Memoir of the Life and Ministry of William Bramwell: An Itinerant Methodist Preacher

William Bramwell was without doubt the most significant revivalist during the thirty years following the death of John Wesley. Thousands of ungodly men and women were swept into the kingdom of God through his ministry. He was brought up in a good Anglican home with strong morals but was deeply convicted of sin from a young age. In his late teens he was radically converted and after some misgivings joined the despised Methodists. For some time, he struggled to know whether he was called to preach, and once spent thirty-six hours in a disused sand pit pleading with God to make his will known. When once the call was made clear, he became an itinerant Methodist preacher until the day of his death. Bramwell was known above all for his intense prayer life. He rose at a very early hour to plead with God for souls, organized early morning prayer meetings in every circuit he was appointed to, and regularly held prayer times after his preaching services to help people draw closer to God. His preaching was fiery and very pointed, always aiming at the saving of souls from eternal destruction. “They are the best preachers who bring souls to God,” he said, and this he did wherever he went. His Christian character was impeccable, as he was always striving to be more like his Master. He especially disliked slander and gossip, and often chose to leave the company of those who were speaking negatively of an absent person. This memoir of William Bramwell is not what might be called an “easy read,” but any extra effort expended in carefully pondering its pages will be richly rewarded, and that’s a promise! Pray, O pray, my brother! never, never quit your hold of the fullness of God.... I am astonished that we do not pray more, yea, that we do not live every moment as on the brink of the eternal world, and in the blessed expectation of that glorious country. —William Bramwell