- The tone of this story somehow caught me off guard. I haven’t read a whole lot by Elliot–Passion and Purity as a young adult, and miscellaneous devotionals here and there are pretty much it, to my recollection. I somehow expected this one to be much more heart-wrenching from a personal standpoint. Perhaps it is because Elliot was telling the story of all the missionaries, not just the story of her little family. I always looked at these women with such awe, as well as a little bit of dread–to be widowed at such a young age? Unthinkable! Elliot’s tone is very reserved, almost distant. I never got much of a glimpse of the real impact Jim’s martyrdom had on her life. Although I think this probably says more about me than it does about the Elliots or any of their workfellows, I just cannot imagine how devastating this would’ve personally been. Instead, what we get from them is their devotion to the cause of Christ, with very little emotion at all. This paragraph sums up the impact according to Elliot:
The other wives and I talked together one night about the possibility of becoming widows. What would we do? God gave us peace of heart, and confidence that whatever might happen, His Word would hold. We knew that “when He putteth forth His sheep, He goeth before them.” God’s leading was unmistakable up to this point. Each of us knew when we married our husbands that there would never be any question about who came first–God and His work held first place in each life. It was the question of true discipleship; it became devastatingly meaningful now.
- I was struck somehow how mundane and even boring (or at least terribly unspiritual) much of their work in Ecuador was. This bit reminds me a lot of homeschooling. (I’m not in any way equating my life with theirs, but the fact is that no matter where our place of ministry, there’s a whole bunch of “maintenance” that goes into it. It’s definitely not all mountaintop experiences!) So much of what I do here at home is my work–“the only person who can cope with all this is the [mother] herself.”
Although Roger had come to preach the Gospel there is much a missionary must accomplish and learn before he can expect to make successful contact with a primitive tribe. And even after he had mastered the language, built himself a home, gained the confidence of the Indian, he still has to spend a large amount of time in what is best described as maintenance. The jungle grows with incredible speed and therefore has to be kept at bay by the constant use of the machete. The generators that are used for current at the bigger stations break down with irritating frequency, roofs leak in the hard tropical rain, and the only person who can cope with all this is the missionary himself.
- I was struck by the devotion that the missionaries were taught as children–all of the ones for whom Elliot gives childhood details were brought up in very upright, consecrated households. They understood the drive to share the Gospel from a very young age. It really made me think about how I’m raising my own children.
- I really understood the importance of Nate Saint’s ministry. Without him, really none of the ministry of the other missionaries could’ve happened.
- Like Kisses from Katie, this book makes me question my own passion for Christ and devotion to Him. Could I do what any of them did? I know I haven’t been called to do what any of them did (or, in the case of Katie Davis, is doing), but would I have what it takes? Certainly not in my own strength.
I really enjoyed reading this book, and I was always eager to read just one more chapter. I have seen the movie The End of the Spear (Barbara’s review here), but I’d like to go back and rewatch it now that I’ve read Through Gates of Splendor. I’d also like to read more of these missionaries’ stories and watch more of the documentaries that have been made about them. Barbara offers quite a few resources in this post.
Thank you, Barbara and Carrie, for the push to read this book. I’m so glad I did!
I’m so glad you enjoyed this book! I hadn’t thought about Elliot’s reserve, but it is true. She’s a staunch New Englander and not given to being very emotional, but she does mention the impact in some of her other books (this was her first one, so it may be that she hadn’t become comfortable with her writing voice yet, or maybe, as you said, since she was writing about several lives she refrained from saying much about her own then). One of my favorite passages in a book is in The Savage My Kinsman when she takes up beginning with her widowhood and quotes William Cullen Bryant’s “To a Waterfowl” and applies it to herself:
Whither, ‘midst falling dew,
While glow the heavens with the last steps of day,
Far, through their rosy depths, dost thou pursue
Thy solitary way?
There is a Power whose care
Teaches thy way along that pathless coast,–
The desert and illimitable air,–
Lone wandering, but not lost.
Thou’rt gone, the abyss of heaven
Hath swallowed up thy form; yet, on my heart
Deeply hath sunk the lesson thou hast given,
And shall not soon depart.
He, who, from zone to zone,
Guides through the boundless sky thy certain flight,
In the long way that I must tread alone,
Will lead my steps aright.
“The long way that I must tread alone” gets me every time. I’ve loved this poem ever since.
I saw just this morning that the Kindle store has several “Heroes of the Faith” Biographies on sale for 99 cents, and Jim Elliot is one (http://www.amazon.com/Jim-Elliot-Missionary-Martyr-ebook/dp/B00CCTVAIS/ref=sr_1_17?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1372681911&sr=1-17&keywords=heroes+of+the+faith) (Amy Carmichael, Corrie Ten Boom, and others are 99 cents). I haven’t read that one in particular.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts – on one hand I didn’t have a copy of this book or funds to buy it this month and on the other, I was scared to read it. : ) I may have to add it back to my tbr pile. I have loved what I have read of her other writings because she is so plain-spoken (non-emotional) and highly emotional me needs that some (a lot!) of the time. : )
I read “Through Gates of Splendor” as a a college student, but my favorite is actually “Shadow of the Almighty”, which just focuses on Jim Eliot and gets much more into his early life story. It’s one I own and have read a few times.
Another book by Elisabeth Elliot I really liked is “A Chance to Die”, which is a biography of Amy Carmichael. That’s another one I read in college that I would like to read again some time.
I loved this book and enjoyed reading your thoughts on it! I just picked up Elliot’s ‘Shaping of a Christian Family’ last night to reread, so it was neat to see this title here. 🙂
Here’s my review of ‘Splendor’ from a few years ago.
http://www.acrossthepage.net/2008/04/through-gates-of-splendor/
You are right – Elliot does have something of a distant story-telling style but I think she explains why in her conclusion. This is an interesting and inspiring story, yes and absolutely! But it’s ONE incident and I like that she is not attempting to put any of them the men or their widows on a pedestal.
I also like how you (and Shonya and others) have pointed out that the book is encouraging to us in our day-to-day living. True, that!
Loved hearing your thoughts and, once again, I’m glad you read along!
Yes, yes, I was also struck by the “mundane, tedium of daily life” and yes, I think it does compare to our mission field as homeschooling moms. 🙂 I really was blessed by this book.