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Things as They Are: Mission Work in Southern India
This scarce antiquarian book is a facsimile reprint of the original. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment for protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature in affordable, high quality, modern editions that are true to the original work.
384 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1905
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 48 reviews
February 22, 2013
Although Carmichael's book is over 100 years old, the insight she brings to our understanding of Missions is incredible. She clearly shows the difficulties that face Missions work and provides an insight into Missions a century ago that is not naive - but shows the great difficulty of serving a foreign culture effectively. She provides a model for anyone sharing the gospel today in any culture insofar as she thinks deeply about the culture to which she ministers, prays earnestly because she believes that the results are from God, and serves lovingly among the people and never seeks to manipulate or deceive. Truly, a remarkable book from a remarkable woman.
March 26, 2025
A person such as Amy Carmichael is one in a million. Got to learn about her from Elisabeth Elliot, who was inspired by her life, mission and numerous writings, and wrote her biography.
This is a missionary account that wasn't apparently so palatable for the evangelical community used to triumphal stories of numerous conversions and overflowing victories following missionary work.
Far from romantic, Amy's account is painfully realistic, harrowing, utterly gut wrenching. It tells of a nation of people so bound to the religious and caste system, unwilling to change their ways but determinate and able to make life miserable (or even terminate it in the most horrible ways) for any who would follow Christ.
It tells of the horrors of child marriage, unthinkable abuse of all sorts and deeply rooted superstitions of the Hindu people.
It gives us a taste of what life would be like for one that leaves religion and caste to follow Christ: rejection, loss of home and privileges, persecution, even death.
This book is also a painful reminder that our Christianity has become soft, ignorant and ineffective. It hurts to read it on so many levels. May God heal us and stir our hearts for the lost and needy. May God bring justice for those oppressed beyond imagination.
*** Amy Carmichael's books are free to be downloaded on the public domain.
This is a missionary account that wasn't apparently so palatable for the evangelical community used to triumphal stories of numerous conversions and overflowing victories following missionary work.
Far from romantic, Amy's account is painfully realistic, harrowing, utterly gut wrenching. It tells of a nation of people so bound to the religious and caste system, unwilling to change their ways but determinate and able to make life miserable (or even terminate it in the most horrible ways) for any who would follow Christ.
It tells of the horrors of child marriage, unthinkable abuse of all sorts and deeply rooted superstitions of the Hindu people.
It gives us a taste of what life would be like for one that leaves religion and caste to follow Christ: rejection, loss of home and privileges, persecution, even death.
This book is also a painful reminder that our Christianity has become soft, ignorant and ineffective. It hurts to read it on so many levels. May God heal us and stir our hearts for the lost and needy. May God bring justice for those oppressed beyond imagination.
*** Amy Carmichael's books are free to be downloaded on the public domain.
October 17, 2024
Soul-stirring. Things as they are indeed. Go. Pray. All for God’s glory. This will help missionaries as well. And oh, the pride of those who don’t go and pray, yet want to justify themselves by offering correction to the missionary.
February 20, 2024
Wow I cannot express just how much this book has impacted my view on missions, especially among people who are so rooted in their beliefs. Amy Carmichael shares the truth of missions work abroad and how desperate the fight is to even bring one person to know Christ. But God gets all the glory when they do.
“Some who care are young, and life is all before them, and the question that presses now is this: Where is that life to be spent?”
The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Some fields in America have been over harvested while others around the world are not even touched. Are we willing to be ears of corn that fall to the ground and die for the sake of the gospel being spread? Are we willing to be expendable for the cause of Christ. If the answer is no, have we truly counted the cost of being a disciple of Christ?
“Some who care are young, and life is all before them, and the question that presses now is this: Where is that life to be spent?”
The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Some fields in America have been over harvested while others around the world are not even touched. Are we willing to be ears of corn that fall to the ground and die for the sake of the gospel being spread? Are we willing to be expendable for the cause of Christ. If the answer is no, have we truly counted the cost of being a disciple of Christ?
