“I would rather wear out than rust out”*

by chuckofish

Well, I finally watched A Great Awakening (2026), the new movie about the friendship between the Rev. George Whitefield and Benjamin Franklin and I loved it.

It is available to rent on Amazon Prime. I have the DVD, because I will definitely watch it again. And you know how I feel about physical media.

As Greg Morse writes, “The story of the man whom God used to spark revival on two continents cannot be fully told in a running time of just over two hours. Whitefield was a force, a hurricane that swept through Britain and the colonies with Christian zeal, resistless spirituality, and renowned oratory. The facts are almost unbelievable. On many weeks, he preached nearly as much, if not more, than he slept. When not preaching, he rode on horseback miles upon miles to his next speaking engagement. He preached and taught one thousand times every year for thirty years, most of the time to thousands of people, all without microphones and notes, and often outside. John Piper notes in his excellent sermon, ‘Estimates are that eighty percent of the entire population of the American colonies (this is before TV or radio) heard Whitefield at least once.'”

Yes, it is an amazing story and this movie tells it well. The production values are high. I had never heard of anyone in it, but the acting is excellent. The direction is solid. It is not a Hallmark movie. It won’t win any awards, because it doesn’t check any of the woke boxes, but it checked all of mine.

*George Whitefield