Amy Carmichael-So Many Said Don't Go!

By Mary Vee

Year: 1892 

Amy Carmichael: 25 year old

From Amy's Journal

Photo Courtesy

My name is Amy. 

Last week I wrote about a family friend, Mr. Wilson, who had asked me to help take care of him and his household. It was a good job and gave me the chance to study God's Word.

I also spent time leading Bible studies for people in the poor neighborhoods. There was a meeting for boys, one for girls, and one for factory women called Shawlies. 

My work kept me busy. So busy I barely took time to eat. Oh, I ate an orange or an apple for a meal, but to eat more than that I just couldn't take the time. 

My bad eating habits and spending much of my time around poor, sickly people cause me to become ill. I didn't want to take time to rest or eat. There was so much to do.  

God recently spoke to my heart, telling me to go to another land and tell the people about Jesus. I knew I needed to help the poor in some other land, and as I did, I would tell them about Jesus.

The more I prepared, the more I heard from friends, church people, and neighbors saying I should not go.

They said, "Who would want someone like you, Amy? You are a sickly person. What good could you do?"

I did look sickly. And often felt sickly. But I also knew in my heart God wanted me to go and serve Him in another country.

Mr. Wilson's two sons came to me and said, "You are so selfish, Amy. You know our father depends on you to do chores, care for his medical needs, and talk with him in the evenings. How dare you leave him like this?"

A few women from church stopped me one day and said, "Amy, dear, are you sure the Lord is calling you to be a missionary? Aren't you really looking for adventure? You really are being quite selfish forcing someone in another land to take care of a sickly person like you, after all we can't all be as strong as an ox."

With words like these, anyone would feel discouraged. And I did. 

But God did not give up. He continued to ask me to go and serve Him.

It took me a while, but I finally wrote my mother a letter explaining my desire to serve God in another country, and I sat down with Mr. Wilson to tell him. To my surprise, they immediately agreed to help me figure out what to do. They wrote letters to mission organizations asking where there was a need for someone like me. 

I wasn't surprised when Hudson Taylor invited me to go to China with his missionaries. He had strong rules, but he had a strong faith in God. I was so excited! My mind flittered with plans that needed to be done before I could go.

I was going to be a missionary in China!

Come back next time. I have much more to share!


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.

Don't forget to comment! 
Let Amy hear from you!

Amy Carmichael-The Shawlies

By Mary Vee

Year: 1885 

Amy Carmichael: 18 year old

From Amy's Journal

Photo Courtesy Amy's family moved from the
rich city of Millisle to a poor section of Belfast

My name is Amy. Even though I'm eighteen, I'm living at home with my mother and siblings. 

My dad died when I was seventeen. Even when dad was alive we didn't have very much money, but we were happy. Now that I'm older I'm looking for what I can do with my life. In my heart, I know that God wants me to serve him.

For now, I need to stay at home and help Mother care for my sisters and brothers. One of my brothers is only a year younger than me, so he helps, too. 

During my free time, I gathered boys and girls from the neighborhoods and streets and taught them Bible stories. On Sunday mornings, I noticed the poor girls from factories walking around. These girls couldn't afford to by hats to wear to church, so they didn't go. People in the city called these girls, Shawlies because they were poor working girls who usually wore a shawl.

I felt bad for these girls. Few people want to be around them. They needed to learn about the Lord as much as anyone else. 

I went into the city neighborhoods, everywhere the girls hung out on Sunday mornings and invited them to a Bible study. Sometimes people warned me not to go to certain streets where gangs lived. I couldn't stay away. The girls needed to hear about God's love for them.

The shawlies who came to the meetings wore dirty clothes, many hadn't bathed in a long time. Their clothes had holes and patches. Thanks to God, they saw how much I truly cared about them. This made me love them all the more and pray that they would grow up to be godly women.

I looked forward to each Sunday morning. 

The word about our Bible study spread among the factory girls. The number grew. We prayed together for God to send enough money to buy land and to build a building. 

God did send the money and we built our own Bible study meeting place. On the first Sunday we met in our new building we voted to name the place The Welcome, Because the building was for all who needed help, both physically and spiritually, to enter there and find hope.

I had hoped this Bible study could last forever. But life doesn't always turn out the way we want them to. I don't really understand what happened, but it seems someone took all of our savings that Father left us. Without money to pay the rent, Mom, my sister and I decided to move to England to look for work.

If you think of it, please pray for the girls at The Welcome.


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.

Don't forget to comment! 
Let Amy hear from you!