August 17, 2009
Excellent. All about A.C.'s experiences in India, and the heart of the gospel.
January 13, 2023
"Things as They Are" is a most appropriate title as Amy Carmichael minces no words on the crushing despair she often felt and endured while ministering in India in the early 1900's. Many times she reminds the reader to dwell on the ... between her sentences as she trails off and is unable to write the fullness of the horror of a situation- which many times related to the barbaric child marriages and frequent poisoning of children by their families if they were considering becoming a christian. The Caste structure was so indelibly strong and entrenched in the people that the thought of leaving their Caste was unthinkable to them. Carmichael has an eloquence of speech and a way of thinking that was surely a consequence of the time period she lived coupled with her keen intelligence. To watch a happy child come to her and listen of Jesus and want to accept him, only to come back later and see them broken after they have been beaten, starved or poisoned was a trial that ripped her heart apart. She writes on one occasion, "How day by day they will sear that child's soul with red-hot irons, till it does not feel or care any more. And a child's seared soul is an awful thing" (Carmichael, p. 185).
I was particularly struck by the way she comforted herself during so many failures. She knew she was laying a foundation for Christ in India and the fields were oh so white for harvest. The scope of the challenge did not frighten her as she felt compelled to obey the great commission of Jesus to GO. When speaking of the scope of the challenge, she writes, "God looks down on all the world; and for every one of the millions who have never crowned him King, Christ wore the crown of thorns" (Carmichael, p. 192). The few successful conversions she covers in this book act as tiny jewels that lifts the readers head from the pit and reminds us of the crown we will receive on that final day, that we may gently lay at the feet of the savior as one small token of our love and gratitude for his sacrifice and our salvation.
I was particularly struck by the way she comforted herself during so many failures. She knew she was laying a foundation for Christ in India and the fields were oh so white for harvest. The scope of the challenge did not frighten her as she felt compelled to obey the great commission of Jesus to GO. When speaking of the scope of the challenge, she writes, "God looks down on all the world; and for every one of the millions who have never crowned him King, Christ wore the crown of thorns" (Carmichael, p. 192). The few successful conversions she covers in this book act as tiny jewels that lifts the readers head from the pit and reminds us of the crown we will receive on that final day, that we may gently lay at the feet of the savior as one small token of our love and gratitude for his sacrifice and our salvation.
July 30, 2017
Written over 100 years ago but still makes an impact. Even though there are many places where she could not "tell all", Carmichael still clearly describes the obstacles and spiritual resistance she and her fellow workers may on a daily basis. It's not difficult to imagine that the battle on the mission field is the same today.
July 30, 2014
I would recommend this book to anyone and everyone preparing to serve as a missionary or to work with a Christian NGO in a cross-cultural context. I've never been to India and I don't work among Hindus, but I still found Amy Carmichael's insights about the nature of spiritual warfare, the importance and power of prayer, etc. to be extremely challenging and helpful.
Amy's honesty about discouragement, the danger of comparing "my results" to those of someone else, the temptations that come with wanting people to be impressed with our work, caused much self-examination and make this a book I will re-read and ponder with some frequency, I think. I highlighted DOZENS of passages...
Finally, the book is extremely valuable in bringing home the reality of deeply conflicting cultures and worldviews and the dilemmas that this reality creates. (Most poignant perhaps were the examples Amy gave where she could not touch someone to comfort them, because in doing so she would make them "unclean," or the agonizing choices they had to make about rescuing Christian converts who were in danger from their relatives...) The book provides much food for thought and reflection and prayer: what would I do if I were faced with this situation? In what ways do I try to adapt to and honor the culture where I am living and in what ways must I stand against some of the customs and beliefs as a follower of Christ?
Truly worth reading and pondering for those involved in missions - missionaries or those who support and pray for missionaries.
