Amy Carmichael-What Better Story to Share at Christmas?

By Mary Vee

Year: January, 1904-1906 

Amy Carmichael: 36 years old

From Amy's Journal

Photo Courtesy

My name is Amy Carmichael. I am a missionary in India.

Arulai was a ten-year-old girl. Her story of asking Jesus into her heart has been so exciting to share.This is now the fifth week I am continuing her story. 

Yes, a ten-year-old can have an amazing story! If you want to read the first four parts of Arulai's story here are the links: Part 1, Part 2 ,Part 3, Part 4

Arulai had heard Indian missionaries and foreign missionaries lived in the next village. I was one of those foreign missionaries working there.

Arulai set out the the morning to walk from her uncle's village to ours. On the way she stopped, concerned she didn't have anything to give as an offering. Every time she went to worship the Hindu gods she always had an offering. She prayed, "Oh, Living God, what can I do. How can I go to the Christian temple without something for the offering?"

She saw something on the ground reflect the sunlight. She bent down and found a coin. "I really wasn't surprised," she told me later. "Of course the Living God could put the coin there for me."

Arulai walked the rest of the way to the village then to the building where we held our meetings. She sat with the children and put her offering into the basket when it went by. She listened to the preacher talk about God. I remember watching her curious eyes so interested in every word.

After the meeting, Arulai looked my way. I walked to her. "Did you want to speak with me?"

She answered, "Oh yes. I have been searching for you. I saw you by the well near my home. I heard you and the other missionaries talking about the Living God. I decided then that I wanted to find you and ask you questions."

"Why me?"

"Because you are willing to dress like us. You also talked about the Living God. You look like a person who truly loves the Living God.

"I do," I answered. "How can I help you?" She asked me many questions. She didn't seem to understand what God had done for her.

"Arulai, we all have done bad things. Do you understand so far?"

"Yes. I know I have done bad things."

"These wrong choices are what prevent us from going to heaven. See, heaven is a perfect place where no sin (bad choices) can be."

"Because I've done bad things I can't go to heaven?" Arulai's beautiful brown eyes looked up toward me.

I kneeled next to her. "That's right. God really loves all of us and would like us to be with Him in heaven, but not one of us is good enough to go."

"What if we say we're sorry and then work to go to heaven."

Her sweet question made me smile. "That would be nice but we'd still have our old sin. No, we could never be good enough to go to heaven. And God knew we couldn't. But He loved us so much that He provided a way for us to be able to go to heaven with Him."

"What is the way?" she asked.

"Well, God sent His own Son to take our punishment. God's Son is perfect. He never ever did anything wrong. God's Son loved us so much that He left heaven to live with us. We call Him Jesus. 

"Jesus came as a baby, he grew up and taught us what God wanted us to do. There were evil people who convinced others to kill him. In those days they hung people on a cross until they died. That was the way. A perfect one had to die to pay the price for our sins. Three days after Jesus died, he rose from the dead and visited people He knew to show them He'd come back to life. Days later He went back to His home in heaven. So you see, Jesus, the Living God loves you so much, He took the punishment for your sins."

Tears dripped down Arulai's cheeks. "No Hindu god has ever done anything like that."

"I know. Jesus is giving you a gift, Arulai. The gift of life--if you believe."

"I want to believe, right now," she said. 

And so she did. We prayed and Arulai told God she believed His Son died for her and that she wanted Him to be her Savior.

Unfortunately, life is not easy for Hindu's who leave their faith to follow Jesus. 

Come back next time to read the more of this exciting story about little Arulai.


Resources used for this series:. 
Benge, Janet, and Geoff Benge. Amy Carmichael: Rescuer of Precious Gems. Seattle, WA: YWAM Pub., 1998. Print.
Davis, Rebecca Henry. With Daring Faith: A Biography of Amy Carmichael. Greenville, SC: Bob Jones UP, 1987. Print.
Dick, Lois Hoadley. Amy Carmichael: Let the Children Come. Chicago: Moody, 1984. Print.
Meloche, Renee Taft., and Bryan Pollard. Amy Carmichael: Rescuing the Children. Seattle, WA: YWAM Pub., 2002. Print.
Wellman, Sam. Amy Carmichael: A Life Abandoned to God. Uhrichville, OH: Barbour Pub., 1998. Print.

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