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Shadow of the Almighty: The Life and Testament of Jim Elliot
"He is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose." So wrote Jim Elliot at age 22, sweating over Greek roots and patristics at Wheaton College. "Seven years later," writes his widow Elisabeth, "he and four other young men...sat together on a strip of white sand on the Curaray River, deep in Ecuador's rain forest, waiting for the arrival of a group of men whom they loved, but had never met, savage Stone Age killers, men now known to all the world as Aucas."
The circumstances of the death of these men are by now known throughout the world in one of the great missionary adventure stories of modern times. But this is the first account of the whole life of one of them, a life that, though "hid with Christ in God", was in part revealed in some of the most poignant and moving spiritual writings of our time. Shadow of the Almighty is a tremendous biography of an adventurous and inspirational life.
The circumstances of the death of these men are by now known throughout the world in one of the great missionary adventure stories of modern times. But this is the first account of the whole life of one of them, a life that, though "hid with Christ in God", was in part revealed in some of the most poignant and moving spiritual writings of our time. Shadow of the Almighty is a tremendous biography of an adventurous and inspirational life.
256 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1958
318 people are currently reading
10376 people want to read
About the author
Elisabeth Elliot
177 books2,271 followersFrom the Author's Web Site: My parents were missionaries in Belgium where I was born. When I was a few months old, we came to the U.S. and lived in Germantown, not far from Philadelphia, where my father became an editor of the Sunday School Times. Some of my contemporaries may remember the publication which was used by hundreds of churches for their weekly unified Sunday School teaching materials.
Our family continued to live in Philadelphia and then in New Jersey until I left home to attend Wheaton College. By that time, the family had increased to four brothers and one sister. My studies in classical Greek would one day enable me to work in the area of unwritten languages to develop a form of writing.
A year after I went to Ecuador, Jim Elliot, whom I had met at Wheaton, also entered tribal areas with the Quichua Indians. In nineteen fifty three we were married in the city of Quito and continued our work together. Jim had always hoped to have the opportunity to enter the territory of an unreached tribe. The Aucas were in that category -- a fierce group whom no one had succeeded in meeting without being killed. After the discovery of their whereabouts, Jim and four other missionaries entered Auca territory. After a friendly contact with three of the tribe, they were speared to death.
Our daughter Valerie was 10 months old when Jim was killed. I continued working with the Quichua Indians when, through a remarkable providence, I met two Auca women who lived with me for one year. They were the key to my going in to live with the tribe that had killed the five missionaries. I remained there for two years.
After having worked for two years with the Aucas, I returned to the Quichua work and remained there until 1963 when Valerie and I returned to the U.S.
Since then, my life has been one of writing and speaking. It also included, in 1969, a marriage to Addison Leitch, professor of theology at Gordon Conwell Seminary in Massachusetts. He died in 1973. After his death I had two lodgers in my home. One of them married my daughter, the other one, Lars Gren, married me. Since then we have worked together.
Our family continued to live in Philadelphia and then in New Jersey until I left home to attend Wheaton College. By that time, the family had increased to four brothers and one sister. My studies in classical Greek would one day enable me to work in the area of unwritten languages to develop a form of writing.
A year after I went to Ecuador, Jim Elliot, whom I had met at Wheaton, also entered tribal areas with the Quichua Indians. In nineteen fifty three we were married in the city of Quito and continued our work together. Jim had always hoped to have the opportunity to enter the territory of an unreached tribe. The Aucas were in that category -- a fierce group whom no one had succeeded in meeting without being killed. After the discovery of their whereabouts, Jim and four other missionaries entered Auca territory. After a friendly contact with three of the tribe, they were speared to death.
Our daughter Valerie was 10 months old when Jim was killed. I continued working with the Quichua Indians when, through a remarkable providence, I met two Auca women who lived with me for one year. They were the key to my going in to live with the tribe that had killed the five missionaries. I remained there for two years.
After having worked for two years with the Aucas, I returned to the Quichua work and remained there until 1963 when Valerie and I returned to the U.S.
