Day 11: Elisabeth Elliot - “The Deepest Things”
“So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. ”
Introduction
Evangelism was always a part of Elisabeth Elliot’s life. Born to missionary parents, Elliot learned the importance of Christian missions at an early age and, being a missionary herself, carried that same heart for the gospel until the very end. It was rarely easy, however, as her life was filled with hardships. But instead of letting her sufferings push her away from evangelism, she felt compelled to deliver the good news of Christ. Through those trials, she learned and experienced the “deepest things of God.”
The Deepest Things
In 1952, Elisabeth Elliot moved to Ecuador with her husband, Jim Elliot, seeking to evangelize an isolated, violent tribe in the Amazon rainforest. Her boldest move for the gospel and greatest hardship came after her husband was speared to death by the Auca tribe. She was widowed at the young age of 29 with a 10-month-old daughter. However, instead of moving back home as everyone expected, after some time, she took her daughter and made the shocking decision to live among the Auca tribe, the very people who murdered her husband.
Despite being stricken with grief and fear, she didn’t conclude that the mission had failed. Rather, she trusted in God’s sovereignty and believed that He could use the deaths of her husband and the other missionaries. Although returning to the Auca tribe would intensify her suffering, Elliot remained devoted to God’s mission. It was because of this commitment that she experienced God more deeply. She grew in the blessings of obedience, the call to love and serve, the hope of joy in the midst of sorrows, and much more. Suffering on its own didn’t enable her to know God more deeply. It was her obedience within suffering that did.
Elliot once wrote, “The deepest things that I have learned in my own life have come from the deepest suffering. And out of the deepest waters and the hottest fires have come the deepest things I know about God.” By surrendering her sufferings to God for His kingdom, she learned the deepest things about Him. Doubtless, she remembered Jesus’ promise to his disciples after tasking them to make disciples: “And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matt. 28:20).
Reflection
Jesus’ promise is also for us today— He remains with us forever, especially when we face trials. Suffering inevitably comes, but like Elliot, let’s surrender it all to God, allowing Him to use it for His kingdom. In God’s hands, our greatest struggles become His best tools. As we stay devoted to His kingdom, may we know Him more and learn the deepest things about Him.