Mission with Prophetic Power: The Journal of John Woolman (SRSC 12)

Resources for Application

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what would happen if we scheduled some time before a tough talk just to prepare? John Woolman spent time praying before his tough talks. He writes, for example, in November of 1759, Entering upon this business appeared weighty, and before I left home my mind was often sad, under which exercise* I felt at times the Holy Spirit which helps our infirmities, and through which my prayers were at times put up to God in private that He would be pleased to purge me from all selfishness, that I might be strengthened to discharge my duty faithfully, however difficult for the natural part. The prospect of so weighty a work, and of being so distinguished from many whom I esteemed before myself, brought me very low,* and such were the conflicts of my soul that I had a near sympathy with the prophet, in the time of his weakness, when he said: “If you will treat me like this, kill me at once, if I find favor in your sight” (Num 11:15). As Woolman recounts some of his conversations in his Journal , there is evidence that he had thought through a few talking points that he would need to keep in mind during a conversation. Remember, Woolman penned two separate essays on slave-keeping that present biblical and practical matters valuable in his one-on-one conversations. Indeed, my suspicion is that the material for Woolman’s essays developed as a result of his attention to the questions of slave owners and his own search for appropriate responses. He was honest about his feelings as he faced a complicated encounter. He wrote early in 1757,