Elisabeth Elliot - Suffering Is Never for Nothing

Other Works by Elisabeth Elliot

Through Gates of Splendor

Shadow of the Almighty

The Journals of Jim Elliot

These Strange Ashes

Let Me be a Woman

The Mark of a Man

Discipline: The Glad Surrender

Be Still My Soul

Passion and Purity

A Lamp for my Feet

On Asking God Why

A Path Through Suffering

Gods Guidance

A Chance to Die: The Life and Legacy of Amy Carmichael

The Shaping of a Christian Family

Keep a Quiet Heart

Quest for Love

The Music of His Promises

Secure in the Everlasting Arms

No Graven Image

Path of Loneliness

Copyright by Elisabeth Elliot Gren

All rights reserved.

Printed in the United States of America

978-1-5359-1415-4

Published by B&H Publishing Group

Nashville, Tennessee

The publisher thanks Margaret.

Dewey Decimal Classification: 248.84

Subject Heading: FAITH / SUFFERING / DISCIPLESHIP

Scripture references marked kjv are taken from the King James Version, public domain.

Scripture references marked nkjv are taken from the New King James Version. Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture references marked nasb are taken from the New American Standard Bible, copyright 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation.

Scripture references marked rsv are taken from the Revised Standard Version, copyright 1946, 1952, and 1971 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture references marked niv are taken from the New International Version, copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Scripture references marked nrsv are taken from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Vector leaf art courtesy of VectorStock.

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Foreword

F or centuries weve heard that the blood of martyrs is the seed of the church, and the blood of Jim Elliot certainly overflowed the ink wells into which Elisabeth dipped her pen. She gave us invigorating martyr-words that inspired generations of courageous missionaries to take the gospel into foreboding jungles, deserts, and cities great and small. She also gave those same words to inspire us. Especially when suffering hit us broadside.

I was first introduced to Elisabeth Elliot in 1965 when, in high school, I read her book Through Gates of Splendor . I had no idea that right after graduation and a diving accident, I would enter those dark valleys about which Elisabeth wrote. I then met her years later in 1976 when we were both speakers at a conference in Canada. I was only twenty-six with less than a decade under my belt as a quadriplegic, and I could hardly believe I was sharing the same plenary platform with this saint of the age.

One evening, she came to my hotel room. As Elisabeth sat on the edge of my bed, we opened our hearts and shared how God had remained so faithful to us through so much suffering. We agreed that no one participates in Gods joy without first tasting the afflictions of His Son. And before she left, she smiled and said, Suffering is never for nothing, Joni. It was so Elisabethan, and I thought I understood what she meant. After all, nine years of quadriplegia had made me take seriously the lordship of Christ in my life, refining my faith, and giving me a deeper interest in prayer and the Word.

Two years later, I even wrote about these things in a book. I was pleased with my list of the thirty-five good biblical reasons as to why God allows affliction and what you can learn from it! I asked Elisabeth if she would offer an endorsement, which she did. But in her cover letter, she confessed that although the book was very satisfactory, it was a bit technical. Her comment crushed me. It took a few more years of quadriplegia, and the encroachment of chronic pain to help me see there was moremuch moreto suffering than learning its theological background and benefits.

Elisabeth Elliot knew that true maturity, joy, and contentment has less to do with a mechanistic assessment of Gods plan, and more to do with being pushed and, at times shoved, against the breast of your Savior. Not a tidy, orderly list, but an earnest grappling with the angel of the Lord. When affliction decimates you, then you understand Elisabeths doctrine: The Bibles answers are never to be separated from the God of the Bible. That rich truth then guided me through more than fifty years of paralysis, pain, and cancer.

We are invigorated by Elisabeths no-nonsense, go-out-and-die way of living the Christian life. She made us see that we are on a fierce battlefield upon which the mightiest forces of the universe converge in warfare. And we happily rise to that challenge, totally energized by this remarkable womans exalted vision for the church. Her life and writings are food and drink to those whom God places upon altars of affliction.

And now with Suffering Is Never for Nothing , we have another collection of fresh, insightful writings from which to be nourished. Thankfully, although our friend is now in heaven, more of her material is now available to spur us on in the battle. The book you hold in your hands is a wonderful new portfolio of Elisabeths ponderings, and as you peruse each page, imagine Elisabeth looking over your shoulder from the grandstands of heaven, encouraging you to embrace the Lord Jesus in your afflictions.

Let our friend show you how suffering is never for nothing. Linger long on this womans sage wisdom, for there are epiphanies yet to dawn on your horizon, showing you even brighter excellencies of Jesus and more astounding beauties of His gospel. Let the timeless truths in this brand new book spur you on. Take to heart her words and one day when together we pass through heavens gates, they will indeed be splendorous .

Joni Eareckson Tada

Joni and Friends International Disability Center

Spring 2019

Publishers Preface

E lisabeth Elliot died on June 15, 2015 at her home in Magnolia, Massachusetts. At the time of her death, she had suffered dementia for many years and was undoubtedly ready to go be with the Savior of whom she taught so many so faithfully. I know that she did this because she taught me. I didnt have the opportunity to meet her until late in her life, when dementia had already stolen her voice, but her words will always be seared in my heart and mind.

Hear the call of God to be a woman. Obey that call. Turn your energies to service. Whether your service is to be to a husband and through him and the family and home God gives you to serve the world, or whether you should remain, in the providence of God, single in order to serve the world without the solace of husband, home, and family, you will know fullness of life, fullness of liberty, and (I know whereof I speak) fullness of joy.

That quote, from Let Me Be a Woman , is one of hundreds that have challenged, encouraged, frustrated, and led me in my walk with God. Having not grown up in the church, I didnt learn of Elisabeth Elliot until she was already in declining health and had stopped publishing and recording her radio program. I was first exposed to her ministry in Through Gates of Splendor and I was quickly hooked on her writing.

Years later, as a publisher, I met a close friend of Elisabeths. This friend had been discipled by Elisabeth for several years and a deep friendship had developed prior to her illness. This friend knew that I had been shaped by her books and had consumed all the teaching content I could find, so she sent me a gift that has borne much fruit. It was a set of six CDs that were called Suffering Is Not for Nothing. I listened to these CDs and was amazed. Not only was it, I thought, perhaps her best content ever, it was some of the best teaching content Id ever heard from anyone. I was able to get some additional copies of the CDs, which I gave to several close friends as gifts, and they all raved about the influence of the content on their lives as well.