Short Account of God's Dealings with the Reverend Mr. George Whitefield
George Whitefield's spiritual autobiography emerged from the evangelical revival sweeping through Britain and its American colonies in the 1730s. Written when Whitefield was just twenty-five and already famous as a preacher, this brief account chronicles his spiritual journey from childhood through his early ministry. The work appeared as Whitefield faced criticism from established church authorities and needed to explain the religious experiences that drove his controversial preaching style and Methodist associations.
Whitefield traces his path from a troubled youth marked by sin and worldly pursuits through his conversion at Oxford University under the influence of Charles Wesley and the Holy Club. He describes his intense religious awakening, characterized by deep conviction of sin, periods of spiritual darkness, and eventual assurance of salvation through faith alone. The narrative emphasizes his call to preach and the extraordinary physical and emotional manifestations that accompanied both his own conversion and his early preaching ministry. Whitefield presents these experiences not as unique to himself but as evidence of God's power working through ordinary means to produce extraordinary revival.
The autobiography became a foundational text for evangelical spirituality, establishing patterns for how Protestant converts would understand and narrate their religious experiences. Its influence extended well beyond Whitefield's lifetime, shaping evangelical expectations about conversion, call to ministry, and the marks of authentic spiritual experience. The work demonstrates the emerging evangelical emphasis on personal religious experience over institutional authority and helped legitimize the emotional dimensions of religious life that characterized the Great Awakening.
Who should read this: Those studying the origins of evangelical spirituality, the Great Awakening, or eighteenth-century religious autobiography will find this essential primary source material. Modern readers seeking dramatic spiritual narrative or systematic theology should look elsewhere, as Whitefield writes specifically within the conventions of Methodist spiritual testimony.