Category: HISTORY & BIOGRAPHY
Too Ugly to Love: The Story of Dorie Van Stone
She was too ugly to be loved by anyone Dorie was absolutely sure that this was true. After all, her mother told her so every time she brushed away Dorie’s attempts to hug her or sit on her lap. “Why can’t you be pretty, like your...
Trusting God in Tragedy: Elizabeth Prentiss
It was an awful thing for anyone to watch, but especially difficult for a sensitive eight year old girl. Elizabeth’s father was in great pain as he suffered with tuberculosis. First it was the constant, wrenching cough. Then his stamina failed and he had to give...
William Wilberforce and the Great Change
William was anxious as he walked around the square one more time, trying to summon courage to face his scheduled meeting with John Newton, a friend and pastor from his boyhood. He thought back with regret over the years since they had last met in his...
William Whiting Borden: The Millionaire Who Wanted to be a Missionary
I was hoping to be inspired during some downtime as I sat in the missionary guesthouse on a recent ministry trip in Africa. In the biography section of their library, I found a book by Warren Wiersbe entitled Victorious Christians You Should Know. One of the...
When Jesus Speaks: Following New Covenant Commands
When Eric Liddell (1902-1945), the famous Scottish Olympic runner of “Chariots of Fire” fame, dedicated his life to working with the Chinese as a missionary, he still could outrun most of us. His daughter recalls that he once caught a hare on foot for supper. But...
What Did George Muller Think About the Bible?
George Muller loved orphans. By the end of his life in the late 1800’s, he had housed over 10,000 in Bristol, England. Remarkably, throughout his ministry he made needs known only to God. Muller’s ultimate desire for destitute boys and girls was not just to provide...
Vying for the Title “The Chief of Sinners”: Nathan Bedford Forrest
Nathan Bedford Forrest had a mean temper. He loved to gamble, often winning and losing thousands of dollars in a single evening. He made his fortune as a slave trader and was a leader in the Ku Klux Klan. He cursed, was given to violence and...
The Morning Star of Wittenberg: Katharina von Bora Luther
The reformer Martin Luther said he married for several reasons: to make his father happy, to rile the pope, make the angels laugh and the devil weep, and to seal his testimony. He made no mention of romantic love; in fact, one of Luther’s biographers suggested...
The Gospel Your Works Are Preaching
In Corrie ten Boom’s famous biography, The Hiding Place, she tells the story of her Tante (Aunt) Jans, a stern, commanding woman who lived with the ten Booms in their family home. Everything about Tante Jans was no-nonsense. She dressed in black from head to toe in...
The Most for the Most Unhappy: Pastor and Philanthropist, Andrew Reed
On the day of his ordination, Andrew Reed must have known that he wouldn’t have an easy ministry. His first pastorate was with the New Road Chapel in East London, and the church had fallen on hard times. The once-vibrant congregation had dwindled to only sixty...
