Becoming Elisabeth Elliot
This courageous, no-nonsense Christian went on to write dozens of books, host a long-running radio show, and speak at conferences all over the world. She was a pillar of coherent, committed faith; a beloved and sometimes controversial icon. In this authorized biography, Becoming Elisabeth Elliot, bestselling author Ellen Vaughn uses Elisabeth’s private, unpublished journals, and candid interviews with her family and friends, to paint the adventures and misadventures God used to shape one of the most influential women in modern church history. It’s the story of a hilarious, sensual, brilliant, witty, self-deprecating, sensitive, radical, and surprisingly relatable person utterly submitted to doing God’s will, no matter how high the cost. For Elisabeth, the central question was not, “How does this make me feel?” but, simply, “is this true?” If so, then the next question was, “what do I need to do about it to obey God?”
“My life is on Thy Altar, Lord—for Thee to consume. Set the fire, Father! Bind me with cords of love to the Altar. Hold me there. Let me remember the Cross.” –Elisabeth Elliot, age 21
Reviews (223)
Reconsidering Elisabeth Elliot
I picked up this book first because Ellen Vaughn is a colleague of sorts (we worked at the same organization, just at different times) and a good writer, and second, out of curiosity. To be perfectly honest, while I greatly respected the Elliots' accomplishments, I never got the appeal of their up-and-down-and-on-and-off courtship. "Passion and Purity" made me vaguely queasy. I wanted to read Ellen's analysis and try to figure out these lives and relationships. I still don't get the courtship. (And to her great credit, Ellen paints it less as "epic love story given to us directly by God" and more as "confused guy dithers for a long time over whether to marry his girlfriend," which I think is a good deal nearer the mark.) But I do admire Elisabeth more than I did -- I even like her! It's true that in her younger days Elisabeth was the sort of gushy Christian ("isn't the Lord wonderful!" tacked on to every other sentence) that I never quite know what to make of. But as she worked and suffered and matured, she displayed the kind of unrelenting faith and obedience, even in the worst circumstances, that wins genuine respect. She also became a little more realistic and down-to-earth and less gushy. And it was truly compelling to read about her struggles with strict personalities like her mother and Rachel Saint, and her attempts to push back against legalistic Christianity. I'm dying to know which of her books were banned from Christian bookstores, and why! And I'm now SUPER curious to find out how this Elisabeth became the Elisabeth who wrote "Passion and Purity" and started coming across to the world as fairly strict and unyielding herself. In short, Ellen has done a great job with a difficult task. I'll definitely read the sequel when it comes out.
FASCINATING & INFORMATIVE!
“Do it immediately, do it with prayer, do it reliantly, casting all care. Do it with reverence, tracing His hand who placed it before thee with earnest command. Stayed on omnipotence, safe ’neath His wing, leave all resultings, do the next thing.” Old Saxon Poem This poem was a favorite of Elisabeth Elliot’s and one she often quoted. She took to heart the advice “do the next thing” and she did so throughout her adult life regardless of her feelings or circumstances. I was first introduced to the writings of Elisabeth Elliot in 1984. That opened the door for me to start my collection which now includes every book as well as every pamphlet Elisabeth Elliot wrote. I had the opportunity to meet Elisabeth Elliot in person, share a brief conversation with her and receive a personal note from her. I have listened to many hours of her Gateway to Joy Radio Program and received her Newsletter for many years. I also have heard Valerie Shepherd speak at my Church as she shared about writing DEVOTEDLY(The Personal Letters and Love Story of Jim and Elisabeth Elliot). Also, I have given numerous copies of EE’s books to friends through the years. I read Ellen Vaughn’s Authorized Biography with a very open mind. I believe her title BECOMING ELISABETH ELLIOT is an excellent description for everything she brings forth in her writing. She starts with Betty Howard’s (Elisabeth Elliot) life as a child and works her way slowly through her school years and time at a Boarding School in FL, Wheaton College, meeting Jim Elliot, their separate calls to the mission field, the separate training each went through prior to going overseas, serving in different areas, etc. Vaughn shows a young child developing into a teenager, college student, young adult, single adult missionary, young married, mother, widow, and single mother mIssionary in the jungle. All of this adds into the becoming of Elisabeth Elliot. To many who have followed the writing and speaking ministries of EE for many years, they know she was known as “Betty” to her family, close friends and those on the mission field. After her husband Jim Elliot and the other four missionaries were savagely killed while attempting to make contact with the Waodani Indians in the jungle of Ecuador, it was Betty that was chosen to write their story to share with the world. When Through Gates of Splendor was published, the world was introduced to Elisabeth Elliot. Little did anyone know what an effect the publishing of that book would have on the rest of EE’s life! Vaughn has a monumental task in attempting to write the Biography of such a well known woman and one who is beloved by many. She has been allowed the use of EE’s personal diaries as well as Interviews with family members and friends. She also has spent untold hours researching through a vast number of existing articles, past interviews and even made a trip to visit the actual Waodani Indians and see the place that changed and shaped the rest of Elisabeth’s life and ministry. It is through this lens that