Since then, my life has been one of writing and speaking. It also included, in 1969, a marriage to Addison Leitch, professor of theology at Gordon Conwell Seminary in Massachusetts. He died in 1973. After his death I had two lodgers in my home. One of them married my daughter, the other one, Lars Gren, married me. Since then we have worked together.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 427 reviews
August 16, 2013
Jim Elliot's short, powerful life reminded me of what Christ's own life showed first: we are all born to die. It's up to us whether our lives simply peter out (result of the Fall and all that) or whether we find an altar, choose a cross, draw a line, pick an Alamo, raise a flag, and say, "Here. For this. For this I will give my life." One decision, many moments, throughout all the life God gives us.
March 9, 2020
4.5 stars (re-read)
One of my lifetime reading goals is to read through Elisabeth Elliot's oeuvre. I was delighted to find this audiobook available through my library, even more so because Elisabeth, with her steady, low, modulated voice, was the narrator. She so passionately loved Jim; her respect and affection shines both in her diction and in her voice. Jim's grasp of language was impressive; the descriptions of his travels were lyrical.
Jim Elliot. A dynamic and direct (and dogmatic?) man. His intensity, his burning zeal ... made me shift in my seat, a bit uncomfortable, I'll admit. I admire him. If he had lived to threescore and ten, would his tone have modulated, I wonder?
The way he made decisions, the dichotomy he made between spiritual and secular, and his rejection of the ceremony and pageantry of weddings were other areas that made me squirm. I was cheering when he loosened up the last half of his senior year at college.
The close-knit fabric of his family life as seen through his letters is lovely. I had forgotten that his dad was able to come to Ecuador to help him with some construction projects. What a precious gift that time was.
I was raised in the shadow of Jim and Betty Elliot. My family were part of the Plymouth Brethren chapel Jim had attended (whose complacency he complained about!) while a student at Wheaton College. Jim's uncle, a man who radiated enthusiasm and was ever so kind to me, was an elder; Jim's cousin currently employs several of my family members. I went to Bible college with Jim's niece. My Harper aunts were schoolmates with Betty Howard at DuBose, a boarding school in Florida. When my Aunt Betty died in South Africa, I inherited her personal effects. Among them, I found this picture.
Fun quote: He sought the help of older Christians in learning to live for God. And there were occasions when he asked them to pray with him. Of one of these he wrote, "Had fellowship in prayer with Brother Harper and discussion of the things of God. A happy experience." <-- that's my Grandpa!
Next up to read is Valerie Elliot Shepard's book, Devotedly: The Personal Letters and Love Story of Jim & Elisabeth Elliot
I re-watched Elisabeth Elliot's funeral at Gordon College, throat-lumping through it all, especially relishing her brothers' reflections.
One of my lifetime reading goals is to read through Elisabeth Elliot's oeuvre. I was delighted to find this audiobook available through my library, even more so because Elisabeth, with her steady, low, modulated voice, was the narrator. She so passionately loved Jim; her respect and affection shines both in her diction and in her voice. Jim's grasp of language was impressive; the descriptions of his travels were lyrical.
Jim Elliot. A dynamic and direct (and dogmatic?) man. His intensity, his burning zeal ... made me shift in my seat, a bit uncomfortable, I'll admit. I admire him. If he had lived to threescore and ten, would his tone have modulated, I wonder?
The way he made decisions, the dichotomy he made between spiritual and secular, and his rejection of the ceremony and pageantry of weddings were other areas that made me squirm. I was cheering when he loosened up the last half of his senior year at college.
The close-knit fabric of his family life as seen through his letters is lovely. I had forgotten that his dad was able to come to Ecuador to help him with some construction projects. What a precious gift that time was.
I was raised in the shadow of Jim and Betty Elliot. My family were part of the Plymouth Brethren chapel Jim had attended (whose complacency he complained about!) while a student at Wheaton College. Jim's uncle, a man who radiated enthusiasm and was ever so kind to me, was an elder; Jim's cousin currently employs several of my family members. I went to Bible college with Jim's niece. My Harper aunts were schoolmates with Betty Howard at DuBose, a boarding school in Florida. When my Aunt Betty died in South Africa, I inherited her personal effects. Among them, I found this picture.
Fun quote: He sought the help of older Christians in learning to live for God. And there were occasions when he asked them to pray with him. Of one of these he wrote, "Had fellowship in prayer with Brother Harper and discussion of the things of God. A happy experience." <-- that's my Grandpa!
