The Importance of Choosing the Right Wife
Unexpectedly, Nichols, the shoe master, died; William had to complete his apprenticeship with cobbler Thomas Old. Within a short time, William met Dorothy (Dolly) Plackett, Old’s pretty sister-in-law. From the outset, these two young people were different from each other; Dolly was not educated and was six years older than William. Christian historians have speculated on why a man who was so committed to learning would have married an unlearned woman. But William Carey was still a teenager when he met Dolly, and his reasons for the marriage never appeared in his journal writings.
I respect that William remained with her and looked after her for the rest of their challenging lives together. But I would like to encourage other young people to not rush in when choosing a life partner! Marry according to your destiny and calling in Christ. Pray for the direction of the Holy Spirit and make certain that your partner shares your ministry vision.
Marriage and Early Commitment
In the summer of 1781, just before his twentieth birthday, William married twenty-five-year-old Dolly Plackett at the twelfth-century church of St. John the Baptist, in Piddington. Because Dolly couldn’t read or write, she signed an X on the church’s marriage register.
Baptism and Recognition
Two years later, on October 5, 1783, William Carey was baptized in the River Nene near Northampton by John Ryland, who would become one of his closest friends. Later, Ryland spoke with amazement of the baptism of “this poor journeyman shoemaker,” never imagining that this young man would have an unparalleled impact on the entire Christian world.
Ryland wrote, “It was the purpose of the Most High, who selected for this amazing work, not the son of one of our most learned ministers, nor of one of the most opulent of our dissenting gentlemen, but the poor son of a parish clerk.”
Too Many Deaths
William and Dolly began their marriage, happy but incredibly poor. William worked as a cobbler and preached on Sundays at the Dissenters church, earning little. Their first child, Ann, was born soon after, but at eighteen months, she and William fell ill with fever, and Ann died within days. Grieving, Dolly attended the funeral and then cared for her sick husband. William’s mother arrived to help, nursing him back to health. However, he mysteriously lost all the hair on the top of his head.
To be continued…
Tale Tuesday 122
Date: 25th March, 2025
Title: : WILLIAM CAREY (Part 2)
Source: God’s generals- The Missionaries
Author: Roberts Liardon
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