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Everlasting Pearl One of China's Women By: Anna Magdalena Johannsen |
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One of China's Women by ANNA MAGDALENA JOHANNSEN For Sixteen Years a Missionary in China With Preface by Walter B. Sloan Second Impression [Frontispiece: EVERLASTING PEARL. The photo was taken after her
marriage to Mr. Lü.] China Inland Mission
London, Philadelphia, Toronto, Melbourne and Shanghai
Morgan & Scott, Ltd.
12 Paternoster Buildings, London, E.C.
MCMXVIII First Edition October 1913
Reprinted January 1918
Completing 5000 copies
PREFACE
Thirty five years ago missionary work was commenced in the city of
Yüshan, situated on the Kwangsin River in Kiangsi, one of the central
Provinces of China. The conversion of "Everlasting Pearl," which is the subject of the
following narrative, is a part of the harvest which has been reaped in
later years by the missionaries of the China Inland Mission, who still
continue to carry on the work in this city and neighbourhood. In April of last year I had the privilege of spending ten days there,
and of addressing the Church on the Sundays. On the first Monday
morning we watched, with great interest, the departure of some of the
country Christians to their homes. The party consisted of a
simple looking company of men and women, clad in the plain blue
garments that the country people usually wear. The men were walking,
but the few women, with their diminutive feet, were perched on barrows,
and one of them was pointed out as being "evangelist, pastor, and
Biblewoman, all rolled into one," in the district from which they all
came. This was the woman, a part of whose life story is told in this
book, and after reading the many striking incidents which it contains,
I gladly welcome the opportunity afforded me of writing a brief
introduction. Even as a study of human life, the story is one that is full of
interest. It takes us far away from the ordinary beaten track right
into the heart of China; and so intimate is the writer's acquaintance
with the habits and customs of the people, that there are few, even of
those who know Chinese life well, who will not be able to learn
something from reading these pages. The Chinese are a people of strong character; and although this woman
stands out as being possessed of marked ability and determination,
there are other lives of which we catch a glimpse in which similar
features can be clearly discerned. It is, however, as an illustration of the power of the Gospel, in the
heart of one who was brought up in heathenism, that the narrative
possesses its supreme interest. In this case from the time when the
great decision was made, after long resistance, to yield to Christ and
trust in Him, there was no going back. We read of many trials,
sorrows, testings, but the onward and upward course is steadily
maintained. The religious devotee, when converted, always makes a better disciple
than the person who has been entirely indifferent to the concerns of
the soul; and so it was in the case of "Everlasting Pearl." She clung
strongly to the vow that she had taken when she became a vegetarian,
and on this account she long withstood the claims of the Gospel; but
when at last she heard the call of Christ, then she turned to Him in
full surrender and whole hearted obedience, and became a burning and a
shining light amongst her relatives and neighbours. The reader will observe the record of not a few dreams and visions in
the story; but instead of these tending to discredit its truthfulness,
they will only confirm it to those who know the life of the people of
this class in China. The statement is constantly being made that the Gospel spreads more
through the life and testimony of the converts themselves than by the
work of the missionaries. The way in which this woman was brought to
Christ, and the way in which she led others to Him, illustrates this
fact; but truth is many sided, and here we also see how large a
ministry there still is for the missionaries to exercise, and how much
they are needed to help the people in the midst of their struggles,
perplexities, and sorrows, by their counsel, kind sympathy, and their
prayers... Continue reading book >>
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