I had a friend tell me about this man and I read the Wikipedia information on him which I have included below. I encourage you to read his whole story. What is especially of interest to me is his faith in Elohim’s (Hebrew word for God) providing for him and those in his charge. I have struggled with wanting to be led by HIM and trying to let HIM lead, but then I get worried or impatient if something doesn’t happen in my timing, and I move forward on my own and then wonder if I have angered HIM or if HE has had it with me and my lack of trust. I truly believe HE can do ANYTHING and to have the faith of a mustard seed for HIM to move mountains through me would be humbling.

I know that everything in my life is from HIM. I can clearly see how HE can raise one up and also take everything away, whether HE wants to bless someone or get their attention. To see HIS hand in everything HE provided for me each day of my life the way Muller did would be incredible. I felt like HE wanted me to follow what the Messiah said and give up everything but I’m not at that place yet. I’m believing more and more that it takes giving up everything to get to that ultimate place that Muller did with HIM.

I even had to laugh earlier, when I was thinking of what HE did with Muller as being like Him giving someone HE loved one surprise after another, after another, after another. I enjoyed thinking about HIM as loving someone so much that HE wanted to give them surprises and then I wondered about HIM not being able to be surprised because HE always knows everything. Then I thought about how HE gives to us continually and only wants to be loved and wanted for who HE is (Father/Son/Holy Spirit) and thanked and appreciated for what HE does/gives. How many times since the beginning has HE genuinely been loved the way HE deserves? Do you really want HIM for who HE is or do you want HIM only if HE fits your image of HIM? Do you realize that if you do not want HIM for who HE is that means you are wanting HIS enemy? It is either one or the other there is no in between. Does this sound like your relationship with HIM?

Earlier, I also read about a little girl who was opening presents at her birthday party. She was so focused on wanting just one present that she ripped through each one quickly with no appreciation for the gift or thanks for the giver, whose smiles quickly left because of her ingratitude over not getting the gift she wanted from them. How many times have I disappointed HIM or other people who loved me and who truly put their heart into what they were giving me because it wasn’t what I wanted. How many times have I truly put my heart and mind into getting what would be a perfect present for someone else instead of thinking from my own point of view. HE knows what we want and HE knows what we need and HE knows HIS enemies’ influences in our lives. Have you thanked HIM even if HE is humbling you, disciplining you, chastening you, bringing you down to nothing to find HIM again because HE doesn’t want to lose you FOREVER! Do you realize HIS word says that HE LOVES those HE does those things to? Read Hebrews chapter 12, Revelation 3:19, Mishlei (Proverbs) 3:12, and 13:24.

Elohim gave us a perfect GIFT (read Yochanan – John – 4:10), HIS Word made flesh. HE was the blemish free, sacrificial Lamb of Elohim because the animal sacrifices that HIS people offered to HIM under the Old Covenant were not enough to cover their sins. With this New Covenant, HE offered HIMSELF to atone for the sins of not just the Israelites and proselytes but for the world, for anyone who accepted HIM into their lives.

As I have said in other studies, we have NO idea the depths of what HE (Father/Son/Holy Spirit) went through during the time of HIS Word becoming flesh all the way up to the point of death. It takes all three of HIM to create. Even though the Creator/Father (who everything originates from) and the Holy Spirit (who prepares the path for the creation) knew that HIS Word/HIS Son (who everything is created through) would be risen up from the grave, for HIM to actually experience that moment of death, I can’t fathom. Do you realize that in that moment, that Elohim of ALL DIED!!!

Picture Elohim’s heart stop beating (and it had NEVER stopped beating, EVER). Picture you losing your right hand and your strong right arm except that you are not just maimed, you are Elohim, this means you can not CREATE anymore because a vital piece is missing. It was HUGE what HE did for us!!! I want to know everything HE has been through for mankind because I can only imagine the smiles HE would liked to have smiled and the love HE would have loved receiving and I want to understand everything that HE has done because of everything HE has been through.

