Missionary Stories

We are all called to be missionaries for Jesus. Not everyone is called to be a fulltime missionary, but Jesus has missionary work for each believer to do. Here are two missionary stories for us to learn something from.

MISSIONARIES’ PROTECTION

A missionary named Von Asselt related the following story. He was a missionary to Sumatra from 1856 to 1876.
“When I fi rst went to Sumatra, in the year 1856, I was the fi rst European missionary to go among the wild Battas, although twenty years before that, two American missionaries had come to them with the gospel; but they had been killed and eaten. Since then no effort had been made to bring the gospel to these people, and naturally they had remained the same cruel savages.

“What it means for one to stand alone among a savage people, unable to make himself understood, not understanding a
single word of their language, but whose suspicious, hostile looks and gestures speak only a too-well-understood language, – yes it is hard for one to realize that. The first two years that I spent among the Battas, at first all alone and afterward with my wife, were so hard that it makes me shudder even now when I think of them. Often it seemed
as if we were not only encompassed by hostile men, but also by hostile powers of darkness; for often an inexplicable,
unutterable fear would come over us, so that we had to get up at night, and go on our knees to pray or read the Word of God, in order to fi nd relief.

“After we had lived in this place for two years, we moved several hours’ journey inland among a tribe somewhat civilized, who received us more kindly. There we built a small house with three rooms, – a living room, a bedroom, and a small reception room – and life for us became a little more easy and cheerful.

“When we had been in this new place for some months, a man came from the district where we had been, and whom I had known there. I was sitting on the bench in front of our house, and he sat down beside me, and for a while talked of this, that, and the other. Finally he began, ‘now Teacher, I have one request.’

“ ‘And what is that?’
“ ‘I would like to have a look at your watchmen close at hand.’
“ ‘What watchmen do you mean? I do not have any.’
“ ‘I mean the watchmen whom you station around your house at night, to protect you.’
“ ‘But I have no watchmen,’ I said again; ‘I have only a little herds boy and a little cook, and they would make poor watchmen.’

“Then the man looked at me incredulously, as if he wished to say, ‘O, do not try to make me believe otherwise, for I know better!’

“Then he asked, ‘May I look through your house, to see if they are hidden in there?’
“ ‘Yes, certainly,’ I said laughing; ‘look through it; you will not fi nd anybody.’ So he went in and searched in every corner, even through the beds, but came to me very disappointed.

“Then I began a little probing myself, and requested him to tell me the circumstances about those watchmen of whom he spoke. And this is what he related to me: ‘When you fi rst came to us, Teacher, we were very angry with you. We did not want you to live among us; we did not trust you, and believed you had some design against us.

Therefore we came together, and resolved to kill you and your wife. Accordingly, we went to your house night after night; but when we came near, there stood always, close around the house, a double row of watchmen with glittering weapons, and we did not venture to attack them to get into your house. But we were not willing to abandon our plan, so we went to a professional assassin and asked him if he would undertake to kill you and your wife.

He laughed at us because of our cowardice, and said: ‘I fear no God, and no devil. I will get through those watchmen easily.’ So we came all together in the evening, and the assassin, swinging his weapon about his head, went courageously on before us. As we neared your house, we remained behind, and let him go on alone.

But in a short time he came running back hastily, and said, ‘No, I dare not risk it to go through alone; two rows of big, strong men stand there, very close together, shoulder to shoulder, and their weapons shine like fire.’ ‘Then we gave it up to kill you. But now, tell me, teacher, who are these watchmen? Have you never seen them?’

“ ‘No, I have never seen them.’
“ ‘And your wife did not see them also?’
“ ‘No, my wife did not see them’.
“ ‘But yet we have all seen them; how is that?’

“Then I went in, and brought a Bible from our house, and holding it open before him, said: ‘See here; this book is the Word of our great God, in which He promises to guard and defend us, and we firmly believe that Word; therefore we need not see the watchmen; but you do not believe, therefore the great God has to show you the watchmen, in order that you may learn to believe.’ ”

We never need to fear when we work for Jesus, because He has promised to send His angels to protect us.

LIGHT AT LAST

Dr. Kirkpatrick, with the Baptist Mission in the Shan States of Burma, tells in the Missionary Review of an aged woman whom he met on a tour in the mountain district, where no missionary had ever before set foot:

“This old woman listened attentively, and apparently believed. She had never seen a white man, although according to her birth certificate, she was one hundred and twenty-three years old. As she sat huddled together by the fire, she said: ‘Teacher is it true that the Lord can and will save me, a woman? Do not deceive me; I am very old, and must soon fall into hell, unless this new religion is true. I have made many offerings, and made many long pilgrimages to the most sacred shrines, and still find no relief from the burden of sin. Please teach me to pray to this Jesus that can save.’

“I explained the plan of salvation, and God’s love for her, and taught her a simple prayer of a few words. She seemed very grateful. As I was about to leave her, she said: –
“ ‘ Teacher, you come from the great American country, do you not?’
“ ‘Yes,’ I answered.
“ ‘Is your country greater than the Shan country?’
“I assured her that it was.
“ ‘Are the people there all Christians?’

“I had to confess that they were not, but that there were many Christians.
“ ‘Were your parents Christians?’
“ ‘Yes, and my grandparents, and ancestors for several generations.’

“ ‘ My parents,’ she said, ‘died when I was young. My brothers and sisters are all dead. I have been married three times, and my husbands are all dead. I had nine children, and they are all dead. I had many grandchildren, and they are all dead except this one with whom I am living. I have seen three generations who will end up in hell. Now I believe in Jesus, and hope to go to the heavenly country when Jesus comes, after I die. If there are so many Christians in your country, and you have known about this Lord that can save for so long, why did you not come and tell us before, so that many of my people could have been saved?’ With the tears running down her cheeks, she said: ‘I am so glad to hear this good news before it is too late; but all of my loved ones will end up in hell. Why did you not come before?’

“That question still haunts me. I wish every Christian in America could hear it as I did.