Hero: John Wesley

John Wesley, known as the founder of Methodism, left a print on the church world resembling very little of the current United Methodist Church.

He experienced two strong moments where his faith was challenged, the first on a trip across the Atlantic Ocean. At one point in the voyage a storm came up and broke the mast off the ship. Moravians (German Christians) calmly sang hymns and prayed. This experience amazed Wesley and led him to seek their inner strength.

The second moment was at a Moravian meeting in London at Aldersgate Street. He listened as a speaker read Martin Luther's preface to Romans. Something spiritual happened as Wesley took it all in. He wrote about this situation later in life with the famous words, "I felt my heart strangely warmed."

Although he always considered himself a member of the Church of England, Wesley developed Bible Societies that became The Methodist Church.

Wesley died at eighty-eight. His last words were "The best of all is, God is with us."

During his life, he preached over 20,000 itinerant sermons while riding on horseback.