Last night, Varun, Jessica (new staff at UBC!) and I watched "The End of the Spear" a movie about the five missionaries (Jim Elliot, Nate Saint, and 3 others) who were martyred while attempting to make contact and share the Gospel with a tribe in the Ecuadorian Jungle. (If you haven't seen this movie, watch it!) While the movie followed Nate Saint's son, Stevie, the missionaries were not shown to be without fault.
I have a few thoughts about this movie, but what really struck me was the eternal perspective it lent. In watching the film, I was forced to ask myself, how badly do I want others to know Jesus?!
This clip (www.youtube.com/watch#!v=NRQhwYfXjN4&feature=related) (starting at 2:40) shows Nate saying goodbye to his wife and kids before making first contact with the Waodani. He knew his trip may cost him his life. And yet he tells his adoring son that he is willing to die telling them as the Waodani aren't ready for heaven. This coming from a man who had given up a career and a comfortable life in America to serve God in Ecuador--this man was willing to give more, his life, so that the Waodani might stop killing each other and come to know God.
In the end, the reconciliation and the healing of the tribe is a beautiful testimony to the power of the Gospel. Jim Elliot's famous quote rings true in the life of Nate, Jim and the others, "He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose". The challenge for me, in walking away from this inspiring story, is:
What am I not willing to lose?
"If Jesus Christ be God and died for me, then no sacrifice can be too great for me to make for Him" -C. T. Studd
No comments:
Post a Comment