So many of the photographs and prints of John Wesley depict him with one hand clutching his Bible and the other arm lifted high as he proclaims the Truth to a throng of thousands listening eagerly to his every word. Conrad Archer, a Wesley historian, talks about our temptation to picture Wesley "Preaching in a beautiful green meadow to three thousand people in the luxuriant setting of an English springtime."

Some artists present Wesley preaching at sunset before thousands of people, all of whom are holding candles and singing hymns written by Charles Wesley, and all singing in perfect harmony. It is indeed probable that such depictions were accurate from time to time. But those days were balanced by times of great discomfort and by less than picturesque locations. I never cease to marvel at John Wesley's immense stamina and his ability to push his body to considerable extremes in order to take his message of Scriptural holiness to the people of his parish (the world).

Wesley records an amazing experience in London in November 22, 1759. "I took horse between six and seven, in one of the coldest mornings I ever remember. We reached St. Albans [some 20 miles WNW of London] without much difficulty, but then the roads were all covered with snow. However there was a beaten path, though slippery enough till we turned into the by-road to Sundon [another 15-20 miles WNW]. What we could have done there, I cannot tell, for the snow lay deeper and deeper, had not a wagon gone awhile before us and marked the way for six miles to Mr. Cole's gate."

Wesley writes that with "much difficulty" he traveled on over a very slippery road to Bedford, and when he got there, "We had a pretty large congregation [at Bedford], but the stench from the swine under the room was scarce supportable. Was ever a preaching-place over a hog sty before? Surely they love the gospel who come to hear it in such a place."

The person we look to as our founder and exemplar may well have endured more than most of us could imagine in order to fulfill his calling. May his example remind us of our own calling and inspire us to display the dedication and determination that so characterized his ministry.