May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. Galatians 6:14
James Chalmers (1901)
Daring Missionary
James came from Scotland, and those who knew him always thought that he would become a missionary. So indeed he did. Although he was not well-educated he began to study other languages, including Rarotongan, the language of the Cook Islands in the Pacific. It was to these islands that he sailed with his wife, arriving in 1867.
For 34 daring years he worked with the indigenous tribes of the Pacific, visiting isolated places to spread the Gospel. In April 1901, on a final trip to the region of Goaribari Island, New Guinea, his ship was boarded by the Niue tribe. The following morning they invited his party ashore and into a long building. There the whole group was massacred and then eaten by the Niue.
Glory be to God in the highest, the Creator, and Lord of heaven and earth, the Preserver of all things, the Father of mercies, who so loves mankind as to send His only begotten Son into the world, to redeem us from sin and misery, and to obtain for us everlasting life. Accept, O gracious God, our praise and our thanksgivings for your infinite mercies towards us. And teach us, O Lord, to love you more and serve you better; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
John Hamilton (1512-71)