Between Ministry and Family
Larry Osborne
In calling me to get married, God called me to divide my time and energy between home and ministry.
— Larry Osborne George Whitefield, the greatest evangelist of the eighteenth century, once wrote happily, "I believe it is God's will that I should marry." But he was concerned: "I pray God that I may not have a wife till I can live as though I had none." Whitefield, it seems, granted his own wish. During his week-long honeymoon in his bride's home, he preached twice a day in the surrounding countryside. Other than two trips with him, his wife, Elizabeth, remained in their London home during his constant travels (he crossed the Atlantic thirteen times in his ministry). Once he was away from her for over two years. When his 4-month-old son died, Whitefield did not stop ministry; he preached three more times before the funeral and was preaching as the bells rang for the funeral service itself. From Whitefield's perspective, marriage and ministry were a troublesome mix. He sometimes spoke about marriage as if it were less of a blessing and more of a curse. He once wrote, "O for that blessed time when we shall neither marry nor be given in marriage, but be as the angels of God." As for his wife's part, she seemed to have been equally unhappy, though she unfairly put the blame on herself: "I have been nothing but a load and burden to him." A man who lived with the couple in their later years put it as tactfully as any: "He did not intentionally make his wife unhappy." The call of God is a powerful force, which if not monitored, becomes all consuming, ripping us away from our earthly commitments. Neglecting spouse and children, of course, is never intentional. But it happens, too often and too easily. The Fuller Institute of Church Growth ...
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