Lyle W. Dorsett - A Passion for Souls: The Life of D. L. Moody

D. L. Moody was a towering giant of the faith, an anointed powerful communicator of the gospel, and, most of all, a man exemplifying the humility and love of Christ. He is truly a model for all age groups. This book is an insightful look at a great man of God.

Bill Bright
Founder and Former President
Campus Crusade for Christ International

D. L. Moody may have lived 100 years ago, but his lifes story speaks to this generation with the same power that it did in the 19th century. Here is the story of an ordinary man who rose from poverty with only a minimum of education to bring two continents, Europe and North America, to repentance. No one can read this book without getting tremendously excited, motivated, and deeply moved by God.

Luis Palau
International Evangelist

To our desperate world struggling with broken families, poverty, and hopelessness, D. L. Moody brings visionary inspiration. To our jaded world looking on men of God with skepticism, and even cynicism, D. L. Moody brings integrity. To our self-centered world starving for love, D. L. Moody brings a Christ-centered passion for souls.

Gene Getz
Author, MBI: The Story of Moody Bible Institute

Biographers of D. L. Moody have tended to praise him as a spiritual hero or reduce his efforts to a function of historical circumstance. The great merit of Lyle Dorsetts new biography is to combine spiritual insight with unusually wide research. The result is a book that positions Moody in his times, but which also provides Christian reasons for why he was so important in those times, and since.

Mark A. Noll
McManis Professor of Christian Thought
Wheaton College

L YLE W. D ORSETT

Foreword by
Joseph Stowell

M OODY P UBLISHERS
CHICAGO

1997 by
L YLE W. D ORSETT

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise noted, are taken from the Holy Bible: New International Version . NIV. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.

The NIV and New International Version trademarks are registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by International Bible Society. Use of either trademark requires permission of International Bible Society.

Scripture quotations marked KJV are taken from the King James Version.

ISBN: 0-8024-5181-0

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Printed in the United States of America

I dedicate this book with love
to my son and daughter-in-law, Mike and Connie;
to my grandsons, Michael William and Daniel Wesley;
and to my beloved wife, Mary.

If God calls a man to a work, He will be with him in that work,
and he will succeed no matter what the obstacles may be.

D. L. Moody

S hakespeare asked, through the lips of Juliet, Whats in a name? Some names hold more significance for us than others, and for me few names are as meaningful as that of Dwight Lyman Moody. I am honored to serve as President of Moody Bible Institute, which proudly remains the school that D. L. Moody founded. Each time I walk through our visitor reception area in Smith Hall, I am reminded of Moodys life and ministry as I see the photographs, newspaper articles, miniature-scale rooms, and other memorabilia. Several of my books are published by Moody Press. The first button of my car radio (both AM and FM) is tuned to WMBI, the Moody station that broadcasts from the college. My lifes work and ministry is engulfed in his vision to reach the world for Christ. So I can honestly say that had it not been for D. L. Moody, my life would be considerably different today.

D. L. Moody is a man whose life is worthy of our attention. To some, he might be just another name in the list of those who influenced church history, along with Spurgeon, Calvin, Wesley, and others about whom little is known. But regardless of how much or how little you know about D. L. Moody, you will find this book to be a fascinating read and highly motivational. Lyle Dorsett has done an outstanding job of researching his life. My friend Lyle makes D. L. Moody come to life all over again and tells a story that compels the reader to turn to the next page.

With all the recent talk about building a bridge to the twenty-first century, you may be surprised to discover how progressive some of Moodys opinions were for someone who lived a century and a half ago. For example, he was eager to provide opportunities for women in ministry. He emphasized unity between believers and was greatly saddened when divisions threatened to hurt believers testimony to the secular world.

This book is a biography, not a theological treatise. Moody never received formal theological training, yet no one can question his down to earth spiritual wisdom. His beliefs were based on his personal Bible study and experience combined with the training of others he chose as mentors.

The Institute is blessed today with legacies he left. Moody Press was birthed as his vision. Our tuition-paid policy reflects his heart that no student be denied training for Christs work because of a lack of funds. Training costs continue to be underwritten by faithful Christians who feel called to support the training of young men and women for effective ministry.

As you learn more about Dwight L. Moody, I believe youll come to appreciate this dedicated and sincere man of God. His message of the good news of Jesus Christ came during a time of severe natural conflict and disruption. He was born in 1837, and Moodys early years of ministry took place during the Civil War. Later, in the fall of 1871, his work was affected by the great Chicago fire. But by then two fires were burning in Chicago. One destroyed nearly four square miles of the city, but was eventually contained and extinguished. The other fire, burning in the heart of a faithful servant of God, had an even greater effect on the city. It continues to burn to this day, being passed from person to person willing to carry on the legacy of D. L. Moody.

It is my prayer that by the time you finish reading this book, the fire will burn in your heart as well.

Joseph Stowell
President of Moody Bible Institute

J im Bell, my friend and Editorial Director at Moody Press, stands at the beginning of a long list of people who have helped me produce this book. Jim urged me to undertake the project, and he consistently offered encouragement. I am also grateful to Greg Thornton, Vice President for Publications, Moody Press, for his confidence in me and his commitment to this project. Managing Editor Julie-Allyson Ieron, General Editor Cheryl Dunlop, and the rest of the staff provided invaluable assistance once they received a completed manuscript.

During the research phase of my work, numerous people provided help. Pheg Callaway, a Moody Bible Institute student, photocopied more than a thousand pages of Moody letters. Several Wheaton College studentsJenny Hong, Bill Search, David Rendall, and Christine Yusearched for and copied reams of material. Three graduate assistants at Wheaton provided invaluable aid: Nathan Oates combed many files of primary sources; David Setran located biographical data on scores of Moodys associates, and he prepared working papers on several topics; Rebecca Litfin sifted through countless primary sources, and she did a masterful task of transcribing Moody letters.