In 1944, the daughter of missionaries enrolled at Wheaton College to study classical Greek so she could translate the Bible. She married a classmate while on the mission field, and later he was murdered by the people he went to share the Gospel with.
The woman was Elisabeth Elliot. What did she do after the murder of her husband, Jim? She went back to minister to the same people. How could she do that?
Who Was Elisabeth Elliot?
Elisabeth Elliot was a child of missionaries (a Missionary Kid or MK, as we call it today) whose upbringing was immersed in the Gospel.
At Wheaton, she met Jim Elliot, her future husband. Jim departed for Quito, Ecuador, in 1951. She followed one year later, and they were married on the mission field in 1953. After their daughter was born in 1955, the couple transferred to the Shandia mission base to serve the Quechua people.
Less than a year later, they’d established what they thought was a successful inroad to share the Gospel with an unreached people group, the Waodani tribe. Members of the tribe speared all five male members of the missionary team to death. Elisabeth faced a daunting new task: grief, forgiveness, and continued missionary work.
Less than a year after her husband’s martyrdom, she wrote Through Gates of Splendor, her account of what transpired between the five men and the Auca Indian tribe they so desperately wished to give the Gospel. From 1958 to 1963, Elisabeth, her daughter Valerie, and Rachel Saint (sister of Nate, another team member slain with Jim) went to live among the Aucas, and the tribe gave Elisabeth the tribal name ‘Gikari,’ Huao (Woodpecker) because of her tall height.
Elisabeth spent her life serving God’s kingdom through prolific writing, speaking, and radio broadcasts. She was always quick to share Scripture and how it guided her life. Many people found solace not only in her words but also in the loving, gentle way she spoke. Elisabeth married seminary professor Addison Leitch in 1969. Leitch died in 1973, and she later married Lars Gren. Elisabeth died in 2015 at 88 years old in Magnolia, Massachusetts. In her later years, she suffered from dementia. Gren observed, “She accepted those things, they were no surprise to God.”
What Else Did Elisabeth Elliot Do?
We often wonder what leads to a lasting, righteous legacy in a person’s life. In Elisabeth Elliot’s life, it was not so much a what as a who. Yes, her parents taught her from a young age what it meant to follow the Lord Jesus, but she decided to follow Him wholeheartedly wherever He led her to go.
Sometimes this led to choices that surprised people in other ways. In 1966, Elisabeth wrote a novel titled No Graven Image, which upset many evangelical readers because it was a story about a missionary but had an unhappy ending. Critics saw it as discouraging people from becoming missionaries.
Other readers have seen No Graven Image as an honest, thought-provoking look at what the true cost of missionary work. Blogger and reviewer Vincent Kajuma wrote:
“By highlighting Margaret’s struggles to relate the image of missionary work that she had in her head with the work that stood before her, we too are brought to reconsider our view of what missions really are… What does one really think of God? Who is God? Have we graven our own image of Him? Is He the one we plan to serve or is He the one who serves our plan? Do we do so much for a God we don’t know? What are our motives? Are we God-made individuals, or copies of the most successful missionary, with no friends who aren’t a fellow missionary, a financial partner or a disciple/contact? These questions haunt you after reading Elliot’s book.”
The criticism followed her for several years—perhaps such an honest, albeit fictional, look at missional life didn’t suit the sensitivities of the 1960s. But Elisabeth never claimed to be a people-pleaser and continued writing and speaking. The hubbub died down, and she later began a daily broadcast through Back to the Bible Network (BBN) called Gateway to Joy, which was on-air for about thirteen years. She also continued writing and speaking.
Quotes by Elisabeth Elliot
Across her books and interviews, Elisabeth Elliot spoke about many things. Here are some of her most thought-provoking quotes:
On calling:
“As long as this is what the Lord requires of me, then all else is irrelevant.” — “Elisabeth Elliot: One of the Most Influential Women of the Twentieth Century,” by David Magster, Heroes of the Faith
On her upbringing:
When asked about the importance of quiet time during an interview with Nancy Leigh DeMoss, Elisabeth exclaimed some people remarked her childhood must have been boring because of never going anywhere or doing anything, she said, “Of course, we don’t feel the least bit bored. We feel greatly blessed. My father would always say to people who said to him, “How in the world do you ever get up at 5:00?” He’d say, “You have to start the night before.”
