Wes Hall – Pace like Fire
The England cricket team has a new fast bowler. Jofra Archer stands in a line of formidable fast bowlers who have all come from the West Indian island of Barbados. He bowls at more than 90mph and has been causing real difficulties for the best batsmen in the world. Jofra’s father is British and in March he qualified to play for England. In just 3 months he has been the leading wicket-taker in the England team that won the World Cup and has played an important role in the Ashes series against Australia.
In the 1960s, Wes Hall was a fiery West Indian fast bowler. He had one of the longest run ups in the history of cricket and bowled at more than 90mph. The batsmen who faced him needed great skill and courage. He wanted to get his opponents out but never intended to injure them. A former captain of England, who faced Wes many times, said, “There was never a hint of malice in him or his bowling.” During his playing days, and since, Wes has been known as a lovely human being and in 2012 he received a knighthood.
Wes’s mother was a remarkable woman of faith who worked hard to create a home full of love for her children. Wes really looked up to her and her influence and discipline shaped his character. Looking back on his upbringing he said, “When I was young, I was religious, but it wasn’t until much later when I understood that I could accept Christ as my Saviour and experience a significant spiritual relationship with God.”
It was in 1990, when Wes was in Florida, that he heard a Christian preacher and made the greatest decision of his life. He wrote, “I turned to Christ as Lord, asking him to forgive my sins and be my personal Saviour. That’s when my new life began.” Wes went to Bible College and became a minister in the Pentecostal Church.
Reflecting on his life, Wes wrote, “I wasted some of the best years of my life not following Jesus. It has been wonderful in the years since to grow as a follower of Christ, to serve many cricketers and the West Indies team. One of the most special times was when Malcolm Marshall, another of our West Indies famous fast bowlers, in the last month of his life, entered into a conversation with me about his eternal life, and I had the joy of introducing Malcolm to his life-changing personal faith. It is a joy to know the Lord personally and to serve others.”
Posted on August 26, 2019 by Peter Milsom