Next up to read is Valerie Elliot Shepard's book, Devotedly: The Personal Letters and Love Story of Jim & Elisabeth Elliot
I re-watched Elisabeth Elliot's funeral at Gordon College, throat-lumping through it all, especially relishing her brothers' reflections.
March 6, 2023
If you’re looking for encouragement for the mundane, strengthening of faith, conviction to pray and offer every part of your life to Jesus, this book is for you. I think coming across The Shadow of the Almighty is the start of a long reading journey for me, a journey that seeks genuine examples of self-sacrifice and believers carrying their cross. I can see how testimonies of faith will spur me on until the end. To God be the glory, and may my life be his!
December 19, 2015
This book was difficult and troubling to read throughout since one knows the painful end from the beginning. It didn't help that the pages were filled with Jim's allusions to lives poured out for God early, for his own readiness for death. Was this premonition or youthful romance and bravado?
Beyond this aspect, however, I found the first two-thirds of the book down right disturbing on a personal basis. I felt that I did not like Jim Eliot and I suffered a dichotomy of soul to think that I did not like this fellow saint with whom I will spend eternity. I found him to be rather sanctimonious, as another reviewer has said, as well as judgmental and legalistic. I found his purple, King James-type prose to be pretentious and annoying. Throughout his college years he anguished and moaned about how sluggish and stale the American church was and how little worth was held in his studies or any other kind of work. He did not share the Reformed and Puritan views that all respectable work that is done as unto the Lord is wholly acceptable to Him. I found Jim's view quite snobbish.
Further, I was completely befuddled by his failure to ACT. I believe that this failure must have been directly influenced by his denominational (Plymouth Brethren) practices. Apparently, the Brethren are Quaker-like in their worship services. There is no appointed minister and everyone sits around waiting to be inspired to speak or read or sing. (Jim also shared in common with the Quakers a passivity which he felt precluded him from participation in the military or in government or civic affairs.) This "waiting attitude" seemed to bleed over into the rest of Jim's life. After he graduated from college he went home and kind of just helped around the house while he waited to be called to Christian service, even though he clearly had a keen desire to go to the mission field. It seems as if he was awaiting an engraved invitation to serve. He also spent years declaring that he must deny himself a wife, despite the fact that the Lord had clearly provided a woman that he loved and who also happened to be called to the same mission field as he. These pages and pages of self-denial tasted so much of self-flagellation that it became excruciating to read.
I so wanted to put this book down. I so dreaded and yet couldn't resist reading it. I was rewarded for my perseverance. When Jim finally allowed himself to ACT on the desires that God had put into his heart and the opportunities that God opened up for him, he blossomed like one of the flowers of which he was so fond. It became a joy and pleasure to watch him grow through the pages of his journal - to let go of that romantic, angst-ridden prose, and the bemoaning of his unfulfilled desires. It is very evident that the Lord placed the desire for mission work in Ecuador in Jim's heart. It was a joy to see Jim's happiness blossom. He still continued for a while to deny himself the wife God had placed right in front of him. The reasons he gave for his failure to act were that God had not allowed it. I am still bewildered at this. My belief is that if God puts a desire in our hearts and provides the fulfillment, he means for us to take hold of it, not to stand back and ask ourselves if this is what God wants for our lives. (With the caveat that the desired object meets godly and biblical prerequisites, which the mission field and the wife did.) It is still very unclear to me, when Jim accepted God's gifts, what it was that finally made it okay.
At any rate, Jim's personal and spiritual growth were so evidenced in the later pages of the book that one can begin to see the early parts as what they were - evidence of youthful angst, zeal and romance. Thank God that no one has access to any of the journals I may have written during that part of my life. Jim was growing into a wonderful husband and father and a man of God that could appreciate the gifts he had been given. I ache to think that some of that leftover zeal could have caused impatience in dealing with the Aucas, but as is true in all things, God had a plan and He was able to work good.
Beyond this aspect, however, I found the first two-thirds of the book down right disturbing on a personal basis. I felt that I did not like Jim Eliot and I suffered a dichotomy of soul to think that I did not like this fellow saint with whom I will spend eternity. I found him to be rather sanctimonious, as another reviewer has said, as well as judgmental and legalistic. I found his purple, King James-type prose to be pretentious and annoying. Throughout his college years he anguished and moaned about how sluggish and stale the American church was and how little worth was held in his studies or any other kind of work. He did not share the Reformed and Puritan views that all respectable work that is done as unto the Lord is wholly acceptable to Him. I found Jim's view quite snobbish.
