Truth To Wonder: Mini Biographies of Evangelicals

Billy Sunday (1862-1935)

Billy was born into an age of war, in Iowa, USA. It was the time of the American Civil War, a terrible and bloody conflict that took many lives. One of those lives was that of Billy’s own father, who died not long after little Billy had entered the world. This tragic event left the family in poverty, forcing Billy to spend time in a local orphan’s home.

Despite Billy’s difficult early life, his body did not reflect the hardship he’d experienced, as he was blessed with remarkable athletic abilities. These exceptional physical traits, particularly his speed, meant he was called up to the big leagues of Major League Baseball. Billy was a crowd favourite for both the Chicago White Stockings (White Sox as they are known today) and Pittsburgh, throughout the 1880’s. 

Billy came to Christ whilst playing baseball in Chicago in 1886. Five years later, Billy left the sport whilst in his prime, being a household name across the USA, with the goal of labouring for Jesus. Billy was determined to give his best for Christ and not the baseball pitch. And so, Billy went to work for the YMCA, before moving into full time ministry, leaving the glitz, glamour and wealth of the baseball world behind.

It didn’t take long for Billy’s preaching to take effect on the nation. Already being a household name, people were curious as to how a sportsman at the peak of his skills playing America’s national game, could walk away from it all to become a mere travelling preacher. Billy’s dynamic and energetic preaching style reflected the energetic sportsman that he was, with its power and visible passion drawing in huge crowds wherever he went. It is estimated that Billy preached to over 100 million people over the course of his life. In these massively attended meetings, Billy preached the Gospel intently, leading thousands of lives to salvation in Christ Jesus.

Billy’s passion to reach people with the Gospel didn’t fade as old age advanced on him. In early 1935, at the age of 72, Billy suffered a minor heart attack, leaving his doctor to advise him sternly to retire from public preaching. Billy flatly refused his doctor’s medical guidance and continued preaching throughout the Spring and Summer of 1935. In late October of 1935, Billy was to give his last sermon on the text “What must I do to be saved?” It was a fitting close to a ministry that had been used by God to reach hundreds of millions of people.

On November 6th, 1935, Billy suffered a major heart attack whilst at his home with his wife Helen. After so many years of living so passionately for Christ, Billy’s heart was called to rest at last alongside his beloved Saviour in glory. At the funeral service some 3,500 people packed into the Moody Memorial Church in Chicago, whilst another near 20,000 filled the streets outside. Chicago said goodbye to a beloved servant of God, whilst the man himself, stepped forward into Paradise.