They advised that he serve alongside an experienced missionary before traveling to more remote and dangerous regions of the frontier. Brainerd agreed and arrived in Stockbridge, Massachusetts early in the spring of 1743. Under the oversight of John Sargent, Brainerd could study the Algonquin language, minister, and learn.

His living conditions were trying, and he often struggled with feelings of doubt and inadequacy. But in his journal, there are repeated references to the fact that he felt unworthy even of these difficult circumstances. Moreover, as he reflected upon his hardships, his journal filled with repeated expressions of gratitude to the Lord. He saw that these experiences helped wean him from this world and cultivate a longing for heaven.

Later that summer, he left his hosts and decided to live among the nearby Indians. He moved into a wigwam in Count Amick, New York. This was not necessarily more ideal lodging, but it eliminated the need for daily travel. It also allowed him to live directly with the people that he sought to evangelize and to learn their language in context. But it also left him void of Christian fellowship.

Brainerd’s heavenly-mindedness

Difficult physical and social circumstances led Brainerd regularly to reflect on heaven. Over and over again he wrote journal entries like,

Towards night found a little time for particular studies. I thought if God should say, ‘Cease making any provision for this life for you shall be a few days and be an eternity,’ my soul would leap for joy, oh, that I may both desire to be dissolved to be with Christ, and likewise wait patiently all the days of my appointed time until my change would come.

Some criticize Brainerd for his desires to die. But these desires are not unlike those of the Apostle Paul. And despite this heavenward focus, Brainerd’s productivity in ministry was never hindered. To the contrary, his longing to be with Christ pressed him to work hard, to make the most of each moment, and to sacrifice the temporary things of this life that he might enter the next in a worthy manner.

Ministry on the frontier

After spending almost a year in Count Amick, it was time for David to move to the frontier. He went to the forks of the Delaware River, Northeast of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Whereas ministry in Count Amick was under the general oversight of an older, more experienced missionary, he would now be on his own.

He needed to find a translator until he could learn the language, because the dialect of the region was entirely different than what he had studied. He soon found a translator, Moses Tatamy, who would eventually become the first convert of Brainerd’s ministry. Moses would grow over the next several years to be his dear friend.

Brainerd had contracted tuberculosis some time earlier, but the hardships of ministry on the frontier caused it to increasingly manifest itself. He began taking trips to the surrounding regions to seek new opportunities to spread the gospel. On these journeys, he was frequently exposed to the elements, which in turn would aggravate his tuberculosis and often leave him writhing in pain and even praying for death. Perhaps worst of all, Brainerd was left to suffer these pains in isolation, void of the comforts and encouragements of Christian fellowship.

But encouragement came when he began to witness the fruit of his labors.

…To be continued