Further, I was completely befuddled by his failure to ACT. I believe that this failure must have been directly influenced by his denominational (Plymouth Brethren) practices. Apparently, the Brethren are Quaker-like in their worship services. There is no appointed minister and everyone sits around waiting to be inspired to speak or read or sing. (Jim also shared in common with the Quakers a passivity which he felt precluded him from participation in the military or in government or civic affairs.) This "waiting attitude" seemed to bleed over into the rest of Jim's life. After he graduated from college he went home and kind of just helped around the house while he waited to be called to Christian service, even though he clearly had a keen desire to go to the mission field. It seems as if he was awaiting an engraved invitation to serve. He also spent years declaring that he must deny himself a wife, despite the fact that the Lord had clearly provided a woman that he loved and who also happened to be called to the same mission field as he. These pages and pages of self-denial tasted so much of self-flagellation that it became excruciating to read.
I so wanted to put this book down. I so dreaded and yet couldn't resist reading it. I was rewarded for my perseverance. When Jim finally allowed himself to ACT on the desires that God had put into his heart and the opportunities that God opened up for him, he blossomed like one of the flowers of which he was so fond. It became a joy and pleasure to watch him grow through the pages of his journal - to let go of that romantic, angst-ridden prose, and the bemoaning of his unfulfilled desires. It is very evident that the Lord placed the desire for mission work in Ecuador in Jim's heart. It was a joy to see Jim's happiness blossom. He still continued for a while to deny himself the wife God had placed right in front of him. The reasons he gave for his failure to act were that God had not allowed it. I am still bewildered at this. My belief is that if God puts a desire in our hearts and provides the fulfillment, he means for us to take hold of it, not to stand back and ask ourselves if this is what God wants for our lives. (With the caveat that the desired object meets godly and biblical prerequisites, which the mission field and the wife did.) It is still very unclear to me, when Jim accepted God's gifts, what it was that finally made it okay.
At any rate, Jim's personal and spiritual growth were so evidenced in the later pages of the book that one can begin to see the early parts as what they were - evidence of youthful angst, zeal and romance. Thank God that no one has access to any of the journals I may have written during that part of my life. Jim was growing into a wonderful husband and father and a man of God that could appreciate the gifts he had been given. I ache to think that some of that leftover zeal could have caused impatience in dealing with the Aucas, but as is true in all things, God had a plan and He was able to work good.
September 20, 2012
It is difficult to find a story that stirs the soul quite like Jim Elliot's. His life reads just like a novel, and yet is all the more compelling knowing it really happened. He was a husband, a father, a missionary, and a martyr by the age of twenty-eight; most people do not live such a full life. The author and wife of Jim Elliot tells his story primarily through his own letters and journal entries, rather than her own narration, allowing the reader to dig deep into the mind and heart of Elliot without the distraction of author bias. Her goal is to tell his story plainly, without dramatizing any points - not even his terrible and sudden death at the hands of the savage Auca Indians. It is Jim Elliot's poetry and eccentric writing style that give Shadow of the Almighty its novel-like appeal.
As with any biography, the reader is first and foremost acquainted with who Jim Elliot was, what made him the man he was by the time he died. However, just as Elliot chose a life dead to the attention and applause of this world, his story is not meant to persuade the reader to admire him, but the One after whom he patterned his entire existence. Every time I set the book down, I found myself thinking more intensely about what it means to be a follower of Christ. The book as a whole is essentially one man's example of true Biblical Christianity, something long forgotten in this country yet desperately needed.
I would certainly recommend this book both to Christians seeking a more noble vision for the believer's life and non-Christians who feel called to a greater purpose than what the world has to offer. Elisabeth Elliot's straightforward and unassuming commentary and Jim Elliot's inspiring, convicting words make this a very worthwhile read.
As with any biography, the reader is first and foremost acquainted with who Jim Elliot was, what made him the man he was by the time he died. However, just as Elliot chose a life dead to the attention and applause of this world, his story is not meant to persuade the reader to admire him, but the One after whom he patterned his entire existence. Every time I set the book down, I found myself thinking more intensely about what it means to be a follower of Christ. The book as a whole is essentially one man's example of true Biblical Christianity, something long forgotten in this country yet desperately needed.
