Full biography of david brainerd smith

The Life of David Brainerd provides

David Brainerd , a missionary to the American Indians, has become one of the most influential missionaries of all time. His personal ministry lasted only three years, but his journal and diary, edited and published by Jonathan Edwards, have inspired countless missionaries over the years to reach thousands, or even millions, of souls across the globe.

His life was not an easy one; in fact, he suffered hardships of many kinds. It was for enduring these difficulties in order to further the gospel of Christ that he has gained such respect and had such a far-reaching effect. He life is worthy of study for anyone who desires to have a impact with their life on the growth of the Kingdom of God.

He came from a very notable family. His grandfather, Daniel Brainerd, had come to Connecticut at the age of eight from Essex, England, for reasons yet unknown. Daniel eventually became very influential as "the greatest landowner, a commissioner for the General Court, a justice of the peace, and a deacon in the church.

In reward for his service Hezekiah was given three hundred acres of land. David's mother, Dorothy, had been the widow of Daniel Mason and came from a family heritage of ministers. She brought a son, Jeremiah Mason, into the family when she married Hezekiah in , and she eventually bore nine more children, of which David was the sixth.

In addition to being influential in the community, David's family was very devout. Hezekiah has been called a man "of great personal dignity and self-restraint, of rigid notions of parental prerogative and authority, of the strictest puritanical views as to religious ordinances, of unbending integrity as a man and a public officer, and of extreme scrupulousness in his Christian life.

As young as age seven he was expressing concern for his soul. This Christian foundation probably helped him even then to endure the first major struggles of his life. David's teenage years were, in fact, quite a struggle for him.