Persistence Pays

Persistence Pays

He was regarded by the class-conscious English missionaries as inferior in background and education.

HUDSON TAYLOR arrived in China as a missionary in 1854 at the age of twenty-one. Son of a pharmacist in Yorkshire, he was regarded by the class-conscious English missionaries as inferior in background and education. To make matters worse, Hudson chose to adopt Chinese dress.

In 1857 Taylor came to the city of Ningpo, where the Anglican, American Baptist, and American Presbyterian missions had separate compounds. Into this society of precisely graded ranks of seniority and social background came Hudson Taylor, short of stature, with his native dress and Chinese pigtail.

Once a week Miss Aldersey, the first woman missionary to China, hosted a meal for all the missionaries of Ningpo, including Hudson. Miss Aldersey had a rigid sense of what was proper and ruled her two young assistants, Burella and Maria Dyer, with an iron hand.

The Dyer sisters had an uncle in England who was their closest relative since their missionary parents were deceased. Burella was engaged to a missionary in Shanghai and Maria was, as Hudson described in a letter home, “a good-looking girl with a squint.” She was reported to be the second-best Chinese-speaking missionary in the city and was completely dedicated to her work, having already turned down two marriage proposals.

After meeting Hudson, Maria wrote to her brother in London, “I met a gentleman and, I cannot say I loved him at once, but I felt interested in him and could not forget him. I saw him from time to time and still the interest continued. I had no good reason to think it was reciprocated.”

Hudson had similar feelings but told no one. Finally, in March of 1858 he wrote to Maria expressing his love for her and proposing marriage. Before opening the letter, Maria prayed over it, hoping it was from Hudson.

The next morning Maria went to tell Miss Aldersey the good news. To Miss Aldersey, however, this was not good news. She ranted, “That young, poor, unconnected nobody! . . . He is not a gentleman. He is without education, without position. . . . He is short, you are tall. And he wears Chinese clothes!” Miss Aldersey then dictated a letter for Maria to write to Hudson, undiplomatically refusing his proposal.

Maria was heartbroken but incapable of crossing Miss Aldersey. When Hudson received her reply, he suspected that Miss Aldersey was behind it.

On July 13, 1857, Hudson went to meet personally with Miss Aldersey and learned that she had dictated the letter. He also discovered that the uncle, not Miss Aldersey, was Maria’s legal guardian. Miss Aldersey reported that she had written Maria’s uncle describing the scandalous situation. Maria wrote to her uncle explaining her side.

Hudson knew that he had to get Maria’s permission to write her uncle asking for her hand. Later that month the opportunity came. During a ladies prayer meeting at the missionary home where Hudson lived, a water spout from a tornado swept in from the sea and flooded the streets. As a result, some of the coolies were late in bringing the sedan chairs to take the ladies home. When Hudson returned, Maria was still there. Hudson had the man of the house ask Maria for permission to meet with her. As they met and shook hands in greeting, they knew their love was mutual, and Maria gave Hudson permission to write her uncle asking for her hand in marriage.

Finally in December, Hudson received a note from Maria saying that her uncle had given permission for her to marry as soon as she was twenty-one.

Hudson and Maria were married on January 20, 1858, four days after her twenty-first birthday. Maria went on to play a crucial role in shaping the ministry of the Yorkshire lad who was to change forever the way missionaries work. Their four surviving children all became missionaries to China.

Reflection

The most important decision in life after choosing to become a Christian is whether to remain single or be married. How should we decide whether to marry and whom to marry? To what extent should we regard the counsel of others?

Let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts.

Colossians 3:15