reflecting & taking inspiration on past generations of God's people 
 

Gladys Aylward was born in London in 1902 

She was a British missionary to China and known for her incredible determination and faith.  

She wanted to be a missionary in China but was told she was "too old" and "uneducated," so being the determined resourceful women she is, she saved her money from working as a maid and traveled by train from London to China alone in 1932. 

She began her ministry by running an inn for mule drivers, it was there that she shared Bible stories with them, which earned her the Chinese name "Ai-weh-deh," meaning "The Virtuous One." She became a trusted figure in the community, she even served as a government "foot inspector" to enforce the ban on foot-binding! 

During the Second Sino-Japanese War, she risked her life to care for orphans and wounded soldiers, and in 1940, she led over 100 children on a dangerous twelve-day trek through the mountains to safety.  

Her life, which was not easy and marked by hardship, was a testament to her unwavering faith, and it was famously adapted into the film "The Inn of the Sixth Happiness." 

Dear Lord Jesus,  

If You want to open the way and show me how, I will go myself.  

And if You do, I will never again ask someone else to do the thing You are asking me to do. Lord, here is my Bible, and here is all of the money I have. And Lord, here I am.