Daughter of Martyred Missionary Jim Elliot: ‘His Life was Not Wasted’

Veronica Neffinger | iBelieve Contributor | Updated: Feb 23, 2017

Daughter of Martyred Missionary Jim Elliot: ‘His Life was Not Wasted’

The daughter of martyred missionary Jim and Elizabeth Elliot recently spoke out about her father’s death and how she believes God was working even through that tragedy.

Valerie Shepard is the daughter of the famous missionary couple. Jim Elliot was killed, along with four fellow missionaries, by a group of remote tribal people known as Auca Indians in Ecuador.

Jim Elliot’s wife, along with his daughter, remained in the jungle to minister to the very people who had killed him. God was surely working through this tragedy as many of these remote tribal peoples gave their lives to the Lord through the work of the missionaries.

Valerie Elliot (now Shepard) believes that God allowed this tragic event in order to show the Auca Indians that knowing Christ is even worth dying for.

“While we lived with them [the Auca Indians], and we were there almost two-and-a-half years, I of course got to know all of the tribe and the ten men who had done the killing,” Shepard shared.

'Amazingly, I really don't remember being afraid of them,” she continued. “They were always laughing and they would always make my mother laugh. So I simply enjoyed being with them. Of course it was a tragedy and I often wish I had known my dad. Still do. But I really believe that God allowed this to happen so that more and more people could actually see what real commitment to Christ means. And I really don't believe their lives were wasted.”

Valerie’s mother, Elizabeth Elliot, went on to become a well-known Christian figure and author. She passed away in 2015.

 

Publication date: February 23, 2017



Daughter of Martyred Missionary Jim Elliot: ‘His Life was Not Wasted’