Amy's honesty about discouragement, the danger of comparing "my results" to those of someone else, the temptations that come with wanting people to be impressed with our work, caused much self-examination and make this a book I will re-read and ponder with some frequency, I think. I highlighted DOZENS of passages...
Finally, the book is extremely valuable in bringing home the reality of deeply conflicting cultures and worldviews and the dilemmas that this reality creates. (Most poignant perhaps were the examples Amy gave where she could not touch someone to comfort them, because in doing so she would make them "unclean," or the agonizing choices they had to make about rescuing Christian converts who were in danger from their relatives...) The book provides much food for thought and reflection and prayer: what would I do if I were faced with this situation? In what ways do I try to adapt to and honor the culture where I am living and in what ways must I stand against some of the customs and beliefs as a follower of Christ?
Truly worth reading and pondering for those involved in missions - missionaries or those who support and pray for missionaries.
September 12, 2016
More than a collection of anecdotes, Things As They Are is a searing indictment of the Indian caste system and its systematized violation of the basic human rights of women and children. But while she does call for a reformation in the government that allowed and at times propagated these indignities, her most common and pointed remarks are at the readers themselves, those who know and have experienced the Gospel. How can we justify staying, when there are so many already devoted to the work at home and so few on the field? How can we sit by praying half-hearted prayers for the "heathen", when every minute there is another child-bride or another devoted to the degradation of temple work? Charmichael's aim is to paint an accurate picture of the desperate situation and the difficulty of the work in hopes that she will compel those who truly desire the salvation of souls and are willing to suffer for it to come and/or to pray "intelligently" for the continuation of the work. She emphatically discourages all others. "So we have tried to tell you the uninteresting, unromantic truth—about the heathen as we find them, about the work as it is. More workers are needed... But we will never try to allure anyone to think of coming by painting coloured pictures, when the facts are black and white. What if black and white will never attract like colours? We care not for it; our business is to tell the truth. The work is not a pretty thing, to be looked at and admired. It is a fight and battlefields are not beautiful."
July 5, 2018
I was once told that biographies about missionaries are over-optimistic, focusing on statistical "success," while missionaries' own writings tend to focus more on the struggle and apparent "failure."
I was looking for an autobiography and found this - more of a memoir - on Project Gutenberg. I had not heard of it before. It is a compilation of letters sent "back home" by Amy Carmichael and her team.
Two things really stand out to me. First, she talks about how they were discouraged from sharing anything negative, which she rebeled against. The people who would receive the letters didn't want to hear about the struggle or the problems or the many people who refused to come to Christ and died. They wanted to read about conversations and signs and wonders. There were times she left out horrifying or graphic details, filling the spot with an ellipsis and instructing the reader to fill in the blank themselves. I admire that boldness.
Second, in the final chapters, she challenged the readers to examine their own lives and determine if they were obeying all God told them to do. Maybe you're doing something - great, but has God asked more of you? "God will not hear our prayers for the heathen if He means us to be out among them instead of at home praying for them."
There is no sugar coating or rose colored glasses here. Her commentary on Hinduism is harsh, as is her criticism of nominal or cultural Christians. This is "Things as They Are."
I was looking for an autobiography and found this - more of a memoir - on Project Gutenberg. I had not heard of it before. It is a compilation of letters sent "back home" by Amy Carmichael and her team.
Two things really stand out to me. First, she talks about how they were discouraged from sharing anything negative, which she rebeled against. The people who would receive the letters didn't want to hear about the struggle or the problems or the many people who refused to come to Christ and died. They wanted to read about conversations and signs and wonders. There were times she left out horrifying or graphic details, filling the spot with an ellipsis and instructing the reader to fill in the blank themselves. I admire that boldness.
Second, in the final chapters, she challenged the readers to examine their own lives and determine if they were obeying all God told them to do. Maybe you're doing something - great, but has God asked more of you? "God will not hear our prayers for the heathen if He means us to be out among them instead of at home praying for them."
