One of the men that God has used mightily is John Wesley, who along with his brother, Charles, started a movement that became the Methodist Church. While John was known to be a prolific preacher, Charles was known to be a prolific hymn writer. Some of his hymns have become the church’s beloved such as Jesus, Lover of My Soul and And Can It Be That I Should Gain. John and his brother Charles were the two youngest children of Susanna Wesley, who gave birth to nineteen children, nine of whom died in infancy. By God’s grace she managed to raise ten children in the 18th century England, and by the grace of God, two of her children made a huge impact in Christendom. John and Charles always attributed their faith to their mother’s faith, who raised them in fear of the Lord.
So deep was her relationship to God that before her death in 1742, she told her sons and daughters, “Children, as soon as I am released sing a psalm of praise to God.” Susanna never became a preacher or a hymn writer but through her sons she became a blessing to the world. A home maker, who cooked and cleaned for her family, a simple woman who devoted all her life to raising a godly family, in the hand of God, made a huge impact on not only England, but the world. Faithfulness and fear of the Lord are what God asks of us.
Over time I have met a number of men who aspired to do great things for God. They had plans, lofty plans, but in the end, they stopped for various reasons. To me, it’s God who stopped them. On the contrary I have also met men who did not set out to do great things for the Lord but in the end, accomplished great things. God gave them the opportunity and blessed them. Many are ready to do great things for God, but few are ready, much less, eager to do little things. The Bible bears witness to the fact that God uses men and women, like Susanna, who are faithful in little, not great things.
Pastor Paul