Readability
Original Sources
Devotional Quality
Avoids Hagiography
Biblical Clarity
| Field | China |
| Missionary | Lottie Moon |
| Author | Catherine B. Allen |
| Era | 1860s–1910s |
Overview
Lottie Moon. You’ve heard the name. If you are Southern Baptist, it is synonymous with the annual Christmas offering. You might vaguely remember that Moon was a single, female missionary to China in a previous century. But what did she do? Why is her name remembered? And how did she become so associated with giving to missions?
With a little research, more questions surface about the enigmatic Moon. What she a Confederate spy during the American Civil War? Did she leave General Ambrose Burnsides at the altar? What about her mysterious romance with a Princeton professor? Besides these tangential questions, what did she do during her nearly forty years of pioneer missionary work in northern China?
Catherine Allen answers these questions and more in her book, The New Lottie Moon Story. With excellent research catalogued through footnotes, Allen builds on the original biography of Moon by Una Roberts Lawrence. However, both works do not always agree. Lawrence’s biography seems to draw from sources that Allen did not have. Allen also appears at times to have her own take on who Moon was and why she is significant. Both works tend toward hagiography, at times lifting up Moon more than would seem appropriate. However, Allen’s work provides a good overview of Moon’s faithful life and ministry through tumultuous times. You will benefit from reading of this godly woman, dedicated to God’s work in China.
Learn more about Lottie Moon later this spring when my new missions devotional comes out. Daring Decision is about to release! Subscribe for updates about its launch date (if you received this book review by email, you are already subscribed!). Contact me if you would like to join my launch team to organically promote this new missions resource.
Highlights
- Moon’s background in the South during and after the American Civil War.
- The pioneer nature of Moon’s work as one of the first single female missionaries sent by the baptists.
- Moon’s transition from teaching a girl’s school to itinerant evangelism in the villages.
- Moon’s peacemaking between different factions of baptist missionaries.
Quotes
- “I am more and more impressed by the belief that to win these people to God, we must go out and live among them, manifesting the gentle and loving spirit of our Lord. . . . We need to make friends before we can hope to win converts.” (Lawrence, 144).
- “We plod on in patience, waiting in faith during the time of seed sowing. The harvest will come in time, and in China—what a harvest it will be.” (Lawrence, 147).
Other Sources
Lawrence, Una Roberts. Lottie Moon. Nashville, TN: Sunday School Board of the Southern Baptist Convention, 1927.
Lottie Moon will be highlighted in my upcoming missions devotional, Daring Decision: a 31-Day Journey with those who Followed God’s Leading.