Ellen Gould Harmon and her twin sister Elizabeth were born on November the 26th, 1827
in the town of Gorham, Maine, about 12 miles west of Portland.
The state of Maine has named her birthplace a historic site,
even though there is some question today over the exact place of the house.
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Her father Robert was a hat maker, and this was the family business.
Acting upon the information that hats sold for a much higher price in the south than the north,
he headed down south to the state of Georgia.
Whilst he was gone, though, something tragic would happen.
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Ellen and Elizabeth attended the Brackett Street School.
The building stands behind me today, although it's no longer used as a school.
And one day whilst walking home, they were shouted at angrily by a bigger girl.
Sensing trouble and wanting to avoid it, they started to run
and whilst running, Ellen turned to look, and in that split moment a rock smashed her in the face.
Despite bleeding heavily and fainting several times, she made it home and a doctor was called for immediately.
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The first doctor said that she wouldn't live more than a few days.
Another one suggested that they put some silver wire in her nose to maintain its shape
but in the end nothing was done.
She lay unconscious for three weeks
and when she finally regained her consciousness, she had no recollection.
Her face was forever changed, and when her father returned from his trip down south,
painfully for Ellen, he did not recognize her at first glance.
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Ellen had to put up with ridicule and name-calling from the children in her neighborhood
and struggled to read when she went back to school
and eventually she had to leave school.
The course of her life would take another massive turn when a popular preacher, William Miller, came to town.
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Her family were Methodists, and they went to hear him preach at a church on Casco Street, Portland.
They heard him speak convincingly and passionately about the soon and imminent return of Jesus.
It seems almost strange today to think that this was a radical new teaching.
They embraced this message and for this reason they were disfellowshipped
from the Chestnut Street Methodist Church here.
Not because anyone questioned their morals or Christian life,
but simply because they embraced the message of the soon return of Jesus.
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Ellen was 17 years old on October the 22nd, 1844
when Jesus did not come and they experienced the Great Disappointment.
Her twin sister Elizabeth and her brother Robert
would lose their faith in Jesus soon return in the coming weeks, though Robert would later regain it.
And so God ordained that out of obscurity,
from a small town in Maine in the northeasterly tip of the United States of America,
something great would emerge.
Despite suffering terrible injuries that would have hindered many other people in life,
despite a lack of education, facing ridicule about her appearance and faith,
God would use her to impact the world.
And so today, no matter how small or insignificant our background or experience may be,
God is looking for humble vessels that He can use.
May you be one of them.