Manor Park Evangelical Church|Serving Christ and the Community in St. John's

Amy Carmichael was born in 1868 in a small Irish village by the sea. She had four sisters and two brothers and from all accounts was a lively and mischievous little girl. On one occasion she was swept out to sea in a rowing boat and saved only at the last minute by a lifeboat.

Amy loved the sea and the seaside and would often ride her pony on the beach and search through the rock pools. Blue became her favourite colour - in fact she once prayed that God would change the colour of her eyes from brown to blue!

Amy's parents were Christians who taught her from the Bible and taught her to pray. Though they were strict she knew they loved her deeply. The Bible and Pilgrim's Progress were added to the more usual list of childhood books such as Alice in Wonderland. Amy soon discovered a real love of poetry and a gift for writing.

Boarding School in Harrogate, England

"Although Amy already 'believed' it was the secondhand faith of her parents. She knew it was time to believe in Christ for herself."

One day, in the summer of 1880 Amy said goodbye to her brothers and sisters and travelled to Harrogate where she went to a boarding school run by the Methodists. There she continued her mischievous ways and proved lazy with her schoolwork.

One day the school choir began to learn a brand-new hymn whose words went like this "Jesus loves me this I know for the Bible tells me so..." Although Amy already 'believed' it was the secondhand faith of her parents. She knew it was time to believe in Christ for herself. Amy became a believer filled with a new joy. She began to see why God had brought her to Harrogate.

Belfast and the "shawlies"

When Amy was 16 her father took her back to Ireland because he could not afford to educate her any more. On Sunday afternoons she began a little club for small children where they could play games and have Bible stories read to them. On Saturday evenings she would go into the poor parts of Belfast to care for children on the streets and teach them from the Bible. Older girls began to join in.

These girls worked in the mills and were called "shawlies" because they could only afford shawls, not hats.

The work grew and soon they needed their own building. A rich lady gave them £500 towards a "Welcome Hall". In due time over 500 shawlies were enrolled in the Bible Class.

Amy leaves for Japan

For quite some time, Amy had wanted to go to other countries to tell them about Jesus Christ. A group of Christians chose her as their missionary and at the age of 24 sent her off to Japan. By steamship it took a long time but she was able to talk to the captain about Jesus Christ and he too became a believer!

Japan was a strange but beautiful country to Amy who quickly absorbed the new way of life, dressing and eating like the Japanese. Quite a few people became Christians but ill health forced Amy back to England, seemingly a disappointment.

Off to India

Upon returning home Amy wrote about her experiences while she recovered and prayed about her future. She received a letter from a friend in India who told her that the weather there would be more suitable for her health and soon she was on her way to India. Once again she dressed in the local attire and with considerable difficulty learnt to speak Tamil. She shared the Good News of Jesus Christ with Indian ladies and soon some became believers.

Together these ladies began to rescue babies and girls who had been sold to the temples. These girls called her "mummy" and were glad that she looked like them. She now understood why God had given her brown eyes rather than the blue ones she had prayed for when she was a child!

Medals and books

As the work of the "Dohnavur Fellowship" grew it became known in England and was acknowledged by a medal from the Queen. Amy died in India writing (she became the author of over 30 books) and sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ with people who had never heard it before.

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