Talk to HIM, thank HIM for everything HE has done for you in your life, thank HIM for HIS GIFT, and all HE does for you that you know about and what you don’t know about, work on your relationship with HIM, ask HIM what gift you can give HIM. Hopefully this is all out of love for HIM, but I know from personal experience that even if you don’t have the love you should for HIM to begin with, what you do start with can grow into true love for HIM. HE is worth everything just like HE felt we were worth everything!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_M%C3%BCller

George Müller (German – born as : Johann Georg Ferdinand Müller) (27 September 1805 – 10 March 1898), a Christian evangelist and Director of the Ashley Down orphanage in Bristol, England, cared for 10,024^[1] orphans in his life.^[2] He was well-known for providing an education to the children under his care, to the point where he was accused of raising the poor above their natural station in life. He also established 117 schools which offered Christian education to over 120,000 children, many of them being orphans.

Youth

Müller was born in Kroppenstaedt (now Kroppenstedt), a village near Halberstadt in the Kingdom of Prussia.^[3] In 1810, the Müller family moved to nearby Heimersleben, where Müller’s father was appointed a collector of taxes.^[4] He had an older brother, Friedrich Johann Wilhelm (1803 – 7 Oct 1838) and, after his widowed father remarried, a half-brother, Franz (b 1822).

His early life was not marked by righteousness – on the contrary, he was a thief, a liar and a gambler. By the age of 10, Müller was stealing government money from his father.^[4] While his mother was dying, he, at 14 years of age, was playing cards with friends and drinking.^[5][6]

Müller’s father hoped to provide him with a religious education that would allow him to take a lucrative position as a clergyman in the state church. He studied divinity in the University of Halle, and there met a fellow student (Beta) who invited him to a Christian prayer meeting. There he was welcomed, and he began regularly reading the Bible and discussing Christianity with the others who attended the meetings. After seeing a man praying to God on his knees, he was convinced of his need for salvation. As soon as he got home he went to his bed where he knelt and prayed. He asked God to help him in his life and to bless him wherever he went and to forgive him of his sins. He immediately stopped drinking, stealing and lying, and began hoping to become a missionary. He began preaching regularly in nearby churches and continued meeting with the other churches.^[7]

Early work

In 1828, Müller offered to work with Jews in England through the London Society for Promoting Christianity Amongst the Jews, and arrived in London on 19 March 1829. By mid-May, he fell ill, and did not think that he would survive. He was sent to Teignmouth to recuperate and, whilst there, met Henry Craik, who became his life-long friend.^[8] Müller returned to London in September, but after ten days started to feel unwell again, blaming it on being confined to his house because of his studies. He asked the Society to send him out to preach but received no reply. By the end of November he became doubtful whether the Society was the right place for him and on 12 December made the decision to leave but to wait for a month before writing. Müller returned to Exmouth on 31 December for a short holiday and preached at various meetings whilst there. He wrote to the Society in early January, requesting that they might consider allowing him to remain with them if they would allow him “to labour in regard to time and place as the Lord might direct me”. This they refused to do at a meeting on 27 January 1830, communicating this to Müller in writing, and thus bringing to an end his association with the Society. He moved from Exmouth to Teignmouth and preached several times for Craik, which led to a number of the congregation asking him to stay and be the minister of the chapel of Ebenezer Chapel in Shaldon, Devon, on a salary of £55 per annum. On 7 October 1830, he married Mary Groves, the sister of Anthony Norris Groves. At the end of October, he renounced his regular salary, believing that the practice could lead to church members giving out of duty, not desire. He also eliminated the renting of church pews, arguing that it gave unfair prestige to the rich (based primarily on James 2:1-9).^[9]

Müller moved to Bristol on 25 May 1832 to begin working at Bethesda Chapel. Along with Henry Craik, he continued preaching there until his death, even while devoted to his other ministries. In 1834, he founded the Scriptural Knowledge Institution for Home and Abroad, with the goal of aiding Christian schools and missionaries; distributing the Bible and Christian tracts; and providing Day-schools, Sunday-schools and Adult-schools, all upon a Scriptural foundation.^[10] By the end of February 1835, there were five Day-schools – two for boys and three for girls.^[11] Not receiving government support and only accepting unsolicited gifts, this organisation received and disbursed £1,381,171^[1] ( approximately $2,718,844 USD) – around £90 million in today’s terms^[12] – by the time of Müller’s death, primarily using the money for supporting the orphanages and distributing about 285,407 Bibles,^[1] 1,459,506 New Testaments,^[1] and 244,351 other religious texts,^[1] which were translated into twenty other languages.^[13] The money was also used to support other “faith missionaries” around the world, such as Hudson Taylor.^[14] The work continues to this day.^[15]

