Thomas T. Martin was born on this day in 1862. The place was Smith County, Mississippi. His father was a Baptist preacher and college professor, but T.T. wanted to become a lawyer. That was not the Lord’s will. God had given him several special gifts, and He intended that Martin use them in the Baptist ministry. After graduation from Mississippi college, he began to study theology in Texas, supporting himself by teaching Natural Science at Baylor college.
After a short ministry in Kentucky, the Holy Spirit led Brother Martin to Leadville, Colorado for two years and then to Canon City. After a short return to Kentucky, where he nearly died from food poisoning, he returned to Colorado, pastoring in Cripple Creek. These Colorado ministries were primarily among hard rock miners – sinners of the most hardened variety.
Martin wanted to become a missionary in Brazil, but his health at the time prevented it.
Then in 1900 T.T. Martin began a new form of ministry – evangelism. In community after community, he would hold protracted meetings from two to three weeks. In these meetings he would preach twice a day, except on Sunday’s when he usually preach four times.
During this time, Martin began a third ministry. Using his knowledge of both the Bible and science, he became the author or a number of books. Today, if one googles his name, the first references which come up point to his fame as a proficient defender of Creationism. An anti-evolution theme began to permeate his campaigns. He even had meetings and set up a shop in Dayton, Tennessee, during the Scopes Monkey Trial.
In the case of T.T. Martin, pastoring, evangelism and apologetics came together in a powerful way. He died on May 23, 1939 and was buried in Gloster, Mississippi.