Day 28: Jim Elliot - “Counting Others More Significant”
“Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. ”
Introduction
Jim Elliot grew up in a Christian household and from a young age, his parents encouraged him and his siblings to “live for Christ”. Elliot took this to heart as he grew up to be very outspoken about his faith in every aspect of his life. The true test of “living for Christ” came when he had decided to sacrifice his own life for the pursuit of sharing the Gospel with others.
Counting Others More Significant
In 1950, Elliot was made aware of a mission to share the Gospel with an isolated, violent tribe in Ecuador. While he was praying for God’s direction with regards to this mission field, those around him, including friends and family, urged him to consider becoming a youth pastor in the United States instead. However, he felt that there were enough people doing God’s work domestically and had a big heart for international missions. A few years later he found himself in Ecuador with his wife Elisabeth whom he had also met during the preparation for this mission.
While he had come to Ecuador to evangelize to that specific tribe, Elliot spent several years in preparation as he worked with other local Ecuadorians. He considered how best to approach this tribe of people. Him and his team had tried several indirect ways of sharing the Gospel like using loud speakers from afar or dropping down gifts from the air but these methods proved to be ineffective. Eventually, on January 8, 1956, Elliot and four other missionaries made the decision to simply visit the tribe on their island. This initial visit ended with the deaths of all five missionaries.
After Elliot’s death, his wife was called to minister to the very people who killed her husband. Her and their daughter eventually moved into the tribe’s village and lived among the people as she continued to share the Gospel with them. Many describe Elliot as an individual who did not hesitate to give up anything and everything when it came to sharing the Gospel. Even at the cost of his own life, he considered nothing of greater value or importance. He lived out his faith as he showed through his life and death that he truly counted others more significant than himself.
Reflection
Not all of us are called to be martyrs. However, we are all similarly called to count others more significant than ourselves. What are some things, whether big or small, that prevent us from sharing the Gospel or sharing God’s love with those around us? Let us pray that we may be able to lay down our justifications, our pains, our very selves for those around us as Christ laid down himself for us.