“Preach faith till you have it; and then, because you have it, you will preach faith.”
— Peter Böhler to John Wesley
Dr. Brannon actually told me this story in one of my earlier classes with him. Having been unable to remember the exact quote, I hadn’t been able to find it online. On the first night of my most recent class I had made a note to ask him for the reference. It was a quote that made a lot of sense to me at different points in my life. Below is excerpt from John Wesley’s journal where he describes a little more the circumstances surrounding the quote:
Immediately it stuck into my mind, “Leave off preaching. How can you preach to others, who have not faith yourself?” I asked Boehler, whether he thought I should leave it off or not. He answered “By no means.” I asked, “But what can I preach?” He said, “Preach faith till you have it; and then, because you have it, you will preach faith.”
— John Wesley, Journal, 4 Mar 1738
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