David Livingstone

David Livingstone (by Thomas Annon, Scottish photographer) (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Livingstone

Hero. So many people come to mind when I hear this word. Whether it be a celebrity, a journalist, or even just a family member, we all have one. Mine happens to be a missionary. His name was David Livingstone. Livingstone was also an explorer. He traveled to Africa, to bring people to know Jesus. You may be wondering why I have chosen this person. Well, when I am older, I would too like to be a missionary. It has been a dream of mine for a long time, and as I get older I get closer to my dream.

So I sort of explained who my hero is. His name is David Livingstone, who was a missionary and explorer, who traveled to Africa. He lived in what is known as the Victorian era. Livingstone was born on March 19th, 1813 in Blantyre, Scotland. I guess you could say that Livingstone's hero was his father. He was greatly influenced by him and felt the desire to read about theology and some missionary books. what lead him to his interest in the relationship between religion and science, was his fathers urgings NOT to read those sorts of books. While he was young he worked in a cotton mill. Working here in this mill taught him persistence and endurance and to appreciate all labourers. At the age of 23 he, entered Anderson's University to study medicine. He also attended the University of Glasglow to take classes on theology and Greek lectures. He attempted to become a preacher, but it apparently wasn't his forte. 

In 1840, he met the missionary Robert Moffat. He was a missionary who had taken a short break from a missionary outpost in South Africa. Moffat's visions of expanding his missionary work, towards the northern parts of Africa, encouraged Livingstone to go to Africa. In that same year, Livingstone traveled to Africa in July. He then married Robert Moffats' daughter, Mary Moffat, on January 2nd, 1845. Over the next 30 years he traveled more than 29,000 miles. Also over this time he came to realize that faith and science were compatible. In order to teach the Africans about his religion, he would have to teach them all about the world. Livignstone respected the Africans so much that he even learned their language and most of their customs. The way that the Dutch and the Portuguese had treated the Africans astounded him. He thought it was horrid that they were treated the wrong way and often wrote about it in some of his books. In a span of four years he explored Africa and discovered the Victoria Falls. This was renamed from its original that was Mosi-oa-Tunya. He renamed them after the current queen, who was Queen Victoria the First.

In 1873, David Livingstone passed away from malaria and internal bleeding that was caused by dysentery. When he passed on May 1st, 1873, he was kneeling in prayer in a small village in Zambia, Africa. His body was carried over thousands of miles by his two loyal attendants to be buried in Britain. He was buried in Westminster Abbey. On his tombstone it reads:

"Brought by faithful hands over land and sea, here rests David Livingstone, missionary, traveler, philanthropist, born March 19, 1813, at Blantyre, Lanarkshire (in Scotland), died May 1st 1873, at Chitambo's village, Ulala. for 40 years his life was spent in an unwearied effort to evangelize the native races, to explore the undiscovered secrets, to abolish the desolating slave trade of Central Africa. Where with his last words he wrote "All I can add in my solitude is may Heavens rich blessings come down to everyone, American, English, or Turk, who will help heal the open sore of the world."

There was a quote that I had found here on the internet. It was on a quote site called Brainy Quote. It is actually a good metaphor for someone's life. This quote says "I determined never to stop until I had come to the end and achieved my purpose." I think that this quote describes what I want to do in life. I too would like to work hard at being a missionary and to show people the way to Christ. David Livingstone provides a very good example on how to achieve your goals. He was determined to lead people to God and achieved it. He died in prayer to God and had found peace from his earthly body in heaven. David is not only a hero because he stood for his religion and worked to abolish the slave trade, but because, as I said above, he set an example as how to be a true Christian.