There is no sugar coating or rose colored glasses here. Her commentary on Hinduism is harsh, as is her criticism of nominal or cultural Christians. This is "Things as They Are."
March 8, 2024
Well, I listened to this book in the span of 48 hours. Can that be right? Probably, I got sick and needed something to keep my mind off of my misery. I will say, though, the abject misery of so many suffering in India, during the time of the writing of this book brought a whole misery of its own. Amy Carmichael writes with a candor surprisinf considering her time period, an unflinching representation of the “dust of the actual” that she experienced. In other words, just the mirror, sifting, the foggiest glimpse, of the suffering and genuine situation these people faced.
It is horrendous. It also disproves so many of the old, as well as modern, myths of the “heathen“. They are not waiting in agony until their shining rescuers arrived to tell them about Jesus. Many of them are perfectly content and deeply resistant to any gods but their own. And this makes sense! I would resist, too, should someone try to convince me out of my own religious beliefs.
Yet within their culture of the day, as within any culture of any day, there lurked a darkness of the deepest and ugliest variety, darkness they protected, and nurtured and coddled, in spite the violence and cruelty it bred. Caste loyalty at cost to all else. Child brides, abused and broken. Temple prostitution that destroyed women and families. I am in awe of Carmichael’s tenacity in the face of daunting odds and horribly depressing surroundings. Her devotion to God and the people she loved makes this book shine.
It is horrendous. It also disproves so many of the old, as well as modern, myths of the “heathen“. They are not waiting in agony until their shining rescuers arrived to tell them about Jesus. Many of them are perfectly content and deeply resistant to any gods but their own. And this makes sense! I would resist, too, should someone try to convince me out of my own religious beliefs.
Yet within their culture of the day, as within any culture of any day, there lurked a darkness of the deepest and ugliest variety, darkness they protected, and nurtured and coddled, in spite the violence and cruelty it bred. Caste loyalty at cost to all else. Child brides, abused and broken. Temple prostitution that destroyed women and families. I am in awe of Carmichael’s tenacity in the face of daunting odds and horribly depressing surroundings. Her devotion to God and the people she loved makes this book shine.
May 14, 2013
I read this right after finishing the Amy Charmichael book from the "Christian Heros Now and Then" series with my kids. We loved the story of her journey to the mission field and learning the details of her incredible ministry in India. Her work truly paved the way for a new generation of brave and passionate missionaries. I really enjoyed hearing directly from her heart in this book and her vivid picture of caste stricken India at the time of her writing. She tells it like it is ( hence the title!) and I appreciate her lack of need to "fluff things up" as she describes her life and work. She had such genuine grief over the spiritual state of the people she lived amongst. Her story and her words are a great inspiration.
December 22, 2014
A unique and different approach, but Amy Carmichael elaborates on her experiences as a missionary in India. Amy sought to provide the truth of the harsh conditions she faced, and she did just that! I read this book for my research seminar class on British Emigration. My particular topic was the Missionary experience during 19th century Britain. The toughest part of the read was Carmichael's details of a temple worship ceremony that was basically a form of child prostitution that was referred to as "being married to the gods". A depressing read, but it reveals the real life difficulties missionaries face.
March 26, 2016
The book is one part testimony, one part autobiography, one part recruiting drive, and one part fundraiser. Past that, the author makes some good points and some really bad points on the situation in India, so you're really not sure just how much Jesus is glorified here, or simply proclaimed impotent.
January 29, 2013
just amazing and convicting!! not a quick read but a memorable one!!
Read
August 28, 2013This was an outstanding book!
May 14, 2014
Amy gives persuasive examples of the importance of Christian missions. Even though her story takes place over 100 years ago, the call is the same.
October 28, 2014
GNARLY needed exhortation to the Church.
anyone know what book she speaks of on page 301 "Do Not Say" ?
i could make a daily calendar of excerpts to read again and again from this..
anyone know what book she speaks of on page 301 "Do Not Say" ?
i could make a daily calendar of excerpts to read again and again from this..