Vaughn writes how she observes Betty Elliot becoming Elisabeth Elliot. Elliot was not a saint — as her own diaries will testify. She was a woman of great depth and feeling. She struggled mightily to follow God and to do His Will at — any cost. Even when EE recognized her spiritual gift of linguistics, she would not force them to be used in an effort to ensure a quicker written language for the Waodani. She always kept her mind sharp (not the easiest thing to do in a jungle setting), was available to treat illnesses, snakebites, be a midwife or deal with whatever other crises might arise. She struggled with what her ministry should be. She struggled with loneliness, a theme that she would write several books about. She struggled with her grief over Jim’s death. Yet she never lost faith in God. God used EE’s extraordinary communication skills of writing and public speaking to influence many generations to make professions of faith, decide they wanted to have a deeper walk with God, dedicate their lives to working on the mission field and just understanding what it means to answer God’s Call on their life. This book states that it is only Volume 1. It is easy to see why there would need to be a Volume 2. So much of Volume 1 is obviously about her time in Ecuador and her early writings. At the conclusion, it quickly touches on the rest of her life but more as a hit and run approach than the detailed approach of her life in Ecuador. Another favorite quote of Elisabeth Elliot’s and one she often shared explains what she learned from the death of her young husband and the other four missionaries: “To be a follower of the Crucified means, sooner or later, a personal encounter with the cross. And the cross always entails loss. The great symbol of Christianity means sacrifice and no one who calls himself a Christian can evade this stark fact.” Elisabeth Elliot continually sought the path of obedience, no matter the cost. I was provided a complimentary copy of this book by B&H Books & NetGalley. The opinions expressed here are completely my own and without influence.
Informative! Inspiring! Insightful!
I am a fast reader. Not so with "Becoming Elisabeth Elliot." I savored every word, underlined and highlighted so much, and wrote in the margins when something touched me personally and deeply. Needless to say, I have given several of these books as gifts, but I will not part with my copy. It is more like a personal journal. I had the privilege to work with Elisabeth on several programs and even had her to my home for dinner - but now I feel like I truly know her heart. Thank you, Ellen, for writing such a rich biography about a woman who has touched so many lives - including mine. If you knew Elisabeth, or just heard of her - if you read her books or heard her speak - you must read this book. It will change your life and help you to see life through His perspective - which is what Elisabeth's life was based on. I loved this book and did not expect to grow so deeply from it. Outstanding book and I highly recommend it.
Revelatory Look at a Christian Heroine’s Origin Story
In my youth and young adulthood, a family-owned Christian bookstore operated so near home that I could ride my bike there to spend my babysitting money. Amid the theologically diverse content of its shelves, God led me to Elisabeth Elliot as one of my first mentors in the Christian faith. Through her I found Amy Carmichael. I wanted to know God like those women knew God. I wanted to be greatly used by Him. They were my heroes. What naivete hid from me was the extraordinarily high, painful cost of their mature faith. In the half-dozen times I saw Elisabeth Elliot speak, in all her books I read, in her radio program Gateway to Joy, in her quarterly newsletter, she seemed so logical. Unemotional even. Her calm, collected, reserved demeanor as she talked of the loss of her first husband to martyrdom (at the hands of a remote tribe he sought to reach with the gospel) amazed me. When she wrote or spoke of the loss of her second husband to cancer, I mistook her poise in speaking for her poise in grief. Now I understand the softening effect of decades that enabled her to touch the scars without observably wincing. That never meant the wounds that caused them were without profound sorrow. The new biography Becoming Elisabeth Elliot corrects that misunderstanding and does so largely in Elisabeth’s own words, from copious journals and letters to which the family gave biographer Ellen Vaughn access. Vaughn shapes the source material in a way that brings the young Elisabeth to vibrant life. All the emotion I didn’t see from Elisabeth in her later speaking ministry pours forth on these pages. We glimpse the family of her youth, read the story of how she came to attend a prestigious Christian boarding school and what she found there, experience with her the agonizing wait for Jim to declare his affections and act on them. Vaughn lifts the curtain on Elisabeth’s grief when he died, how that led her to a writing career, what her jungle life as a single mother and missionary was like, and some of the interpersonal friction that grew so severe and unresolvable that Elisabeth left the jungle and returned to the United States. This is not a hagiography that only selects and shares what will keep Elisabeth on the pedestal where many of us have placed her. This is realism. Do not be deceived into thinking a missionary biography will be boring, either. This is a page-turner in a way I did not anticipate, even knowing and loving her work as I do. In short, this is one of my must-reads of 2020. If you love Elisabeth Elliot already, this will increase your affection. If you don’t know her work and story, this would be a fabulous introduction to the rest of her work. Along with Gentle and Lowly, it will find its way into a number of Christmas care packages in the month ahead. I look forward to the planned second volume, which picks up the story of her life after the jungle years.
