Not long after being converted out of Methodism, the young Benjamin Franklin (1812-1878) began preaching, taking advantage of every opportunity he could find.
“And, as already mentioned in the preceding chapter, he at once began to preach, and he never stopped for anything but serious sickness of himself or family. At first it was only an effort to ‘exhort’ a little at the regular meetings of the church, or after someone else had preached. Then an appointment to preach somewhere at night, in some school-house, or in some private dwelling, was ventured upon. To these appointments he would often walk, three, four, or five miles, after a hard day’s work. Two or three of the young preachers generally met together and united in the exercises of the meeting. And thus, gradually, he directed the forces of his mind and body to the work, until he lost his interest in all other employments. Four years after his obedience to the Gospel he sold out the mill property, and was never afterward engaged in any regular secular business.” (The Life and Times of Benjamin Franklin, p. 59-60)
Franklin’s aim was to preach the gospel. He did not wait until he secured sufficient monetary support, but instead he worked to support himself while preaching. The apostle Paul did this (Acts 18:2-4; 20:33-34; 1 Thessalonians 2:9; 2 Thessalonians 3:7-8) and it is perfectly acceptable for preachers to do so today when necessary.
It seems natural though, as one is determined to preach the gospel and increasingly directs “the forces of his mind and body to the work,” he will eventually, like Franklin, “[lose] his interest in all other employments.” At that point, perhaps it might be time to sell “the mill property,” forsake “regular secular business,” and seek to do as Paul did in “devoting himself completely to the word” (Acts 18:5).
