320: The Forty Martyrs of Sebaste
March 10, 320: The Forty Martyrs of Sebaste are remembered for confessing Christ when forty soldiers in Sebaste of Armenia were ordered to sacrifice to pagan gods under the persecution of Licinius. Refusing, they were stripped and driven onto a frozen lake through the night, promised a warm bath if they renounced their Lord. One broke and fled, but a guard—Aglaius—was so shaken by their courage and the hope they proclaimed that he confessed Christ and took the deserter’s place, completing the forty. Their witness teaches that unity, endurance, and love for Christ outweigh even death.

673: A Bishop’s Steady Hand for God’s House
On March 10, 673, Saint Agilbert, bishop of Paris, witnessed the charter for Clotilde’s Abbey of Bruyères-le-Châtel, lending his authority to secure the abbey’s rights and provision. Agilbert was no stranger to the wider church: after serving among the West Saxons in England and standing for unity in the faith, he returned to Gaul to shepherd Paris with wisdom and courage. By publicly attesting this charter, he helped protect a community set apart for prayer, worship, and mercy—showing that faithful service includes humble, careful stewardship of what is dedicated to the Lord.

1528: Faithful Unto Death: Balthasar Hubmaier
On March 10, 1528, Balthasar Hubmaier, a gifted German reformer and influential writer among the Anabaptists, was burned at the stake in Vienna after arrest in Moravia. Once a respected scholar and preacher, he became convinced by Scripture that faith must be personal and that conscience must not be forced, even writing against the killing of “heretics.” Under harsh imprisonment and torture he would not deny what he believed God had shown him. His calm courage in suffering, followed days later by his wife’s death, still calls believers to steadfast truth, humble conviction, and hope in Christ beyond the flames.

1615: John Ogilvie Stands Firm
March 10, 1615: John Ogilvie was hanged at Glasgow Cross after months of imprisonment and interrogation for refusing to grant the crown authority over Christ’s church. Though charged with treason, his “crime” was conscience bound to the Lord’s supremacy in spiritual matters. Offered life if he would yield, he chose faithfulness over safety, praying and commending himself to God as he died. His witness reminds believers that earthly powers may demand what only Christ deserves, and that steadfast courage—spoken without bitterness—can honor Him even when it costs everything.

1681: A Charter for a “Holy Experiment”
Charles II granted William Penn, only 26, a charter making him sole proprietor of the vast American territory soon called Pennsylvania, largely to repay a debt owed to Penn’s late father. Penn received this trust with a sense of stewardship before God, envisioning a place where conscience would not be coerced and where the persecuted could worship in peace. Though a Quaker, he appealed to broadly Christian principles—justice, mercy, and honesty in public life. His “holy experiment” encouraged orderly government, fair dealing, and a hopeful witness that faith can shape society for the good.

1747: Delivered Out of Deep Waters
On March 10, 1747, aboard the slave-trading ship Greyhound in a fierce North Atlantic storm, John Newton—hardened by sin and complicit in human misery—was brought face to face with death as the vessel took on water. Crying out for mercy and laboring with the crew through the night, he began to pray in earnest and turn to the Scriptures, later writing, “That 10th of March is a day much to be remembered by me; and I have never allowed it to pass unnoticed since the year 1748. For on that day the Lord came from on high and delivered me out of deep waters.” That rescue became the seed of lasting repentance, leading to faithful ministry, Amazing Grace, and courageous abolitionist witness.

1748: Grace in the Storm
On March 10, 1748 (O.S.), John Newton, a 22-year-old slave-ship captain, faced a terrifying storm at sea aboard the Greyhound and, with death seemingly near, cried out to God for mercy. That desperate prayer marked the beginning of his conversion to a saving Christian faith—proof that the Lord can reach the hardest heart in the darkest moment. Though his repentance unfolded over time, God steadily turned him from sin toward humble obedience, later calling him into pastoral ministry. Newton would go on to write “Amazing Grace” and to bear witness, with growing clarity, against the evil he once served.

1858: A Pastor-Theologian Called Home
Nathaniel William Taylor died in New Haven, Connecticut, on this day in 1858, after decades of service as pastor and as Yale’s influential teacher of theology. Remembered for shaping the “New Haven” approach, he sought to express the freedom of the will in a way that pressed the claims of God’s law upon real life, urging sinners to repent without excusing unbelief. Under his preaching his New Haven congregation saw marked growth and seasons of revival, reminding the church that careful doctrine and earnest appeals belong together. His life calls us to think clearly, pray deeply, and obey promptly.