I would certainly recommend this book both to Christians seeking a more noble vision for the believer's life and non-Christians who feel called to a greater purpose than what the world has to offer. Elisabeth Elliot's straightforward and unassuming commentary and Jim Elliot's inspiring, convicting words make this a very worthwhile read.
March 15, 2022
We talk a lot about discerning the will of God, but what about obeying it? Obedience to the Lord and submitting oneself to the Bible and the Lord are some of my biggest takeaways.
Like most dead Christians I choose to read about, it always serves as a check to my soul and reality. They lived with eternity on the forefront of their minds all the time.
Like most dead Christians I choose to read about, it always serves as a check to my soul and reality. They lived with eternity on the forefront of their minds all the time.
June 23, 2024
The life and testament of Jim Elliot has served to increase my faith like nothing I've ever read, outside the Bible. Jim believed in a deep, serious obedience to Christ. And he was very unashamed of it. That's how he lived and that's how he died.
October 24, 2023
God made and gifted Jim Elliot for the short, intense life and bold death He led him to, and I honor that. He didn't make me anything like him, so I didn't find him compelling in that way. He'd have thought much less of me, and probably rightly so, for I have greater faults of character, not just differences of personality. The parts of the story that are compelling to me are told better in other places (the format of this volume, a string of quotes from Jim's letters and journal entries, is a bit choppy).
I was glad to have Elisabeth reading it. For me, she is the greatest gift to come out of Jim's story.
I was glad to have Elisabeth reading it. For me, she is the greatest gift to come out of Jim's story.
July 7, 2025
Jim Elliot was an amazing man who loved God! I learned so much from him and his exposition of the Bible. This book makes me think how many amazing thoughts, ideas, wrestles, and hopes are lost through phone calls and texts vs this era of letter and texts.
Found a desire to join in many of his prayers and inspired by his vision and mission.
Found a desire to join in many of his prayers and inspired by his vision and mission.
July 21, 2019
"He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose."
"Jim left for me, in memory, and for us all, in these letters and diaries, the testimony of a man who sought nothing but the will of God, who prayed that his life would be 'an exhibit to the value of knowing God.'"
This is an inspiring biography, and I don't use that description lightly. This book hit me with particular force because Jim Elliot was just a year older than I am right now when he was killed in missionary service. The passion and commitment to God he manifested up to that point was equally compelling, causing me to stop and evaluate myself. What am I doing with my life, however much of it God chooses to give me? Does it reach even 1% of the passion for God and for the lost that Jim Elliot had? Am I willing to give what I cannot keep to gain what I cannot lose? So, as one young person reading about how another young person devoted his life to pursuing the will of God and the glory of God among those who have never known Him—that is truly inspirational reading for me. By the world’s standards, Jim Elliot’s twenty-eight years were far too short. But he did much for the sake of the name in that time, and though he is dead, he still speaks. Thankful for biographies like these.
"Jim left for me, in memory, and for us all, in these letters and diaries, the testimony of a man who sought nothing but the will of God, who prayed that his life would be 'an exhibit to the value of knowing God.'"
This is an inspiring biography, and I don't use that description lightly. This book hit me with particular force because Jim Elliot was just a year older than I am right now when he was killed in missionary service. The passion and commitment to God he manifested up to that point was equally compelling, causing me to stop and evaluate myself. What am I doing with my life, however much of it God chooses to give me? Does it reach even 1% of the passion for God and for the lost that Jim Elliot had? Am I willing to give what I cannot keep to gain what I cannot lose? So, as one young person reading about how another young person devoted his life to pursuing the will of God and the glory of God among those who have never known Him—that is truly inspirational reading for me. By the world’s standards, Jim Elliot’s twenty-eight years were far too short. But he did much for the sake of the name in that time, and though he is dead, he still speaks. Thankful for biographies like these.
