Jim Elliot: God Is Glorified by Asking the Impossible of Him
IN JANUARY 1948, while attending Wheaton College in Illinois, twenty-year-old Jim Elliot began a journal which became among the most famous spiritual records of the twentieth century. Meditations on Bible readings prompted many of his entries. Word studies were the focus of other daily logs, while some mentioned books or alluded to battles with temptation. Now and then he tried his hand at poetry. Sometimes an entry breathed a prayer.
Thus, on this day 13 December 1948 he rejoiced that God had become man, a babe on prickly straw. “O Jesus, my Immanuel, how grateful I am that Thou art no less with me in common places than in elevated ones. He who stooped to babyhood in a stable will not defer stooping to abide in this poor, dark, stable-like heart of mine, I know!”
His entry for this day, 13 December 1949 was an analysis of nineteen Greek words used by Paul to describe the sinfulness of men in 2 Timothy 3:1-5—for example: “Aphilagathoi: not regarding good as a thing to be cherished.”
In 1950, while waiting for God to send him to a mission field, he took part-time jobs and corresponded with Elisabeth Howard. The two were in love, but were waiting God’s timing to marry. Increasingly he desired to work in Ecuador, but lacked the means to go. On this day, 13 December 1950 he recorded a trip to Chester, Illinois and three prayer requests connected with it. Admitting that his requests for souls, for equipment, and for more education seemed absurd to the outward eye, he concluded, “I think God is to be glorified by asking the impossible of Him.”
Elliot began mission work in Ecuador in 1950. Two years later, he and Elisabeth married. Elliot began trying to make contact with Ecuadaor’s reclusive Waodani Indians. His last journal entry was 31 December 1955, describing a month of temptations. Eight days later, Waodani Indians martyred Elliot and four missionary associates. When the news reached the public, a shipwrecked sailor recalled Jim Elliot’s words: “When it comes time to die, make sure that all you have to do is die.”
—Dan Graves
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Watch Through Gates of Splendor, the Elliot story, at RedeemTV.
Torchlighters: The Jim Eliot Story can also be streamed at RedeemTV.
Available at Vision Video are Suffering is not for Nothing from Elisabeth Elliot, widow of Jim and End of the Spear double feature.