A Family’s Downfall
Despite affluent appearances, Samuel Booth’s fortune was all but gone by the time William was born. Throughout William’s early years, however, the Booths managed to maintain the appearance of being propertied.
Eventually, poor business decisions resulted in bankruptcy. As a result, thirteen-year-old William was pulled out of school and sent to work as an apprentice for a pawnbroker named Francis Eames.
William’s father passed away a little more than a year later, on September 23, 1843. On his deathbed, he repented for his former lack of faithfulness to God. He made his peace with his Creator in the moments before he met Him face-to-face.
A Life-Changing Experience
Young William was a quick study. He soon became an efficient pawnbroker. However, watching family after family sell its treasures to make ends meet started to wear on him.
Before long, he began to view pawnbroking as a vulture of a profession and came to hate it.
Some people would sell their “Sunday best” and earn enough to buy it back on Saturday. Then, they would sell these garments again on Monday morning. They went to great expense to look good for one day.
READ ALSO: WILLIAM AND CATHERINE BOOTH (PART 2)
A Glimpse into Poverty
It did not take William long to learn the pattern of poverty. Trinkets and fancy clothes went first. Family heirlooms and furniture came next. Wedding rings went last.
Meanwhile, poverty in England increased dramatically throughout William’s childhood and early teenage years.
Failed crops, rising taxes, and heavy corn levies designed to protect the income of wealthy landowners all contributed to the hardship. These conditions transformed Nottingham from a farming center into a stocking-weaving mill town.
A Turning Point
After his father died, William assumed headship of the household responsibilities. At fifteen, he began searching for new meaning in his life.
This search frequently led him to the Broad Street Wesleyan Chapel. There, late one evening, he heard a minister named Isaac Marsden.
Marsden’s warning, “A soul dies every minute!”, haunted William for some time. The minister had thundered those words at the stunned congregation, and they sank deeply into William’s heart.
Although William did not give his life to Christ that night, the message continued to affect him. In the days that followed, he came under a deep conviction of his need for repentance.
To be continued…
Tale Tuesday 078
Date: 19th March, 2024
Title: : William & Catherine Booth “Through Blood and Fire” (Part 3)
Source: God’s generals- The Revivalists
Author: Roberts Liardon
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