About Lilias Trotter One of the premier art critics of 19th century Europe,John Ruskin, in his 1883 Oxford lecture, “The Art of England,” tells of meeting a young woman, Lilias Trotter, who challenged his prejudice about artists. “For a long time I used to say, in all my elementary books, that except in a graceful and minor way, women could not draw or paint. I’m beginning to bow myself to the much more delightful conviction that no one else can.” Lilias Trotter was a gifted artist. So gifted, in fact, that John Ruskin, said that if she would devote herself to art, “she would be the greatest living painter and do things that would be immortal.” Lilias’ father died when she was twelve years old. Though she had been a believer before this tragedy, the loss of her father softened and spiritually deepened Lilias. She learned to run to her Heavenly Father in times of difficulty, and developed a close walk with God. In her twenties, Lilias divided her time between her two great loves, working with the poor in the London slums and honing her skills as an artist. But Ruskin, who had taken Lilias under his wing as a student, forced her to choose.for her, the decision was clear. Lilias felt she could not give herself to painting in the way Ruskin asked and still seek first the Kingdom of God. With great pain and great joy, she chose to focus her life on evangelism. Even though it was what she really wanted, letting go one dream to pursue another still felt like a loss. Lilias recovered quickly and set off to serve God with a newly focused passion. She applied to the North Africa Mission to serve in Algeria, but was denied because of her poor health. Lilias and a friend went to Algeria anyway, as self-supported workers. They would found the Algiers Mission Band, which would later become Arab World Ministries. Lilias wrote tracts in Arabic and illustrated them, drawing much of her inspiration from nature and the beauty of that desert region. Over the next four decades, from her base of Algiers, Lilias set up stations along the coast of North Africa and deeper south into the Sahara desert, scouting on camel, areas never before visited by a European woman. In sum, she spent the rest of her life bringing the light and life and love of Jesus to the Arab people of North Africa. Lilias and her friend Blanche lived among the people in a crowded city.They traveled far across the desert to reach small villages with the good news and they opened their home to people in need.After her death in 1928, people were asked what they remembered about Lilias Trotter. For most, it was her great love for individuals she encountered and her investment in their souls. Scores of people have come to know Christ either directly or indirectly because of Lilias’ willingness to focus on the best, even at the loss of something good. Like Mary listening at the feet of Jesus, she chose the better part. Lilias’s story is detailed in the biography A Passion for the Impossible: The Life of Lilias Trotter. Her soul is revealed through writings and watercolors that document the inner as well as outward events of her life.
Posted on: Sun, 11 Jan 2015 02:37:06 +0000
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