St Jude's In The Mountains
Anglican Church - Tehachapi CA
Anglican Church - Tehachapi CA
2
The storm tossed the ship across the sea like a toy boat. A young man huddled in the corner of his cabin, shivering. Dejected, wondering why his life had been such a failure, he sank his head in his hands and wept. An older man approached him, gently holding the young man's shoulder, and prayed. This older man would befriend and share faith with this young failure in the months to come, and after reaching his homeland, the young man would begin renewed ministry, with new faith, and a real Gospel to proclaim. The young man was an Anglican clergyman named John Wesley, and he was on his way home to England after a failed missionary endeavor in the British colony of Georgia, where he was even rebuffed in a prospective marriage. He would recover from his failure, to emerge as one of the greatest evangelists the Church of England would ever know, eventually recognized as the father of the Methodist Church.
John Wesley was born in Lincolnshire on June 17, 1703 as the fifteenth child to Samuel and Susannah Wesley. Samuel was himself an Anglican clergyman, and Susannah was very devout. Both of them raised John among his many siblings, steeped in the Anglican tradition. He studied at the Charterhouse School as a youth, received his Bachelors Degree from Christ Church, Oxford in 1724, and studied at Lincoln College, Oxford as a deacon, becoming a priest in 1728. The following year he formed a "holy club" at Oxford, known as "The Methodists" by its critics, conducting a variety of charitable endeavors for the poor throughout England. In 1735 he accepted a missionary position in the newly formed British colony of Georgia, but within two years he found himself rejected by the colonists, the local Indians, and even a prospective love interest. While in Georgia and on his return, he was befriended by Moravian missionaries, who brought him to their ministry at Aldersgate in England. On May 24, 1738, while listening to them read the introduction to Martin Luther's Commentary on Romans, John Wesley finally entered into a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, and noted in his diary, "I found my heart strangely warmed…" That warmth would never leave him, for he had found true faith at last. His ministry as an itinerant preacher would span over 50 years, culminating in the birth of the Methodist Church after his death in 1791.
Though John Wesley was a very effective organizer, his greatest success and effort in ministry was found in his preaching. He would preach over fifteen sermons each week, often outdoors to large crowds. He was only 5'6" tall, weighing a little over 120 lbs, but he would stand on a chair, platform or even a tree stump in order to be seen and heard. He learned to deal with disruptions and he was often ridiculed, treated with contempt by fellow clergy, even hated. He would preach to the poor places throughout England, such as Kingwood and Aldersgate. Many whose lives had been ruined by gin and debauchery, began their lives anew, with a relationship of faith in Jesus Christ, the Great Physician. Methodism grew in numbers and spread throughout England, drawing the antipathy of Anglican bishops and jealous clergy. They despised the emotional outbursts of repentant souls as "undignified". With no bishop willing to sponsor clergy trained in Methodism, John Wesley reluctantly licensed a few Methodist ministers himself and established his religious group to be independent of the Anglican Church, though he himself always remained an Anglican Priest. Shortly after his death, the Methodist Church emerged as a separate denomination altogether, noted for itinerant preaching and evangelism to this day.
John Wesley was born in Lincolnshire on June 17, 1703 as the fifteenth child to Samuel and Susannah Wesley. Samuel was himself an Anglican clergyman, and Susannah was very devout. Both of them raised John among his many siblings, steeped in the Anglican tradition. He studied at the Charterhouse School as a youth, received his Bachelors Degree from Christ Church, Oxford in 1724, and studied at Lincoln College, Oxford as a deacon, becoming a priest in 1728. The following year he formed a "holy club" at Oxford, known as "The Methodists" by its critics, conducting a variety of charitable endeavors for the poor throughout England. In 1735 he accepted a missionary position in the newly formed British colony of Georgia, but within two years he found himself rejected by the colonists, the local Indians, and even a prospective love interest. While in Georgia and on his return, he was befriended by Moravian missionaries, who brought him to their ministry at Aldersgate in England. On May 24, 1738, while listening to them read the introduction to Martin Luther's Commentary on Romans, John Wesley finally entered into a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, and noted in his diary, "I found my heart strangely warmed…" That warmth would never leave him, for he had found true faith at last. His ministry as an itinerant preacher would span over 50 years, culminating in the birth of the Methodist Church after his death in 1791.
Though John Wesley was a very effective organizer, his greatest success and effort in ministry was found in his preaching. He would preach over fifteen sermons each week, often outdoors to large crowds. He was only 5'6" tall, weighing a little over 120 lbs, but he would stand on a chair, platform or even a tree stump in order to be seen and heard. He learned to deal with disruptions and he was often ridiculed, treated with contempt by fellow clergy, even hated. He would preach to the poor places throughout England, such as Kingwood and Aldersgate. Many whose lives had been ruined by gin and debauchery, began their lives anew, with a relationship of faith in Jesus Christ, the Great Physician. Methodism grew in numbers and spread throughout England, drawing the antipathy of Anglican bishops and jealous clergy. They despised the emotional outbursts of repentant souls as "undignified". With no bishop willing to sponsor clergy trained in Methodism, John Wesley reluctantly licensed a few Methodist ministers himself and established his religious group to be independent of the Anglican Church, though he himself always remained an Anglican Priest. Shortly after his death, the Methodist Church emerged as a separate denomination altogether, noted for itinerant preaching and evangelism to this day.