July 19, 2024
Beautiful book! It is such a gift to be able read the thoughts and see the heart of those much wiser than I. Truly this book is convicting and inspiring, and tells the story and shows the heart and mind and desires of a man who truly lived his life to glorify the Lord, giving up comfort, time with family and friends, reputation, willing to surrender his love, and ultimately freely offering up his life to serve the Lord. I loved that it wasn’t just an inspiring story but walked through so much of his life, and I got to see examples of how to do college well, and pursue dating well, care for our bodies in honor of Gods calling, how to study the Bible with diligence through both slow seasons and crazy ones, examples of how to discern will through biblical principles/counsel/personal conviction. Jim Elliot wasn’t perfect, but he truly strove to image Christ in all things and that is about the best we can do. I cried multiple times reading this book, it was just really beautiful and I read it over many months so I got to learn different things in different seasons, I especially loved the quotations from Hymns they just really touched my heart. Would wholeheartedly recommend 9.3/10
March 28, 2023
Jim Elliot was such an inspirational person. I desire to have the faith he had, and to be as single minded in my service to God as he was!
June 14, 2025
Reading Jim's journal entries give such a great insight into his intense commitment to taking the gospel to others.
June 24, 2023
Undoubtedly one of the more powerful books I have ever had the pleasure of reading. Read this book off and on over the last year and every time I have come back to it it has been a genuine source of both encouragement and challenge. Clear on every page is a life lived in service of the King. Jim Elliot was utterly convinced of the truth and the life changing implications of the gospel in a way that challenges me. I am too often too comfortable and too often aspire for comfort. The last chapter of the book is titled 'Mission Accomplished' and opens with words of Jesus from John 12:25 "Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life". Jim Elliot lived life believing those words, will we?
March 28, 2013
Rating is based solely on the writing. The format of telling most of Jim Elliot's story from his own words in journals and letters is effective, I suppose, but ends up rather dry. Oddly, I found Mr. Elliot's writing poetic and compelling at times. I wonder if Mrs. Elliot could have simply relied on his own words too much? Perhaps she could have summarized more events.
As for the person of Mr. Elliot . . .
One cannot read a biography without forming at least a cursory opinion of the subject. If the rating were based on my opinion of Mr. Elliot, it might be different. I think if I had known Mr. Elliot in real life, I would have found him rather sanctimonious and occasionally a bit of a thug. The account of him and his friend shooting a duck in Portland, only to find out that it was a pet duck, disturbed me--not because the duck died, but because the young men simply hid from the weeping owner and just prayed that she would be comforted. I find that thuggish behavior, but the tone of the book suggests that we should wink and shake our heads and say "boys will be boys."
In addition, Mr. Elliot made it clear that he would register as a conscientious objector should he be drafted. I confess that I do NOT understand at all this religious objection to defending freedom. It's interesting to note that I read a biography of George and Martha Washington at the same time I read this biography, and I would consider George Washington to have had as deep and abiding a faith as Mr. Elliot had. Mr. Washington, however, considered it an obligation to serve his country by defending the budding United States from tyranny--and indeed, several prominent Quakers left their sect and their pacifism to fight against the British in the Revolutionary War. So while I suppose I can respect Mr. Elliot's strength of conviction, I do not understand it, and I suspect that he would have been mightily offended by Mr. Washington's ability to reconcile his faith with serving in war.
On the other hand, I have the deepest and most profound respect for Mr. Elliot's service to the kingdom of God. And I confess--as one who does not experience the voice of God except through His Word, I am rather jealous of someone who could be so completely convinced of his calling and his duty. In addition, I think that his assessment of the church in America was deadly accurate, and I found his criticism of the way we practice Christianity here a biting indictment that has only proven itself even more true in the intervening decades since he penned his comments. Finally, while I did find Mr. Elliot personally a bit offensive (really? He couldn't change diapers because he believed in the "division of labor"? And he considered staying with his daughter "babysitting"?), I also do believe that he seemed to be growing into a more mellow, more palatable person as he aged. Had he lived past the age of 28, he may have eventually been someone that I could have tolerated in adulthood.
In any case, I'm glad I read it, and I will likely make time to read "Through the Gates of Splendor" eventually.
As for the person of Mr. Elliot . . .
One cannot read a biography without forming at least a cursory opinion of the subject. If the rating were based on my opinion of Mr. Elliot, it might be different. I think if I had known Mr. Elliot in real life, I would have found him rather sanctimonious and occasionally a bit of a thug. The account of him and his friend shooting a duck in Portland, only to find out that it was a pet duck, disturbed me--not because the duck died, but because the young men simply hid from the weeping owner and just prayed that she would be comforted. I find that thuggish behavior, but the tone of the book suggests that we should wink and shake our heads and say "boys will be boys."