January 28, 2026
“If you know more, you will pray more.” So concludes this sobering look at missions in India in the late 19th and early 20th century. And from my limited time in ministry both at home in the US and abroad, this is the truth not only in this specific context and time in history but in every context. Sometimes, ministry is difficult and not the rosy picture we imagine it to be.
Carmichael paints a bleak picture of the spiritual state of India and its utter heathenism and brokenness. The caste system enslaves its people. Yet her faith is strong in the grace and calling of God to work according to His will.
Carmichael is also faithful to point out the failings in my heart - do I care about the lost? Am I too hung up on worldly concerns? How do I go about building things that will last until eternity? She says we must be faithful to listen to the Lord and His guidance in our life. Go when we are called to go. Give when we are called to give. Be faithful to obey and pay the cost. It is always worth it.
As we hear from our brothers and sisters in the field, let us be faithful to hear what our missionaries are REALLY saying and pray for their work!
Carmichael paints a bleak picture of the spiritual state of India and its utter heathenism and brokenness. The caste system enslaves its people. Yet her faith is strong in the grace and calling of God to work according to His will.
Carmichael is also faithful to point out the failings in my heart - do I care about the lost? Am I too hung up on worldly concerns? How do I go about building things that will last until eternity? She says we must be faithful to listen to the Lord and His guidance in our life. Go when we are called to go. Give when we are called to give. Be faithful to obey and pay the cost. It is always worth it.
As we hear from our brothers and sisters in the field, let us be faithful to hear what our missionaries are REALLY saying and pray for their work!
March 17, 2022
A powerful book that is sure to leave you convicted and spurred on to live on mission for the glory of God. Amy Carmichael does not hold back in this book, really expanding upon the trials one faces in missions work in Southern India. As one who was born in India I found this very interesting. Her language can be hard to follow at times - due to the fact that this book was written over 100 years ago, but I do think Christians have much to gain from reading this book! To help make this book more accessible for people I have produced the audiobook version of “Things As They Are” - check out: https://readher.ca/things-as-they-are if you would like to listen to the audiobook version of this book!
October 15, 2025
|| 4.5 ⭐️ ||
This is one of the most brutally honest missionary accounts I’ve read yet, outlining the difficulties of working amongst people who are so thoroughly entrenched in darkness through their religious and social structure that it seems impossible to reach them. But Amy Carmichael worked faithfully anyway, driven by her deep understanding that God’s light is able to pierce the most hopelessly dark situations; and knowing that reaching even one soul was worth a lifetime of difficult ministry. Many missionary accounts are full of victories; and while this one had a few of those, she did not hold back in telling about the many “failures” and disappointments of her mission work. She also does an excellent job of communicating the urgency of the Great Commission.
This is one of the most brutally honest missionary accounts I’ve read yet, outlining the difficulties of working amongst people who are so thoroughly entrenched in darkness through their religious and social structure that it seems impossible to reach them. But Amy Carmichael worked faithfully anyway, driven by her deep understanding that God’s light is able to pierce the most hopelessly dark situations; and knowing that reaching even one soul was worth a lifetime of difficult ministry. Many missionary accounts are full of victories; and while this one had a few of those, she did not hold back in telling about the many “failures” and disappointments of her mission work. She also does an excellent job of communicating the urgency of the Great Commission.
December 24, 2024
This book eloquently depicts the reality and necessity of faithful ministry within a difficult environment, while calling readers to prayer and action. The stories Amy shares are heavy, but honestly portray the darkness of the world and how barriers to the gospel impact lives and ministry. It was very encouraging to me, and prompted me to consider how little has changed since this book was published over 100 years ago.
One thing to note is that she often discusses participating in missions primarily to save the lost. She does discuss the glory of God as motivation for missions in the final chapter, but it was not emphasized throughout the book.