On everyday life:
In the same interview, when asked about everyday life, Elisabeth said, “I really do believe that every experience, if offered to Jesus, is our gateway to joy.” She added, “The older I get, the more I appreciate the privilege of having laundry to do, dishes to wash, houses to clean. If we could only realize that all of these which are incumbent upon us and required, when they’re offered to Jesus, they really are transformed. There’s something totally transforming about it.”
On human will and emotion:
Speaking to a group of women on Revive Our Hearts, Elisabeth said, “We are very likely to major in the emotional side of things rather than the will, and God has given to all of us, will and emotion. Which rules your life?”
On forgiveness:
Speaking on Gateway to Joy, Elisabeth expressed, “The price of forgiveness—does it seem high? Does it seem more than you can possibly give at this point? But look at the rewards. Look at the freedom and liberation. We’re just sinners, aren’t we? Sinners saved by grace.”
On the widows whose husbands were killed by the Aucas:
“The prayers of the widows themselves are for the Aucas. We look forward to the day when these savages will join us in Christian praise.” — “Elisabeth Elliot, Tenacious Missionary in Face of Tragedy, Dies at 88,” Sam Roberts, New York Times
On discipline:
“Discipline and love are closely linked in God’s Word. He disciplines us because He loves us.” — “Blessed Discipline,” Blue Letter Bible
On suffering:
Suffering means having what you don’t want or wanting what you don’t have.” — “There’s No Coming to Life without Pain: An Interview with Elisabeth Elliot,” Ligioner Ministry
“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.” — From her posthumously published book, Suffering is Never For Nothing.
On surrender:
“We are seed carriers. As the life of God is formed in me, my life has to die, progressively.” — “A Contest of Wills,” Blue Letter Bible
What Does Elisabeth Elliot Teach Us about Forgiveness?
Elisabeth joined the Revive Our Hearts broadcast to talk about forgiveness and said, “Struggling [with forgiveness] is simply delayed obedience.”
She was quick to go to Scripture to make a defense to anyone who asked her for a “reason for the hope that was in her; yet do it with gentleness and respect” (1 Peter 3:15). Elliot spoke her faith to millions when she went back to the same murderous people who made her a widow. She didn’t delay obeying God in her quest to share the Gospel with the Auca Indians.
So what can we learn from her example?
I think if Elisabeth were to answer this question, she would quote the Bible, which says, “Anyone whom you forgive, I also forgive. Indeed, what I have forgiven, if I have forgiven anything, has been for your sake in the presence of Christ” (2 Corinthians 2:10).
How Does Elisabeth Elliot’s Ministry Continue?
The Elisabeth Elliot Foundation seeks to bring all the work and ministry of Jim, Elisabeth, and their daughter, Valerie, together within ElisabethElliot.org.
Revive Our Hearts, founded by Nancy Leigh DeMoss (now Wolgemuth), succeeded Elisabeth Elliot’s Gateway to Joy at Elisabeth’s suggestion. Revive our Hearts: The Birth Story shares, “In June of 2000, Nancy placed a call to Bob Lepine of FamilyLife Today to tell him that God had confirmed in her heart that she was to proceed with the launch of a radio ministry. She later wrote in a letter: “As soon as I hung up the phone that day, with tear-filled eyes and quivering voice I sang all four stanzas of ‘Leaning on the Everlasting Arms.’”
Within six months, three ministries (Life Action Ministries, FamilyLife Today, and Back to the Bible) joined to start the new ministry, Revive our Hearts, and Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth began airing Revive Our Hearts in the fall of 2001, when Elisabeth retired from the radio.
As Christ-followers, we are to be undaunted in our proclamation of the Gospel, for as Jim Elliot said, “He is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose.” Elisabeth Elliot knew this; she lived by it, and her legacy is one of obeying Jesus’ Great Commission as one of His ambassadors.
Elisabeth Elliot lived her life with a winsome and straightforward gait, always leaning on the Lord and His Word. God used her to encourage others, and by His grace, we have numerous resources to investigate the life of a woman who loved the Lord and shared His good news.
Photo Credit: Getty Images/Boy Wirat
This article is part of our People of Christianity catalog that features the stories, meaning, and significance of well-known people from the Bible and history. Here are some of the most popular articles for knowing important figures in Christianity:
How Did the Apostle Paul Die?
Who are the Nicolaitans in Revelation?
Who Was Deborah in the Bible?
Who Was Moses in the Bible?
King Solomon's Story in the Bible
Who Was Lot's Wife in the Bible?
Who Was Jezebel in the Bible?
Who Was the Prodigal Son?