1867: A Young Disciple at the Table
On March 10, 1867, Chuang Ching-feng, a young Taiwanese believer, was baptized and received the Lord’s Supper for the first time, publicly confessing Christ and turning from former ways despite the social cost. In those early days of the gospel’s spread on the island, such a step marked courageous separation from idols and a new loyalty to Jesus and His people. Chuang’s zeal was earnest, though later marred by the unwise attempt to compel his fifteen-year-old wife to attend church; within months he would die at the hands of a hostile mob. His brief life still testifies that saving faith is worth everything.

1879: Paul of Taganrog’s Faithful Finish
On March 10, 1879, Paul of Taganrog fell asleep in the Lord after decades of hidden holiness. Born to wealth and noble standing, he laid aside inheritance and titles, choosing pilgrimage, simplicity, and unceasing prayer until he settled in Taganrog to live an ascetic life of fasting, vigil, and mercy. The poor and ordinary flocked to him for counsel, finding in his gentleness a fearless call to repentance, faith, and hope in Christ. He received visitors with Scripture, short prayers, and practical love, asking no payment. His death strengthened many, and the Russian Orthodox Church will later honor him as a saint.

1880: Hats of Scarlet, Hearts of Mercy
On March 10, 1880, Commissioner George Scott Railton stepped onto New York’s shores after a rough Atlantic crossing marked by a broken engine, joined by seven young women whose hats bore scarlet ribbon and gilt letters: “The Salvation Army.” Sent by William Booth, they arrived with little money but steadfast faith, determined to preach Christ, call sinners to repentance, and serve the city’s forgotten poor. Their courage—unashamed to witness in public—helped spark a work of evangelism, prayer, and practical mercy that soon spread across America, showing how God uses humble, willing servants to bring hope.

1897: Guido Verbeck’s Homegoing in Tokyo
Verbeck died in Tokyo on March 10, 1897, after a lifetime of patient gospel-minded service in Japan. For a decade in Nagasaki he quietly earned trust, teaching English with the New Testament and the U.S. Constitution, and mastering Japanese so he could speak to heart and mind. When former students rose to lead the new Meiji government, they called him to Tokyo, where his counsel, language skill, and Western contacts strengthened education and public life, even as he urged religious freedom. Japan honored him with the Third Order of the Rising Sun, a rare tribute to faithful, humble influence.

1913: Harriet Tubman’s Faith-Fueled Courage Remembered
On March 10, 1913, Harriet Tubman died in Auburn, New York, after a life that displayed courageous, living faith. Born enslaved in Maryland, she escaped and then returned again and again to guide others to freedom through the Underground Railroad, risking her life with steadfast trust in God’s leading. During the Civil War she served the Union cause as a nurse, scout, and guide, and later opened her home to care for the elderly and needy. Her witness reminds us that true belief shows itself in mercy, sacrifice, and persevering obedience when the cost is high.

1937: Toynbee Recognizes Christianity’s Unmatched Impact
On March 10, 1937, English historian Arnold J. Toynbee—already renowned for his sweeping studies of civilizations—wrote that in less than 2,000 years Christianity had produced greater spiritual effects than any other spiritual movement known to history. In a world drifting toward war and captivated by false gospels of power, his judgment stood as a sober witness: the cross has shaped conscience, lifted the poor, dignified every human life, and inspired costly love through saints, missionaries, reformers, and martyrs. His words encourage believers to trust that God still bears lasting fruit through faithful obedience.

1977: Fire in the Mountains of Duranmin
On March 10, 1977, in the remote community of Duranmin in Papua, New Guinea, a small Christian assembly became the scene of a sudden spiritual awakening while Diyos, principal of the Sepik Baptist Bible College, spoke to the gathering. Those present testified to an unexpected work of God: about fifty listeners began speaking in tongues, and the meeting turned from ordinary attendance into fervent prayer and repentance. The event strengthened believers to seek holiness, to trust the Lord’s power rather than human strength, and to carry the gospel with fresh courage into neighboring homes and villages.