Orphanages

The work of Müller and his wife with orphans began in 1836 with the preparation of their own home at 6 Wilson Street, Bristol for the accommodation of thirty girls. Soon after, three more houses in Wilson Street were furnished, growing the total of children cared for to 130. In 1845, as growth continued, Müller decided that a separate building designed to house 300 children was necessary, and in 1849, at Ashley Down, Bristol, that home opened. The architect commissioned to draw up the plans asked if he might do so gratuitously.^[16] By 26 May 1870, 1,722 children were being accommodated in five homes, although there was room for 2,050 (No 1 House – 300, No 2 House – 400, Nos 3, 4 and 5 – 450 each). By the following year, there were 280 orphans in No 1 House, 356 in No 2, 450 in Nos 3 and 4, and 309 in No 5 House.^[17]

Through all this, Müller never made requests for financial support, nor did he go into debt, even though the five homes cost over £100,000 to build. Many times, he received unsolicited food donations only hours before they were needed to feed the children, further strengthening his faith in God. For example, on one well-documented occasion, they gave thanks for breakfast when all the children were sitting at the table, even though there was nothing to eat in the house. As they finished praying, the baker knocked on the door with sufficient fresh bread to feed everyone, and the milkman gave them plenty of fresh milk because his cart broke down in front of the orphanage.^[18]

Although he never asked any person (only God) for anything, Müller asked those who did support his work to give a name and address in order that a receipt might be given. The receipts were printed with a request that the receipt be kept until the next annual report was issued, in order that the donor might confirm the amount reported with the amount given. The wording in the image reads: “Owing to the great increase of my work, I have found it necessary to authorize two of my assistants (Mr. Lawford and Mr. Wright) to sign receipts for donations, if needful, in my stead.-Donors are requested, kindly to keep the receipts and to compare them with the “Supplement” to the Report, which records every donation received, so that they may be satisfied that their donations have been properly applied.-The “Supplement” is sent with the Report to every Donor who furnishes me with his or her name and address.-I would earnestly request all Donors (even those who feel it right to give anonymously) to put it in my power to acknowledge their donations at the time they come to hand; and should any Donor, after having done this, not receive a printed receipt within a week, they would much oblige me by giving me information at once. This interval must, of course, be extended in the case of Donors who send from places out of the United Kingdom. George Müller”. Every single gift was recorded, whether a single farthing, £3,000 or an old teaspoon.^[19] Accounting records were scrupulously kept and made available for scrutiny.^[20]

Every morning after breakfast there was a time of Bible reading and prayer, and every child was given a Bible upon leaving the orphanage, together with a tin trunk containing two changes of clothing. The children were dressed well and educated – Müller even employed a schools inspector to maintain high standards. In fact, many claimed that nearby factories and mines were unable to obtain enough workers because of his efforts in securing apprenticeships, professional training, and domestic service positions for the children old enough to leave the orphanage.^[21]

Evangelism

On 26 March 1875, at the age of 70 and after the death of his first wife in 1870 and his marriage to Susannah Grace Sanger in 1871, Müller and Susannah began a 17 year period of missionary travel:

Müller always expected to pay for their fares and accommodation from the unsolicited gifts given for his own use. However, if someone offered to pay his hotel bill en-route, Müller recorded this amount in his accounts.^[22]

He travelled over 200,000 miles, an incredible achievement for pre-aviation times. His language abilities allowed him to preach in English, French, and German, and his sermons were translated into the host languages when he was unable to use English, French or German.^[23] In 1892, he returned to England, where he died on 10 March 1898 in New Orphan House No 3.