One thing to note is that she often discusses participating in missions primarily to save the lost. She does discuss the glory of God as motivation for missions in the final chapter, but it was not emphasized throughout the book.
April 12, 2025
I really appreciate how honestly Amy Carmichael wrote about the struggles, discouragements, and reality of mission work in India. “Most days in real life end exactly as they began, so far as visible results are concerned…Practical missionary life is an unexciting thing. It is not sparkling all over with incident. It is very prosaic at times” (from chapter 3).
The mistreatment of women, children, and those who showed interest in Christianity was hard to read at times and I finished the book with such admiration for Amy Carmichael’s integrity and steadfastness.
The mistreatment of women, children, and those who showed interest in Christianity was hard to read at times and I finished the book with such admiration for Amy Carmichael’s integrity and steadfastness.
August 15, 2018
An eye-opening account
Even though I lived in India for many years as a child, I never knew until reading this book , about the terrible Hindu tradition of the Devadasi, or female children given to the temple and "married" to the gods! This book reveals Amy Carmichael's struggle, along with her Indian co-workers, to rescue these girls and also bring the Gospel to any Hindu or Moslem who would listen.
Even though I lived in India for many years as a child, I never knew until reading this book , about the terrible Hindu tradition of the Devadasi, or female children given to the temple and "married" to the gods! This book reveals Amy Carmichael's struggle, along with her Indian co-workers, to rescue these girls and also bring the Gospel to any Hindu or Moslem who would listen.
December 31, 2024
Summary: Most of missionary work is hard because you are misunderstood, boring because it does not change, and discouraging because there are so few believers.
My evaluation: I listened to this book moving between evangelistic encounters and street preaching appointments. It could have been written today from the Tsonga people group. As its spiritual life smells like the Puritans, it should be required reading.
My evaluation: I listened to this book moving between evangelistic encounters and street preaching appointments. It could have been written today from the Tsonga people group. As its spiritual life smells like the Puritans, it should be required reading.
December 8, 2025
Things as They Are is a challenging, sobering, and inspiring view of Carmichael’s frontier missions work in India. She writes with compassion and urgency, imploring her audience to pray for her and those to whom she is ministering. I learned a great deal about not only Carmichael, but also the South Indian culture of her time. Her writing is persuasive and beautiful, and I can see why she was such a large influence to later missionaries such as Elisabeth Elliot.
January 13, 2024
This classic writing about Amy Carmichael’s missionary experience in Southern India is a work that inspires and challenges the reader at the core of the heart motives. It causes one to examine how Christian’s share the gospel with “heathens” and concludes with a heart felt plea towards accessing the power of prayer.
January 20, 2024
Real and true mission work
I appreciated that the author was raw and real and we saw equal parts positive and negative emotions and reactions to the missions work. Oftentimes we see all the great parts and it is uplifting and inspiring but it was equally as important to see the challenges and real life experiences of people in India during this time.
I appreciated that the author was raw and real and we saw equal parts positive and negative emotions and reactions to the missions work. Oftentimes we see all the great parts and it is uplifting and inspiring but it was equally as important to see the challenges and real life experiences of people in India during this time.
June 29, 2024
This sounded fascinating since the author relates her experience as a missionary in India in the early 1920s. The actual interactions are intriguing but in between the author writes in a convoluted philosophical way that’s hard to follow in today’s world. Plus, I downloaded the kindle version which contains nine of the photographs she talks about. Eventually, I gave up.
May 25, 2025
educating book
I did not know this kindle edition did not have any photographs that are in a paper copy. Hard to follow along when the au5or is discussing the picture you’re suppose to be seeing. But, the information provided by the author is heartbreaking and you get a sense of hopelessness. Forces one back to the Bible for answers.
I did not know this kindle edition did not have any photographs that are in a paper copy. Hard to follow along when the au5or is discussing the picture you’re suppose to be seeing. But, the information provided by the author is heartbreaking and you get a sense of hopelessness. Forces one back to the Bible for answers.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 48 reviews