Amy Beatrice Carmichael is an Irish Christian missionary born in the year 1867. She is also known as the rescuing mother of India who opened her heart to thousands of children throughout southern India. One of her quotes says, “You can give without loving, but you can’t love without giving.” Her heart and soul were fully devoted to serving Jesus Christ. She served in India for 55 years, wrote 35 books about her work as a missionary, and thousands of spiritual letters.
God’s word admonishes us to follow them who, through faith and patience, obtained the promise (Heb 6:12). Therefore, in this article, we will be exploring the unique qualities that made her journey a glorious one.
“Life of Abiding Gold”
Amy Carmichael had an encounter where a voice said, “Gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, and straw—the fire will test what sort of work each has done. If the foundation survives, he will receive the reward” (1 Corinthians 3:12-14). She turned to see who was speaking but saw no one. This made her ask God for the strength and courage to make a difference. She decided to do only those things of gold and silver—the things that will stand the test of fire, only those things that would abide. This is a decision that is worthy of emulation—to live a life of abiding gold!
“Not Sacrifice but Love”
Secondly, she saw the Christian life as a chance to die to oneself so that Christ might be revealed. For her, it was not a life of sacrifice but a life of agape love, in which the good news of Jesus Christ could shine into unimaginable darkness. She is a selfless missionary who dedicated her life to loving the unloved children. She loved them with a mother’s unconditional love to the extent that she kissed each child good night for years until the children numbered in the hundreds. They were her darling children, and she was their precious Amma. One of her quotes says, “Love makes you give,” and her prayer was, “Lord, let the glow of thy great love shine through my whole being.” It would be beneficial for one to say this prayer and live out this giving life of love in their walk with God.
“Unwavering Faith in God”
She was a woman that prayed and always received her answer no matter how long it took. She did not waver but believed that God’s word must prevail in all circumstances. In one of her mission outreaches, she desired to build a church for the community to attend but didn’t know where she would get money for such a large project. She did not want to ask the rich people in her old church who didn’t seem to care about those people. Instead, she and the people prayed to God for provision, and God answered their prayers, and a new church was built. Another act of faith from her was when she prayed for a man that had a fox spirit and said, “Let us know when your husband is delivered from the power of the fox spirit, for our God will conquer, and we shall go home and pray till we hear that He has.” Within an hour, she received an exciting testimony from the relative that the man was healed!
“Pursuing and Fighting Spirit”
She was a missionary that pursued purpose at all costs. One of her confessions was, “Whatever thou sayest to me, by thy grace I will do.” This made her resolute in her decisions whenever she got a word from the Lord. Even in the midst of health challenges, when she had to use a wheelchair, she still wrote. And when she eventually developed a problem with her upper limbs, she dictated her messages for someone to write.
“Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.” 2 Timothy 2:1, 3 KJV
Finally, I’ll conclude with one of her quotes which says, “If my interest in the work of others is cool, if the burdens of others are not my burdens too and their joys mine, then I know nothing of Calvary love.” May the grace of the Lord fire this kind of giving love in us, in Jesus’ name, Amen.
Written by Sis Blessing C. Ugwu (Team Watchmen)