Smith Wigglesworth (1859 - 1946) ***
He
had No schooling, he learned to read when his wife taught him to read the
Bible. His trade was plumbing. He was Born in Menston, Yorkshire, England
1859
At
8 years of age he came to know the Lord in a Wesleyan Methodist meeting, that
his devout Grandmother had brought him to.
He then helped in the conversion of his Mother. At 16 years he began working with the
Salvation Army. At 20 years he moved to
Liverpool working with poor children.
Returning to Bradford he married Polly Featherstone, she was the
preacher and Smith worked at the mission.
At 48 years (1907) Smith received the Baptism of the Holy Spirit and
started a world wide evangelistic ministry of signs, wonders, miracles and
gifts of the Holy Spirit. At 87 years
he passed on to be with the Lord.
Smith
said "I am not moved by what I see.
I am moved only by what I believe.
Often
in his meetings he would ask for the person with the WORST sickness to come
forward. In one such instance a woman
was brought forward carried by two ladies, one on each side. The ladies were commanded to, "Let go
of her" after which she immediately fell to the floor. They picked her up with difficulty and were
requested to, "Let go of her" again.
The ladies hesitantly released her, only to watch her crash to the floor
a second time. Wigglesworth told them
to, "Pick her up," they did as he requested. People in the meeting were becoming
outraged, a man called out, "You callous brute!" Wigglesworth looking
directly at him told him to mind his own business, "For I know my business!" The ladies were again told to "Let go of her and let her
stand by herself. Do as I
say!" With great concern they did
so, only to find that this time she did not fall, but stood looking at a big cancer from her body lying on the floor.
Wigglesworth
did not follow the traditional guidelines in winning souls. He had direct communion with God, and maintained a pure conscience. He obeyed God's directions no matter how
unconventional they seemed. He believed
God no matter what the circumstances
were.
He
never denied his Lord, and was often found reading God's word in public with
the result of touching many hearts and causing them to yield to God.
Wigglesworth
did not have an education, but was never hindered from sharing God's love and
power with others. On one occasion he
wrote a letter to a university graduate.
The next time they were together the person pointed out to Wigglesworth
the fact that he had spelled the title of the Holy Spirit seven different ways
in the letter. Wigglesworth asked,
"Did you understand it?"
"Oh, yes." The person replied. "Thank God, that's all
that matters," said Wigglesworth.
Once
in a meeting, a lady up in the balcony started to speak in tongues, smithy quickly shouted to her "shout
up, that's not God!" Everyone in
the meeting thought that that would grieve the spirit of God. But Smithy went on to preach a very anointed
message and after the meeting the people all said that they had never attended
a more anointed meeting in all of their life.
Smithy was bold in God.