A life of prayer

Müller prayed about everything and expected each prayer to be answered. One example was when one of the orphan house’s boiler stopped working; Müller needed to have it fixed. Now this was a problem, because the boiler was bricked up and the weather was worsening with each day. So he prayed for two things; firstly that the workers he had hired would have a mind to work throughout the night, and secondly that the weather would let up. On the Tuesday before the work was due to commence, a bitter north wind still blew but in the morning, before the workmen arrived, a southerly wind began to blow and it was so mild that no fires were needed to heat the buildings. That evening, the foreman of the contracted company attended the site to see how he might speed things along, and instructed the men to report back first thing in the morning to make an early resumption of work. The team leader stated that they would prefer to work through the night. The job was done in 30 hours.^[24]

In 1862, it was discovered that one of the drains was blocked. Being some 11 feet underground, workmen were unable to find the blockage despite several attempts. Müller prayed about the situation and the workman at once found the site of the problem.^[25][26]

Strong gales in Bristol on Saturday 14 January 1865 caused considerable damage in the area and over twenty holes were opened in the roofs. Around 20 windows were also broken and two frames damaged by falling slates. The glazier and slater normally employed had already committed their staff to other work so nothing could be done until the Monday. Had the winds continued, with heavy rain, the damage to the orphanage would have been much greater. After much prayer, the wind stopped in the afternoon and no rain fell until Wednesday, by which time most of the damage had been repaired.^[27]

Once, whilst crossing the Atlantic on the SS Sardinian in August 1877, his ship ran into thick fog. He explained to the captain that he needed to be in Quebec by the following afternoon, but Captain Joseph E Dutton (later known as “Holy Joe”) said that he was slowing the ship down for safety and Müller’s appointment would have to be missed. Müller asked to use the chartroom to pray for the lifting of the fog. The captain followed him down, claiming it would be a waste of time. After Müller prayed, the captain started to pray, but Müller stopped him; partly because of the captain’s unbelief, but mainly because he believed the prayer had already been answered. When the two men went back to the bridge, they found the fog had lifted. The captain became a Christian shortly afterwards.^[28]

Müller’s faith in God strengthened day by day and he spent hours in daily prayer and Bible reading. – indeed, it was his practice, in later years, to read through the entire Bible four times a year.^[29]

Theology

He records in his Narratives that “That the word of God alone is our standard of judgment in spiritual things; that it can be explained only by the Holy Spirit; and that in our day, as well as in former times, he is the teacher of his people. The office of the Holy Spirit I had not experimentally understood before that time. Indeed, of the office of each of the blessed persons, in what is commonly called the Trinity, I had no experimental apprehension. I had not before seen from the Scriptures that the Father chose us before the foundation of the world; that in him that wonderful plan of our redemption originated, and that he also appointed all the means by which it was to be brought about. Further, that the Son, to save us, had fulfilled the law, to satisfy its demands, and with it also the holiness of God; that he had borne the punishment due to our sins, and had thus satisfied the justice of God. And, further, that the Holy Spirit alone can teach us about our state by nature, show us the need of a Saviour, enable us to believe in Christ, explain to us the Scriptures, help us in preaching, etc. It was my beginning to understand this latter point in particular which had a great effect on me; for the Lord enabled me to put it to the test of experience, by laying aside commentaries, and almost every other book, and simply reading the word of God and studying it. The result of this was, that the first evening that I shut myself into my room, to give myself to prayer and meditation over the Scriptures, I learned more in a few hours than I had done during a period of several months previously. But the particular difference was, that I received real strength for my soul in doing so. I now began to try by the test of the Scriptures the things which I had learned and seen, and found that only those principles which stood the test were really of value.”^[30]

Müller also wrote of how he came to believe in the doctrines of election, particular redemption, and final persevering grace while staying in Teignmouth, Devon in 1829.^[31] George Müller was a founding member of the Plymouth Brethren movement. Doctrinal differences arose in the 1840s and Müller was determined to determine the truth by the “infallible standard of the Holy Spirit”.^[32] At the time, he and Craik were pastors of the Bethesda and Gideon fellowships in Bristol. Membership at Gideon was open to all believers, while only believers who had been baptised could claim full membership of Bethesda, although all believers were welcome at Communion. Müller consulted Robert C Chapman on the issue of accepting unbaptised believers, and Chapman stated that distinction should be made between unbaptised believers who “walked disorderly” and those who lived according to the Bible.^[33] Müller and Craik independently contemplated the issue and decided that unbaptised believers, who otherwise lived according to Scriptural principles, should not be denied membership.

