Christian Living

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Larry Lilly's Letter Thursday July 31, 2008

The late Amy Carmichael, she went to be with Christ in 1951, wrote numerous books, poems and songs while she served in India. Amy was born in Ireland, her parents were Presbyterians, and Amy was moved to serve in missionary work when she heard a sermon by Hudson Taylor. Later, she was the inspiration for at least one of the missionaries martyred in Ecuador, Jim Elliot. Amy served in India for 55 years without a furlough, rescuing over 1,000 female infants from the life of temple prostitute. I have an insightful prayer from Amy that sheds light on her commitment to her calling:

"God, harden me against myself."

On the surface it would appear that a woman of such accomplishment, of such a record of unbroken faithfulness in the midst of great physical suffering had in some degree overcome her SELF. Alas, such a victory is unattainable this side of glory, though we are to be aware of the struggle against our SELF and bring it and even every thought into the captivity of Christ.

Miss Carmichael knew how easy it would be to give into the ravages of time and infirmity and just lay around waiting for Jesus. She chose to surrender her pain to Christ, and though incapacitated, she continued to pray, to write and find ways to rescue the children.

To pray, "Harden me against myself" is a noble prayer and grand example for each of us as we plod along the path of our life. When Jesus talked about taking up the cross daily, He was dealing with this essential of the truly spiritual walk with Him. The cross is an emblem of death and thus emphasizes the necessity of the one who is carrying it realizing that death is imminent, in this case death to the self. Jesus pointed out this was to be done daily, because life is daily, and SELF has a way of resurrecting.

The principle of becoming hardened against the demands of SELF is recognized as primary in all schools of maximum human potential. It is only when we accept the reality of our depraved nature that we come to the true understanding that this nature must be controlled by a power greater than ourselves. A cursory or in depth study of the Bible will clearly demonstrate the fact that even the redeemed among us, must submit the SELF to Christ in some manner, or the consequences of this failure will reveal a truly messed up life.

One of the demands of SELF is the craving for approval by those of our own station in life. A key to Amy's prayer for hardening against herself, is revealed in an incident while she was a teen. One Sunday morning on the way home from church Amy and her two little brothers saw a very poor woman carrying a large sack. Amy wanted to help the lady, but felt embarrassment because her friends and neighbors would see this and she worried about what they would think. Protecting her SELF or obeying the prodding of the Lord was something she knew she must deal with. From her prayer later in life I assume she, like all of us, wrestled with this enemy we call SELF until the Lord took her home.

Larry Lilly Copyright © 2008 Use with credit

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