George Müller showed what an extraordinary ministry could be accomplished through faith and prayer, by tender compassion for children, and practical action to meet every need.
Müller started life out poorly in upper Germany (formerly Prussia). At fourteen and his mother lay dying, he partied and got drunk with his friends. By sixteen he was in jail as a thief and swindler.
At the University of Halle in 1825, he became totally devoted to serving God. Müller’s life was characterized by humility for he depended on God for everything, viewing himself as a tool for God’s use.
Müller had left in 1829, for London to train as a missionary to the Jews. However, his path curved another direction, and by 1832, he pastored a Brethren congregation in Bristol, England, which would be his ministry’s center for the next 66 years.
Müller wanted to emulate the life of A. H. Francke, leader of the Pietism movement. In 1696, Francke's orphanage had been the largest in the world, and he had trusted in God for every provision.
In 1834, he founded the Scriptural Knowledge Institute (S.K.I.). Debts were not allowed, and the "patronage of the world" was not accepted. By 1880, the S.K.I. had established 72 day schools with 7,000 students in Bristol, as well as in Italy, Spain, and South America.
Müller believed he should open an orphan house in Bristol. Within a year, one hundred orphans were cared for; by 1870, the orphanages had multiplied and housed 2,000 children.
The history of the Bristol orphanages is page after page of answered prayer.
When he was 70, George Müller relinquished the management of the orphanages to his son-in-law and began a series of worldwide missionary tours. From 1875 to 1892, he traveled 250,000 miles and addressed 3 million people in 42 countries.
He died in Bristol at the age of 93.
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