Dissension arose at Gideon regarding the presence of unbelievers at Communion and the view held by some that pews were private property, and eventually Müller and Craik withdrew from this fellowship on 19 April 1840^[34], concentrating thereafter on the Bethesda Chapel.^[35]

John Nelson Darby and Benjamin Wills Newton became opposed concerning certain matters or doctrine and a discussion was held in Plymouth on 5 December 1845. A document entitled The Principles of Open Brethren stated: “Certain tracts issued by Mr Newton were judged to contain error regarding the nature of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the question arose whether it was sufficient to exclude from fellowship those who held the erroneous teaching, or whether all who belonged to a gathering where the error was tolerated were to be put outside the pale, even if they themselves had not embraced it. One party, led by Mr Darby, took the latter view. Others, in particular the Bethesda Church, in which Messrs Müller and Craik ministered, refused to admit any who were convicted of holding the evil doctrine themselves, but did not exclude those who came from Mr Newton’s meeting. The exclusive party thereupon declined to have any further fellowship with members of the Bethesda Church or others like-minded. The latter soon came to received the title of ‘Open Brethren’.”^[36] The more exclusive side of the brethren movement became known as the Exclusive Brethren and was led by Darby.^[37] Darby called on Müller in July 1849 to discuss the split, but Müller had many prior engagements and could only receive Darby for 10 minutes. It was impossible to fully discuss the problem in such a short time, and the two men never met again.^[38]

Though the pre-tribulational rapture doctrine gained momentum as a result of the literature of the Brethren movement, Müller’s church was wary of such teachings. George Müller held to a Post Tribulation Rapture doctrine along with others such as Benjamin Wills Newton and Samuel Prideaux Tregelles,^[39] and said that “scripture declares plainly that the Lord Jesus will not come until the Apostasy shall have taken place, and the man of sin shall have been revealed…”^[40]

Müller wrote frequently about the stewardship of money and the non-reliance on earthly riches, and how God would bless the man who kept to these principles, and felt that laying his own experiences bare would prove the truth of his claims. His personal income, from unsolicited gifts (he refused any kind of salary) rose from £151 in 1831 to more than £2,000 in 1870. However, he retained only around £300 a year for himself and his family, the rest he gave away.^[41]

William Henry Harding said, ‘The world, dull of understanding, has even yet not really grasped the mighty principle upon which he [Müller] acted, but is inclined to think of him merely as a nice old gentleman who loved children, a sort of glorified guardian of the poor, who with the passing of the years may safely be spoken of, in the language of newspaper headlines, as a “prophet of philanthropy.” To describe him thus, however, is to degrade his memory, is to miss the high spiritual aim and the wonderful spiritual lesson of his life. It is because the carnal mind is incapable of apprehending spiritual truth that the world regards the orphan Houses only with the languid interest of mere humanitarianism, and remains oblivious of their extraordinary witness to the faithfulness of God.’^[42]

The George Müller Charitable Trust

After his life, his work was continued by The George Müller Foundation, which was renamed The George Müller Charitable Trust on 1 March 2009. The Trust maintains the key principle of seeking money through prayer alone – it actively shuns fund-raising activities. The charity works together with local churches in the Bristol area to enable them to reach out and care for their communities, especially children, young people and families with physical, emotional, social or spiritual needs; and encourages giving to support mission, social care, relief and development work across the world.^[43] From 1986 to September 2010, it also provided residential care for the elderly in Tilsley House, Weston-super-Mare. The Trust maintains a sheltered accommodation unit for the elderly in Tranquil House, next-door to Tilsley House.

A small museum is maintained by the Trust at its headquarters in Cotham Park, Bristol. Records of all children who passed through the orphanage are held and may be inspected by relatives for a modest fee.^[44]

See also

• The Open Brethren
• Arthur Tappan Pierson, Muller’s biographer and friend