From "The Woman with the Book".
One evening, when Mr. Aylward had finished reading his newspaper, Gladys began carefully, "I read in the London paper that the borders to China are opening up. Already an airplane from Shanghai has flown as far north as the city of Lanchow" Mr. Aylward looked at Gladys and said, "So?" Gladys went on, "Well, now something can be done, I mean, something must done for the people there." "So?' replied her father. "Father, I would like to go to China myself!" she cried.
Mr. Aylward suddenly sat straight up in his chair and cried indignantly, "What do you mean? You, go to China? What do you want to go and do there, you are not a nurse. What can you do?" "No, I'm not a nurse." she answered. "Well, then you can't nurse anyone." "No", she replied weakly. "And you're not a teacher. So you can't teach anyone." "No, I can't do that either". "What on earth do you want to do there then?" He asked, irritated. "Well, I believe I have a calling to go there to be a missionary," said Gladys.
Suddenly her father cried out in anger, "Out! Get out of the room! This nonsensical talk about China all the time--I've had enough of it! All you can do is talk, talk, talk! That is all you can do--just talk!" Gladys slipped from the room, crushed by her father's heated rejection. Had she not heard the Lord right? Suddenly, in the middle of her crying, she realized what her father had said. He had referred to her inborn talent, though it was by way of reproach: "The only thing you can do is talk". If that was really her only talent, then she had to use it! "O Lord, my father says that the only thing I can do is talk. Then I will talk and I will keep talking, but it will be about Thee! O Lord, may it be for Thy glory?"......In her little room later, she knelt down and pleaded fervently, "Lord, may it then be for Thee?" Then, these Bible words came so wonderfully and with so much encouragement to her mind, "Take no thought beforehand what Ye shall speak, neither do ye premeditati: but whatsoever shall be given you in that hour, that speak ye" for it is not ye that speak, but the Holy Ghost" (Mark 13:11)
Thus began the most unlikely ministry of a London chamber maid into the mountains of northern China, talking about her Jesus in the simplest way and carrying her "book" with her everywhere. The simple people of the mountains called her "the woman with the book", for the Bible was always with her and she read to them of the ways of God. She led a caravan of 100 children on a three week trek south out of the mountains to the Yellow River, fleeing the invading Japanese army, the oldest child being 17. She witnessed some of her young people whom she had spiritually nurtured, beheaded for their faith by the Chinese communists. Later, she felt compelled to trek up the mountains of Tibet, spurred on only by the Holy Spirit. The villagers warned her not to go, for, "it is the end of the world", they believed. She and her Doctor helper at last encountered a monastery of 500 Tibetan monks, isolated from all other humans but for their once a year herb selling trip down the mountain. On a trip some years earlier, a couple of monks had encountered a man who gave them a tract with John 3:16 on it. They tacked it up and all the monks read the verse over and over, puzzled at this God Who forgives sinners. When Gladys and the Doctor arrived, they were welcomed with, "We knew you would come." The two travelers taught them of the justifying righteousness of God through His Glorious Son. They then returned home, hearing later that many of the monks believed in Jesus, so much so that they all left the monastery and blended into the villages around about, many becoming preachers of the gospel. And all this just a matter of days before the Communist armies of Mao invaded Tibet and destroyed the monastery to the ground, the empty monastery, I might add!
Gladys Aylward's life was the subject of the 1958 movie, "the Inn of the Sixth Happiness"' starring Ingrid Bergman. Gladys was very upset by many errors in the movie and the book, "Little Woman" that it was taken from. Particularly, the portrayal of her romantic interest in a Chinese officer. She truly had only one Lover, and He was the Lover of her soul. Read and be blessed! Read and be convicted! Read and Worship the Holy God Who uses simple chamber maids who can only talk!
One evening, when Mr. Aylward had finished reading his newspaper, Gladys began carefully, "I read in the London paper that the borders to China are opening up. Already an airplane from Shanghai has flown as far north as the city of Lanchow" Mr. Aylward looked at Gladys and said, "So?" Gladys went on, "Well, now something can be done, I mean, something must done for the people there." "So?' replied her father. "Father, I would like to go to China myself!" she cried.
Mr. Aylward suddenly sat straight up in his chair and cried indignantly, "What do you mean? You, go to China? What do you want to go and do there, you are not a nurse. What can you do?" "No, I'm not a nurse." she answered. "Well, then you can't nurse anyone." "No", she replied weakly. "And you're not a teacher. So you can't teach anyone." "No, I can't do that either". "What on earth do you want to do there then?" He asked, irritated. "Well, I believe I have a calling to go there to be a missionary," said Gladys.
Suddenly her father cried out in anger, "Out! Get out of the room! This nonsensical talk about China all the time--I've had enough of it! All you can do is talk, talk, talk! That is all you can do--just talk!" Gladys slipped from the room, crushed by her father's heated rejection. Had she not heard the Lord right? Suddenly, in the middle of her crying, she realized what her father had said. He had referred to her inborn talent, though it was by way of reproach: "The only thing you can do is talk". If that was really her only talent, then she had to use it! "O Lord, my father says that the only thing I can do is talk. Then I will talk and I will keep talking, but it will be about Thee! O Lord, may it be for Thy glory?"......In her little room later, she knelt down and pleaded fervently, "Lord, may it then be for Thee?" Then, these Bible words came so wonderfully and with so much encouragement to her mind, "Take no thought beforehand what Ye shall speak, neither do ye premeditati: but whatsoever shall be given you in that hour, that speak ye" for it is not ye that speak, but the Holy Ghost" (Mark 13:11)
Thus began the most unlikely ministry of a London chamber maid into the mountains of northern China, talking about her Jesus in the simplest way and carrying her "book" with her everywhere. The simple people of the mountains called her "the woman with the book", for the Bible was always with her and she read to them of the ways of God. She led a caravan of 100 children on a three week trek south out of the mountains to the Yellow River, fleeing the invading Japanese army, the oldest child being 17. She witnessed some of her young people whom she had spiritually nurtured, beheaded for their faith by the Chinese communists. Later, she felt compelled to trek up the mountains of Tibet, spurred on only by the Holy Spirit. The villagers warned her not to go, for, "it is the end of the world", they believed. She and her Doctor helper at last encountered a monastery of 500 Tibetan monks, isolated from all other humans but for their once a year herb selling trip down the mountain. On a trip some years earlier, a couple of monks had encountered a man who gave them a tract with John 3:16 on it. They tacked it up and all the monks read the verse over and over, puzzled at this God Who forgives sinners. When Gladys and the Doctor arrived, they were welcomed with, "We knew you would come." The two travelers taught them of the justifying righteousness of God through His Glorious Son. They then returned home, hearing later that many of the monks believed in Jesus, so much so that they all left the monastery and blended into the villages around about, many becoming preachers of the gospel. And all this just a matter of days before the Communist armies of Mao invaded Tibet and destroyed the monastery to the ground, the empty monastery, I might add!
Gladys Aylward's life was the subject of the 1958 movie, "the Inn of the Sixth Happiness"' starring Ingrid Bergman. Gladys was very upset by many errors in the movie and the book, "Little Woman" that it was taken from. Particularly, the portrayal of her romantic interest in a Chinese officer. She truly had only one Lover, and He was the Lover of her soul. Read and be blessed! Read and be convicted! Read and Worship the Holy God Who uses simple chamber maids who can only talk!