James Hudson Taylor: Work

“Work is the outcome of effort; fruit, of life.”

James Hudson Taylor

(J. Hudson Taylor. A Ribband of Blue and Other Bible Studies. London: China Inland Mission, n.d., 45).

Life , Effort

“The missionaries should be men of apostolic zeal, patience, endurance, willing to be all things to all men. May the Lord raise up suitable instruments, and fit me for this work.”

James Hudson Taylor

(A.J. Broomhall. Hudson Taylor and China’s Open Century, Book Two: Over the Treaty Wall. London: Hodder and Stoughton and Overseas Missionary Fellowship, 1982, 23).

Men , Patience

“My work is a very peculiar [unique] one; in many respects it has, and can have no precedent. It may be called an experiment; to a certain extent it is so. And by God’s help it shall be, as it is being, faithfully made.”

James Hudson Taylor

(A.J. Broomhall. Hudson Taylor and China’s Open Century, Book Four: Survivors’ Pact. London: Hodder and Stoughton and Overseas Missionary Fellowship, 1984, 297).

God , Help

“Consider six or eight hours a day sacred to the Lord and His work, and let nothing hinder your giving this time (to language study and practice) till you can preach fluently and intelligibly.”

James Hudson Taylor

(A.J. Broomhall. Hudson Taylor and China’s Open Century, Book Five: Refiner’s Fire. London: Hodder and Stoughton and Overseas Missionary Fellowship, 1985, 230).

Intelligence , Study , Time

“I could not think that GOD was poor, that He was short of resources, or unwilling to supply any want of whatever work was really His. It seemed to me that if there were lack of funds to carry on work, then to that degree, in that special development, or at that time, it could not be the work of GOD.”

James Hudson Taylor A Retrospect

(J. Hudson Taylor. A Retrospect. Philadelphia: China Inland Mission, n.d., 90).

God , Thinking , Time

“If this is a real work for God it is a real conflict with Satan.”

James Hudson Taylor

(A.J. Broomhall. Hudson Taylor and China’s Open Century, Book Six: Assault on the Nine. London: Hodder and Stoughton and Overseas Missionary Fellowship, 1988, 189).

God

“Let us give up our work, our thoughts, our plans, ourselves, our lives, our loved ones, our influence, our all, right into His hand, and then, when we have given all over to Him, there will be nothing left for us to be troubled about, or to make trouble about.”

James Hudson Taylor

(Hudson Taylor’s Choice Sayings: A Compilation from His Writings and Addresses. London: China Inland Mission, n.d., 52).
Variant: Let us give up our work, our thoughts, our plans, ourselves, our lives, our loved ones, our influence, our all, right into His hand, and then, when we have given all over to Him, there will be nothing left for us to be troubled about, or to make trouble about.

Love

“I besought Him to give me some work for Him, as an outlet for love and gratitude; some self-denying service, no matter what it might be, however trying or however trivial”

James Hudson Taylor

(A.J. Broomhall. Hudson Taylor and China’s Open Century, Book One: Barbarians at the Gates. London: Hodder and Stoughton and Overseas Missionary Fellowship, 1981, 354).

Love , Gratitude

“I so want you to realise this principle of working with God and asking Him for everything. If the work is at the command of God, then we can go to Him in full confidence for workers; and when God gives the workers, we can go to Him for means to supply their needs.”

James Hudson Taylor

(J. Hudson Taylor. God's Fellow Workers. Philadelphia: Overseas Missionary Fellowship).

God , Confidence

“The work of a true missionary is work indeed, often very monotonous, apparently not very successful, and carried on through great and varied but unceasing difficulties.”

James Hudson Taylor

(A.J. Broomhall. Hudson Taylor and China’s Open Century, Book Five: Refiner’s Fire. London: Hodder and Stoughton and Overseas Missionary Fellowship, 1985, 350).

Success

“I have found that there are three stages in every great work of God: first, it is impossible, then it is difficult, then it is done.”

James Hudson Taylor

(Leslie T. Lyall. A Passion for the Impossible: The Continuing Story of the Mission Hudson Taylor Began. London: OMF Books, 1965, 5).

God

“The work... is steadily growing and spreading – especially in that most important department, native help.... The future hope of China doubtless lies in them. I look on all us foreign missionaries as platform work round a rising building; the sooner it can be dispensed with the better; or rather, the sooner it can be transferred to other places, to serve the same temporary purpose, the better for the work sufficiently forward to dispense with it, and the better for the places yet to be evangelized.”

James Hudson Taylor

(A.J. Broomhall. Hudson Taylor and China’s Open Century, Book Five: Refiner’s Fire. London: Hodder and Stoughton and Overseas Missionary Fellowship, 1985, 373).

Hope , Future , Help

“Let there be no reservation; give yourselves up fully and wholly to Him whose you are and whom you wish to serve in this work; and then there can be no disappointment.”

James Hudson Taylor

(A.J. Broomhall. Hudson Taylor and China’s Open Century, Book Four: Survivors’ Pact. London: Hodder and Stoughton and Overseas Missionary Fellowship, 1984, 358).

Disappointment

“It needs the presence of special difficulties to manifest to all the workings of God’s mighty power, and for such difficulties we may and should be grateful, and not cast down.”

James Hudson Taylor

(Hudson Taylor’s Choice Sayings: A Compilation from His Writings and Addresses. London: China Inland Mission, n.d., 49).

God

“The Apostolic plan was not to raise ways and means, but to go and do the work.”

James Hudson Taylor

(A.J. Broomhall. Hudson Taylor and China’s Open Century, Book Four: Survivors’ Pact. London: Hodder and Stoughton and Overseas Missionary Fellowship, 1984, 41).

Way

“God’s work done in God’s way will never lack God’s supplies.”

James Hudson Taylor

(Leslie T. Lyall. A Passion for the Impossible: The Continuing Story of the Mission Hudson Taylor Began. London: OMF Books, 1965, 37).

God , Way