In addition, Mr. Elliot made it clear that he would register as a conscientious objector should he be drafted. I confess that I do NOT understand at all this religious objection to defending freedom. It's interesting to note that I read a biography of George and Martha Washington at the same time I read this biography, and I would consider George Washington to have had as deep and abiding a faith as Mr. Elliot had. Mr. Washington, however, considered it an obligation to serve his country by defending the budding United States from tyranny--and indeed, several prominent Quakers left their sect and their pacifism to fight against the British in the Revolutionary War. So while I suppose I can respect Mr. Elliot's strength of conviction, I do not understand it, and I suspect that he would have been mightily offended by Mr. Washington's ability to reconcile his faith with serving in war.
On the other hand, I have the deepest and most profound respect for Mr. Elliot's service to the kingdom of God. And I confess--as one who does not experience the voice of God except through His Word, I am rather jealous of someone who could be so completely convinced of his calling and his duty. In addition, I think that his assessment of the church in America was deadly accurate, and I found his criticism of the way we practice Christianity here a biting indictment that has only proven itself even more true in the intervening decades since he penned his comments. Finally, while I did find Mr. Elliot personally a bit offensive (really? He couldn't change diapers because he believed in the "division of labor"? And he considered staying with his daughter "babysitting"?), I also do believe that he seemed to be growing into a more mellow, more palatable person as he aged. Had he lived past the age of 28, he may have eventually been someone that I could have tolerated in adulthood.
In any case, I'm glad I read it, and I will likely make time to read "Through the Gates of Splendor" eventually.
May 6, 2015
I love this book. It is one of my all-time favorites as it describes the short life of a man whose motto was the very Kingdom centered "He is no fool who gives up what he can not keep to gain that which he can not lose." The passion and resolve of Jim Elliot to follow the leading of God, which for him was to the unreached tribes of South America, ultimately led to his death and the death of his four teammates as they tried to share the gospel with a dangerous yet unreached tribe.
Dying before his 30th birthday, his young life and the lives of the other missionaries sparked a great movement in churches in the 1950s to go to the ends of the earth with the gospel of Jesus Christ. This biography gives more specific detail about the inner thoughts, feelings, and decisions that Jim Elliot nurtured and inspire all who read it to want more from this life than what this world can bring.
Thanks to his wife Elizabeth for writing his biography and thank you God for giving us a young and zealous life, in the spirit of Stephen in Acts 7, to see that a life sold out to Jesus is still possible and needed in the world today.
Dying before his 30th birthday, his young life and the lives of the other missionaries sparked a great movement in churches in the 1950s to go to the ends of the earth with the gospel of Jesus Christ. This biography gives more specific detail about the inner thoughts, feelings, and decisions that Jim Elliot nurtured and inspire all who read it to want more from this life than what this world can bring.
Thanks to his wife Elizabeth for writing his biography and thank you God for giving us a young and zealous life, in the spirit of Stephen in Acts 7, to see that a life sold out to Jesus is still possible and needed in the world today.
March 4, 2015
This one's a biography of Jim Elliot, a missionary who was killed on the job in Equador back in 1956. Whereas the Woodrow Wilson biography I read preceding this one was a well crafted story, Shadow is more a collection of diary and correspondence excerpts, weaved together by a bit of narrative. I'm not quite sure how much I like the book. Overall, Jim Elliot came across as a sanctimonious young lad, quick to speak the word of Law to his peers and himself. Of course, I'm not quite sure how much of that negative perspective flows from his youthful attitudes or how much flows from guilt over my own shortcomings. Jim Elliot was more faithful in his lifetime than I've been, even though I've had almost twice as much time to get it right. Lord, have mercy! Anyway, the life of Jim Elliot is a tale that should be told. I just not sure that Shadow of the Almighty is the best way to tell it.
February 24, 2022
An amazing book of the faithfulness of God even in a man that did not live life long. Jim's life challenges me to live differently, more Christ-like, more devoted to the things of God and willing to go where he has been called. Some things I was challenged by included his patience waiting on the Lord for His will to be done in his relationship with Elisabeth (AKA Bets or Betty) and his move to Ecuador eventually.
