By: Ashlee Price
The life of David Livingstone begins in the town of Blantyre, Scotland. He was born to devoted Christian parents, and at a very young age David developed a love for the outdoors and exploring. One day David climbed to a very high point of the ruins of an old castle, which was higher than any other boy had ever reached, and he decided to carve his name there.
Before David was ten years old, he had memorised the whole of Psalm 119, which is the longest book in the Bible, and he recited it with only five mistakes! David was not brighter than other boys around his age, he was just more determined to learn new things than they were. When he was ten years old, he found work in the cotton mills. There in the factory, David would put his books on the spinning jenny machine, which was an old-fashioned machine people used to help them make cotton for clothes. There he could still be reading and learning even when he was working in the cotton factory.
At the age of twenty, David gave his heart to Jesus and became a Christian. One day, a man called Doctor Carey told the people in the churches about missionary work, and David became excited at that idea. His eagerness grew as there was more talk of mission jobs, and eventually he declared, “I want to show how much I love Jesus by devoting my life to His service and becoming a missionary.”
David’s parents were very happy for him, and he started his seven years of study to become a minister as well as a doctor, so he could help people get better and tell them about Jesus at the same time.
Soon, David discovered that the people of Africa had never heard about Jesus, and he felt sorry for them because they did not have the joy that he had experienced from knowing the Lord. “I will go to Africa and tell the people there about God,” he decided.
When David had arrived in Africa, he soon realised that Africa was brimming with heathenism, and the people there initially thought him to be a wizard, and that he could raise people from the dead. However, before long, he met an elderly man who said to him, “Please give me a special medication to change my heart, for I am a very angry and proud man.”
David grinned. Here was his first opportunity to share Jesus with someone in Africa. “Sir, I have something that is better than medication. Something that will change your heart and make you a new person. His name is Jesus. And He will transform your life if you ask Him.”
David’s witness to that first man gave him courage, and wherever David went, he shared the story of Jesus. But his time in Africa was not always good. One day, a fierce lion pounced on him, knocking David flat onto the dusty floor. The lion’s strong, yellow body loomed over David, and its sharp claws dug into David’s flesh. The lion opened his mouth wide and bit David; his jaws and strong paws even breaking his arm. His shoulder was crushed by the strength of the creature, and David became crippled for life. We can be sure that he bore his scars with dignity, knowing that he suffered for the sake of bringing the story of Jesus to a foreign land.
David married Miss Mary Moffat, who was the daughter of the man who had first introduced David to the idea of working as a missionary in Africa. At one point in his missionary journey, one good-hearted chief told David that there was an easier way to convert souls. “You whip them with rhinoceros hide, and then they will follow God.”
“I appreciate your offer, Sir,” David began kindly, “But the very character of Jesus is gentle, and God draws people to Him by His love, not by force.”
With more exploring and discovering of the country of Africa, David continued to help those he came in contact with, and always told them about the love of Jesus. As he traipsed through Africa’s beautiful rainforests, wandered over wastelands and trekked through deserts, David increased in age and became weary and worn. One morning, one of his servants found him lifeless in his hut. It looked like he had been praying because he was kneeling beside the bed. The entire nation of Africa mourned for their beloved missionary. David Livingstone was no doubt remembered by the people as the first person to share the story of Jesus with them.
What a wonderful thing to be remembered for! It is a good thing to think about what we want to be remembered for when we die. Will others know you as the girl who always sat with the kids at school who were lonely? Will they remember you as the boy who made everyone feel welcome to play in his basketball games at lunchtime? The girl who wrote kind letters to students who seemed upset? The only boy in the class who didn’t talk back to the teacher?
Whatever it may be, let’s pray that it will be something that Jesus would be proud of.
