Rating: 10

I know it’s cliche to say this, but this book really had me laughing, crying, and everything in between.

I grew up, pretty much anyway, knowing about the missionaries Jim Elliot and Nate Saint and how they were killed by warriors in the jungle. I knew about Elisabeth Elliot’s book but still haven’t read it (now I really want to, however). But it wasn’t until the movie End of the Spear came out that I knew that not only did the warriors come to know the Lord, but Steve and his family would live with them and love them as their own blood (and vice versa). I still have not seen the movie, we were waiting until I finished the book to rent it, so we’ll do that soon. I was under the impression that the movie was made from the book but actually the book came second. Either way, I think I prefer to read the book first.

So, anyway, this is an amazing story that has touched many the world over. Just, an awesome account of the love of Christ and forgiveness, and living how He would have us live. There really is so much more you can get from the book that I’ll never be able to fully spell out here. However, I would like to quote a little bit:

p25
What the Waodani had meant for evil, God used for Good. Given the chance to go back and rewrite the story, I would not be willing to change it. Sure, it was painful, but over time I have begun to see the pain of Dad’s death in a different light. If I could have changed things, I could have kept my dad. But then Mincaye would not have adopted me. Dyuwi and Kimo would not be my spiritual mentors. I would not have been part of this mysterious and wonderful Waodani world. Dawa would not be my grandmother, and Dayumae would not be my aunt. And in the outside world, thousands and thousands of people would not have dedicated their lives to helping take teachings of peace and hope and comfort to people like the Waodani in frontiers scattered all over the world.

p.58-59
I could see the pain on their faces. They were all wishing that at least one of the five had survived their hatred. I think they would have liked to have been able to explain to at least one of the men that they had gone to spear them because hatred was the only way they knew to live then. As Mincaye says, “We acted badly, badly until they brought us God’s carvings. Now, seeing His markings and following His trail, we live happily and in peace.”
It is only my conjecture, because none of us can know the will of God, but I think it fit God’s plan that all five men died. I know that might offend some who have a narrower opinion of the parameters within which God must operate, but I don’t think what happened to my dad and his four friends caught God by surprise. Nor do I think God simply allowed it. No, after learning in detail what happened on January 8, 1956 – while I was so anxiously waiting to see the speck of dad’s little 56 Henry airplane appear over Penny Ridge – I believe God was much more involved in what happened than merely failing to intervene.
…
There are too many factors that all had to work together to have allowed the events to happen as they did. Too many for me to believe it was just chance. I have come to the conclusion that God did not look away. He did not simply allow this to happen. I think He planned it. Though this has not been an easy conclusion to come to, I believe it is the right one.
I have personally paid a high price for what happened on Palm Beach. But I have also had a front-row seat as the rest of the story has been unfolding for half a century. I have seen firsthand that much good has come from it. I believe only God could have fashioned such an incredible story from such a tragic event.

The Waodani believed in the existence of Waengongi [God] before Aunt Rachel, Dayumae, and Aunt Betty ever told them about Him. They saw evidence of the Creator in His creation. They knew He cared about them because of the stone ax heads they found on the jungle floor from time to time. Without those ax heads, they could not clear gardens, meaning they could not survive.

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Go! Click the picture above, get the book, and read it!! :)