Gladys Aylward

Gladys Aylward

Gladys Aylward’s life is an example of courage and faith. When Gladys was in her mid twenties, she went to revival meetings and there discovered her calling to be a missionary to China. Being a small woman with some health issues, Gladys had a lot of trouble getting permission to travel. During all these difficulties, she kept saving money for the trip. Finally, after much prayer and heartache, she received a letter. The letter was from a Mrs. Lawson, asking Gladys to come and be her assistant. Gladys accepted, and because she couldn’t afford the ship fare, she had to travel by train.

During the first few years of her stay in China, Gladys worked with Mrs. Lawson at an inn for mule riders. Gladys’ job was to grab the mules and pull them into the inn, help feed them, and then tell the visitors Bible stories. She worked hard, along with Mrs. Lawson, for a couple of years until tragedy struck. Mrs. Lawson suffered a severe fall that proved fatal, and Gladys was left to continue the work on her own. She worked faithfully, earning the trust and respect of the leaders in her town, and was asked to do many challenging tasks. One task she was appointed to was foot inspector. She was to make sure that the citizens were following orders and had ceased to bind their daughters’ feet. Another task she was asked to do was break up a fight in the prison, a job that everyone else was too afraid to do. When war broke out between China and Japan she took it upon herself to rescue over one hundred children and deliver them to an orphanage in Sian.

Gladys Aylward is my hero because of the way she lived her life: faithfully and courageously. Faithfully, she trusted God in everything she did; she never put her trust in herself because she knew she was not able to succeed on her own. Courageously, never running away from a challenge, she was ready and eager to do whatever God needed her to do. She has also inspired me in many ways. The first way is in her love for China. Another way she has inspired me is in her love of orphans. While she lived in China, she unofficially adopted many little girls and boys as her own. She has inspired me to follow my calling, which I believe is caring for orphans. To do so, I believe I must imitate the courage and faith that Gladys Aylward demonstrated throughout her life.