Enlarge the Place of Thy Tent: William Carey and Isaiah 54:2

Some callings look too big for one person. Today's lesson is about a man who stepped into one anyway.

Key verse (KJV), Isaiah 54:2: "Enlarge the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of thine habitations: spare not, lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes."

William Carey (1761-1834) was an English Baptist minister who became known as the "father of modern missions". According to Wikipedia, his essay on the duty of Christians to take the gospel abroad led to the founding of the Baptist Missionary Society. He went to Calcutta in 1793, and was forced to leave British Indian territory, so he joined fellow missionaries in the Danish colony of Serampore.

Doors closing did not end his work. At Serampore he started schools for poor children, taught reading, writing and accounting alongside the faith, helped found a mission press, opened a theological college that grew into Serampore University, and campaigned against the practice of sati.

The lesson: when a door closes, God's tent-stretching word still stands. Carey simply moved to the place where he could keep building.

Prayer point: Lord, show me where You want me to enlarge my tent this season, and give me courage to lengthen my cords.

Over to you:
- Has a closed door ever pushed you somewhere that turned out to be your real assignment? Share your testimony.
- What is one "tent" in your family, parish or work that God may be asking you to enlarge?

Sources: Wikipedia, "William Carey (missionary)"; KJV Bible.
Photo: William Carey portrait, Wikimedia Commons (public domain)