Amy Carmichael was a missionary in the 19th century.
She was born not too far away from me in a seaside town in Northern Ireland. Her story shows that even in the 19th century Amy was suffering with how she looked and she wanted to be different. Her story also shows how God makes us all in his image and for his own amazing purpose.
As a young girl, Amy Carmichael wished she had blue eyes instead of brown. She even prayed that God would change her eye colour and was disappointed when it didn’t happen. At age 20, Amy sensed that the Lord was calling her to serve Him as a missionary. After serving in various places, she went to India.
Amy would go on to India and become one of the greatest missionaries to set foot in that land. In her time there Amy founded an orphanage, school, and safe-house for young girls. Amy played a major role in breaking the ancient practice of abandoning baby girls to the steps of pagan temples to be trained up as cult prostitutes. Countless girls were saved from lives of prostitution, and instead were taught to read and given back their dignity that society had taken away–and they were saved eternally to Jesus through the hearing of the Gospel.
Amy learned that her ‘unwanted’ brown eyes were a far more precious gift from God than the value she once placed on blue ones. Enabling her to easily fit into the culture of India, God had wisely given her the features of dark brown hair and brown eyes–just like the thousands of young girls and women that she would one day grow up to rescue.
I want Amy’s story to encourage you that the Lord has an amazing purpose for you, with your talents and gifts he customised JUST FOR YOU.
For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.
Ephesians 2:10
