Editing George Müller (section)

==Personal life==

His name is frequently spelled as  "Mueller", particularly in the United States. Whilst "Mueller" is a possible substitute spelling for "Müller" in German, George Müller never changed his name from the original spelling and always took care to place the two dots over the letter "u" to form the umlaut. When asked by his nephew, Edward Groves, what difference this made to the pronunciation, Müller pronounced his name as though it was spelt "Meller".<ref>Groves, p. xi</ref>

===Youth===
Müller was born in Kroppenstädt (now [[Kroppenstedt]]), a village near [[Halberstadt]] in the [[Kingdom of Prussia]].<ref>{{cite news
 |url= https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1868/12/22/79378653.pdf
 |title=George Muller; The New Orphan Houses of Bristol|work=The New York Times|date=22 December 1868 |last=Our Own Correspondent
 |location=New York
 |access-date=27 June 2010}}</ref> In 1810, the Müller family moved to nearby Heimersleben, where Müller's father was appointed a collector of taxes.<ref name="Müller 1984, p. 31">Müller (1984), p. 31</ref> He had an older brother, Friedrich Johann Wilhelm (1803 – 7 Oct 1838) and, after his widowed father remarried, a half-brother, Franz (b 1822).

His early life was not marked by righteousness – on the contrary, he was a thief, a liar and a gambler. By the age of 10, Müller was stealing government money from his father.<ref name="Müller 1984, p. 31"/> While his mother was dying, he, at fourteen years of age, was playing cards with friends and drinking.<ref>Müller (2004), p. 2</ref><ref>Müller (2003), p. 10</ref> While in seminary at the [[Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg|University of Halle]] in [[Germany]], Müller described his status as one of

<blockquote>
"wicked behaviour and unrepentant spirit ... Despite my sinful lifestyle and cold heart, [[God]] had mercy on me. I was as careless as ever. I had no [[Bible]] and had not read any Scripture for years. I seldom went to church; and, out of custom only, I took the [[Holy Communion|Lord's Supper]] twice a year. I never heard the gospel preached. Nobody told me that [[Jesus]] meant for [[Christianity|Christians]], by the help of God, to live according to the Holy Scriptures." ...<ref>''The Autobiography of George Müller,'' pp. 14-15.</ref></blockquote>

Then Müller attended a [[prayer]] meeting in a private home in 1825 which so moved him that a swift transformation began in his behaviour. "I have no doubt ... that He began a work of grace in me. Even though I scarcely had any knowledge of who God truly was, that evening was the turning point in my life."<ref>''The Autobiography of George Müller,'' p. 16.</ref>

Müller's father hoped to provide him with a religious education that would allow him to take a lucrative position as a clergyman in the state church. He studied [[divinity]] at Halle and there met a fellow student, Beta, who invited him to the Christian prayer meeting which changed Müller's perspective. He was welcomed and began regularly reading the Bible and discussing Christianity with the others in attendance. After seeing a man on his knees praying to God, he was convinced of his need for [[salvation]]. He went to his bed, knelt and prayed, and asked God to help him in his life and to bless him wherever he went and to forgive him of his sins. He immediately stopped drinking, stealing and lying, and developed hope of becoming a [[missionary]], rather than the comfortable clergyman that his father had envisioned for him. He began preaching regularly in nearby churches.<ref>Müller (2003), pp. 23-24.</ref>

===A Life of Prayer===

Müller prayed about everything and expected each prayer to be answered. One example was when one of the orphan house's boiler stopped working; Müller needed to have it fixed. This was a problem because the boiler was bricked up and the weather was worsening with each day. So he prayed for two things; firstly that the workers he had hired would have a mind to work throughout the night, and secondly that the weather would let up. On the Tuesday before the work was due to commence, a bitter north wind still blew but in the morning, before the workmen arrived, a southerly wind began to blow and it was so mild that no fires were needed to heat the buildings. That evening, the foreman of the contracted company attended the site to see how he might speed things along and instructed the men to report back first thing in the morning to make an early resumption of work. The team leader stated that they would prefer to work through the night. The job was done in thirty hours.<ref>Steer, pp. 124–26</ref>

In 1862, it was discovered that one of the drains was blocked. Being some 11 feet underground, workmen were unable to find the blockage despite several attempts. Müller prayed about the situation and the workmen at once found the site of the problem.<ref>{{cite book|last=Ellis|first=James J|title=George Muller – The Man who Trusted God|year=1912|publisher=Pickering & Inglis, 14 Paternoster Row, London EC4|page= 49}}</ref><ref>24th Annual Report, 1863, p. 8</ref>

Strong gales in Bristol on Saturday 14 January 1865 caused considerable damage in the area and over twenty holes were opened in the roofs. About twenty windows were also broken and two frames damaged by falling slates. The glazier and slater normally employed had already committed their staff to other work so nothing could be done until the Monday. Had the winds continued, with heavy rain, the damage to the orphanage would have been much greater. After much prayer, the wind stopped in the afternoon and no rain fell until Wednesday, by which time most of the damage had been repaired.<ref>Annual Report, 1865 p. 7</ref>

Once, while crossing the Atlantic on the [[Allan Line Royal Mail Steamers|SS ''Sardinian'']] in August 1877, his ship ran into thick fog. He explained to the captain that he needed to be in Quebec by the following afternoon, but Captain Joseph E. Dutton said that he was slowing the ship down for safety and Müller's appointment would have to be missed. Müller asked to use the chart-room to pray for the lifting of the fog. The captain followed him down, claiming it would be a waste of time. After Müller prayed a very simple prayer, the captain started to pray, but Müller stopped him; partly because of the captain's unbelief, but mainly because he believed the prayer had already been answered. Müller said, "Captain, I have known my Lord for more than fifty years and there is not one instance that I have failed to have an audience with the King. Get up, Captain, for you will find that the fog has gone." When the two men went back to the bridge, they found the fog had indeed lifted, and Müller was able to keep his appointment. The captain became a Christian shortly afterwards and was later known as "Holy Joe."<ref>Steer, p. 177</ref>

Müller's faith in God strengthened day by day and he spent hours in daily prayer and Bible reading. Indeed, it was his practice, in later years, to read through the entire Bible four times a year.<ref>{{cite book|last=Warne|first=Frederick G|title=George Müller: the modern apostle of faith|year=1898|publisher=Fleming H. Revell|page=230}}</ref>