’s hookah or even arson. Regardless, the long building that housed the translation work burned to the ground. At times flames shot 25 feet into the...

Setbacks

George Frederick Handel’s career was afflicted with setbacks. Twice bankrupt, he had fallen out of favor with audiences, and financial woes mounted. With such strains upon him, he plunged into the task of writing “Messiah”. Servants reported that for the 24-day duration of the project, his...

Still Faithful: George Muller’s Prayer-hearing God

The living, eternal Lord always came through for George Muller. He cared for over 10,000 orphans throughout his life in Bristol, England, but he made his needs known only to God. He believed God answered over 50,000 of his prayers. One of Muller’s hopes in trusting...

The Conversion of Charles Haddon Spurgeon

The great nineteenth-century English pastor and evangelist, Charles Haddon Spurgeon, was converted to Christ as a young man on January 6, 1856. In Spurgeon’s own words, it happened like this: I sometimes think I might have been in darkness and despair until now had it not...

The Child of So Many Tears

For years, Monica’s second son was a source of staggering grief to his mother. Her oldest son was exemplary and her daughter was devout. But her second son, Augustine, the most gifted of her children, was also the biggest disappointment. At 16, he stole fruit from...