November 15, 2022
"I tell you truly that unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains a single grain of wheat; but if it dies, it brings a good harvest. The man who loves his own life will lose it, and the man who hates his life in this world will preserve it for eternal life." - John 12.24
I loved this book. No more words needed.
I loved this book. No more words needed.
November 16, 2022
This biography was remarkable and the array of letters filled me with joy and sorrow. What an insight into living in obedience to God for His glory.
July 23, 2022
I started this thinking it was the more well-known Through Gates of Splendor and was pleasantly surprised to find that Shadow is less a slow unfolding of Jim Elliot's death and more a story of Divine sovereignty over his entire life. (Note: I listened to the audiobook version which is read by Elisabeth Elliot herself, and I felt that her voice added an immediacy to the text.) Shadow is told through Jim's letters and journals, and at times it reminded me of Marilynne Robinson's Gilead which similarly shifts between autobiographical narrative and theological meditation. I really enjoyed the latter, and found it interesting to hear Jim's understanding of issues such as marriage, Christian fellowship, and evangelism mature over the years. I also found myself trying to read between the lines to detect his growing love for Elisabeth. Their self-denying romance is often frustrating but always intriguing. Throughout I was moved, humbled, and inspired by Jim's reverence for God and his commitment to obedience, even when God seemed silent. During these times, the reader has the advantage of being able to see God's hand guiding and preparing Jim for for his life ahead. (I was reminded of a similar pattern in the Psalms and in Augustine's Confessions.) When the story of Jim's life finally does reach its "present" in his death, the conclusion somehow feels both foregone and impossible. I felt this was true to the the human experience in general which defies simple resolution.
August 21, 2025
Das Buch über Jim Elliot hat mich sehr beeindruckt: Es ist spannend und gut geschrieben, sodass man der Geschichte leicht folgen kann. Besonders empfehlenswert finde ich, wie eindrücklich sein kompromissloser Glaube und seine Hingabe an Gott geschildert werden – ein inspirierendes und bewegendes Buch, das zum Nachdenken und Nachfolgen anregt.
October 3, 2025
This is an inspiring and deeply personal look at the life of a man who lived completely sold out to Jesus and eventually gave his life for the cause of making His name known. Not one of my favorites ever, but definitely a worth-while read.
Favorite Quote: “The will of God is always a bigger thing than we bargain for.”
Favorite Quote: “The will of God is always a bigger thing than we bargain for.”
March 18, 2018
"I see clearly now that anything, whatever it is, if it be not on the principle of grace, it is not of God. Here shall be my plea in weakness; here shall be my boldness in prayer; here shall be my deliverance in temptation; at last, here shall be my translation. Not of grace? Then not of God."
"I think there is nothing so startling in all the graces of God as His quietness."
"We have found great joy in coming to the field as God's free folk. Answering to nobody but Himself, and with nobody's support or promise but His very own...it is most gratifying to look aloft to the God who keeps promises and is sufficient."
"He is giving me such good things I wonder that I could want more."
"I think there is nothing so startling in all the graces of God as His quietness."
"We have found great joy in coming to the field as God's free folk. Answering to nobody but Himself, and with nobody's support or promise but His very own...it is most gratifying to look aloft to the God who keeps promises and is sufficient."
"He is giving me such good things I wonder that I could want more."
July 12, 2019
This was just so good. What a life. What an impact he had - in South America himself and around the world because of the opportunities Elisabeth had because she was his widow. Hard to believe this man was only in his 20's - died at age 29. To hear the book read by Elisabeth was just icing on the cake.
December 19, 2023
I loved this quote which beautifully sums up Jim’s deep and unwavering devotion to the Lord, “Be on guard, my soul, of complicating your environment so that you have neither time nor room for growth.”
February 24, 2024
A captivating mixture of Jim and Elisabeth Elliot’s own words, this is a great account of what is true about all Christian lives: we are born with the purpose of using our time to further God’s kingdom, not our own agenda. A great reminder that we don’t have a choice in the matter of how many days we have to live, but we do have a choice in how we live them.
July 18, 2022
I did not enjoy the ending. Great book though
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 12, 2024
Definitely a cool testimony to model after ! It simply took me a while to read with school happening, can be a bit dense and slow at parts but I’m excited to look back on my annotations!
April 5, 2023
Love being challenged by this brother’s desire to live fervently for the will of his King alone. A true living out of “to live is Christ and to die is gain.”
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