"The future is as bright as the promises of God." —Adoniram Judson
Being inspired to think on the bright promises of God may lead us to muse on such heavenly blessings as peace, joy, and the hope of eternal life spent with Christ. Certainly, those promises were among the ones Judson was referring to. And it's easy to set our thoughts on such bliss when we are on the mountain tops of reprieve rather than in the valleys of suffering.
But for Adoniram Judson and his wife Ann, valleys of suffering were frequent stops in their missionary journey. After serving the Lord for a time in India, the Judsons made their way to Burma, seeking to further the Gospel into more countries in Asia. But as the missionary couple traveled, suffering joined them. Great illness and grieving the loss of their unborn child were among the troubles that dotted their journey.
The trials did not stop once they settled in Burma. While translating the Bible into the Burmese language, human and spiritual wars began to mount. After six years of ministry in Burma, Judson still hadn't seen a single conversion. Political unrest began to smolder between the British and the Burmese, and it wasn't long before Adoniram was accused of being a British spy. His arrest and imprisonment left Ann with the monumental task of protecting the precious Scripture translations that Adoniram had been working on. Faithful in all His ways, the Lord protected His Word for the Burmese people.
"I will not leave Burma until the cross is planted here forever," Judson determined.
Adoniram would go on to see his dear Ann and their child pass from this life to the next. Yet, despite the pains of this earthly trek, Adoniram based his confidence in the promises of God.
Despite the pains of this earthly trek, Adoniram based his confidence in the promises of God.
"Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up," Galatians 6:9.
God did indeed bring the Judsons' planting to a bountiful harvest. After 37 years of serving the Lord in Burma, Adoniram met Jesus, bringing with him 7,000 Burmese souls into the Christian faith. |
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