An excellent read!
I loved this book. It gives a side of Elisabeth Elliot that I hadn't heard of before. The author did an excellent job of delving into Elisabeth's life and we get to know more about her and all she experienced because of diaries and more in depth interviews with those who knew her and loved her. I am looking forward to her 2nd book telling more about Elisabeth Elliot's later years.
Amazing
It is so wonderful to have a book about a hero that provides both positive and negative views of the lady.
Well researched and written factually.
I do not have a heart for missionary work...just being honest! Wanted to know why this lady has been held in such high esteem for yrs. Not sure I would have liked her in her youth. But by the end of the book I had tremendous admiration and respect for an amazing, Godly woman! Still don't think she and I could have been "kindreds" but the story of her life and love for the Lord was extraordinary and an eye opener. They don' t seem to make them like this gal anymore!!! Sad...if true.
IF YOU READ ONE BOOK THIS YEAR, MAKE IT THIS ONE.
This is an adventure book, both experiential and spiritual, and it will take you to lands you have not seen or imagined. Reading this story in quiet solitude will lead you deeper, both earthly and spiritual, in the dangers, trials, and victories Betty (Elisabeth Elliott) experienced. I promise, you are in for an exciting time ensconced in this book. Following are a few gems from Becoming Elisabeth Elliot... To Betty, the only measure of any human action came down to one thing: obedience. "If 'success' is defined not by obedience, but by measurable outcomes, then... the calculations would never end." "He leads us right on, right through, right up to the threshold of Heaven. He does not say to us, ever, 'Here it is.' He says only, 'Here am I. Fear not.'" "If a duty is clear, the dangers surrounding it are irrelevant." "It is not easy to hold things lightly. Once we have them, we want to keep them." "When one is stripped of all outward evidences of God's blessings, there is a deeper comfort. The soul who loves God only for Himself, apart from His gifts, knows indescribable peace." "When God calls a man, he bids him come and die." "The Lord gives us a moment at a time, and trusts us to invest it for eternity." "Do the next thing." The author concludes her book with "The takeaway from their lives is a reckless abandon for God".
Must read
This is a Christian must read. If you are an E. Elliot fan, this is the real Elisabeth, her inner self, what made her tick, how she related to her God. I have always loved her works, but this really gave me more insight into her inner workings with God. If you aren’t especially an Elisabeth fan, or don’t know about her, this is the story of a real Christian, the highs the lows, the real deal on a daily basis, not just that everything is always roses and there are no struggles. This gives me a greater insight into my own journey as a Christian, that it’s not a straight line, sometime it can be two forward and one back, and that’s how God works sometimes in our lives. This was an eye opener and a welcome insight into one of the spiritual giants of our times!! A must read!
You Are There
With craft and wit and wisdom and love, the author turns the reader into an unseen witness of Elisabeth Elliot's heart and spirit. Vaughn's skill turns the legendary icon into a living testimony of God's grace and power. "Not I, but Christ" is fleshed out in Elliott's surrendered life. And, one suspects, in the life of her biographer. God has used Elisabeth's words and works to mentor me for decades. It was sheer joy, salted with some tears, to be challenged and encouraged anew through Vaughn's masterful, microscopic mirroring of God's work in and through Elisabeth's early life. Read it.
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