Your word is a lamp to my feet Psalm 119:105

DAY 26 MORNING PSALM 119:105- 119:144

DAY 26 EVENING PSALM 119:145- 119:176

Wesley travelled the length and breadth of the British Isles by horse, by carriage and by foot. Although preaching in the open air and travelling by foot was an innovation for his day, and was contested by the religious authorities, the reality was that there were many precedents for pedestrian evangelism, in England.

Skevington -Wood says 'the early emissaries of the cross in England had no alternative but to preach in the open. The indigenous church, planted as it may have been through Roman soldiers, had few buildings. Ninian and Patrick in the fifth century and Colomba in the sixth century preached in the open air. Northumbria was converted through Paulinus and Aidan who preached in the open air. The coming of the friars in the thirteenth century saw a renaissance of outdoor preaching. Travelling preachers were the heralds of the Reformation. They preached wherever they could get a hearing – sometimes in churches, but more often on the village green or by the roadside. The same practice of preaching in the open was carried on by George Fox and the early Quakers. When Wesley started to compass the land he was in good company.

The track which he came to follow in his travels was in the first place triangular. He had London at his centre and Bristol as his second major city, the third point Newcastle served as a kind of northern office, as well as a favourite retreat for Wesley when exhausted by his travels. Wesley was not confined to England. He went into Wales in October 1739 and found ‘most of the inhabitants ripe for the gospel.’ In April 1751 Wesley crossed the Scottish border for the first time.

In all his worldwide journeyings he had only one desire: it was to lead men and women to Christ. He said ‘wherever I see one or a thousand men running into hell, be it in England, Ireland, or France yea, in Europe, Asia, Africa, or America, I will stop them if I can; as a minister of Christ, I will beseech them in His name to turn back and be reconciled to God. Were I to do otherwise, were I to let any soul drop into the pit, whom I might have saved from everlasting burnings, I am not satisfied God would accept my plea, "Lord, he was not of my parish" '

• We pray for our nation that it would be reconciled to God. Thank you for the history of your Word being preached in the open air across our country. Let your word be a lamp to our feet and a light to our path, as we continue to take the gospel across the length and breadth of our land. Give us your heart for the lost that we would have a greater urgency to share our faith, a greater fear of God and a greater desire to carry the flame of the Gospel wherever we go. Do not let the candle go out on our watch, Lord let it burn even more brightly, we pray.

REFERENCES

Skevington-Wood, A. The burning heart John Wesley: Evangelist,Cliff College Publishing,107,108,113