Thy Brother's Blood

Thy Brother’s Blood – A Vision for Souls

The tom-toms thumped straight on all night, and the darkness shuddered round me like a living, feeling thing. I could not go to sleep, so I lay awake and looked; and I saw, as it seemed, this:

That I stood on a grassy patch, and at my feet a ravine broke straight down into infinite space. I looked, but saw no bottom; only cloud shapes, black and furiously coiled, and great shadow-shrouded hollows, and unfathomable depths. Back I drew, dizzy at the depth.

Then I saw forms of people moving toward the edge. There was a woman with a baby in her arms and another little child holding on to her dress. She was on the very edge. She lifted her foot for the next step... Then, to my horror, I saw that she was blind. Before I could say anything she was over, and the children with her. Their cries pierced the air as they fell into the inky blackness of the ravine!

Then I saw more streams of people flowing from all quarters. All were blind, stone blind; all walked straight toward the edge. There were shrieks as they suddenly knew themselves falling, and a tossing up of helpless arms, catching, clutching at empty air. But some went over quietly, and fell without a sound.

Then I wondered, with a wonder that was sheer agony, why no one stopped them at the edge. I could not. I was glued to the ground, and I couldn't even yell; though I strained and tried, only a whisper would come out.

Then I saw that along the edge there were sentries set at intervals.

But the intervals were too large; there were wide, unguarded gaps between. And over these gaps the people fell in their blindness, unwarned; and the green grass seemed blood-red to me, and the ravine yawned like the mouth of hell.

Then I saw, like a little picture of peace, a group of people under some trees with their backs turned towards the ravine. They were making daisy chains. Sometimes when a piercing shriek cut the quiet air and reached them, it disturbed them and they thought it was a rather crude noise. And if one of their group started up and wanted to go and do something to help, then all the others would pull that one down. "Why should you get so excited about it? You must wait for a definite call to go! You haven't finished your daisy chain yet. It would be really selfish," they said, "to leave us to finish the work alone."

There was another group. It was made up of people whose great desire was to get more sentries out; but they found that very few wanted to go, and sometimes there were no sentries for miles and miles along the edge.

Once a girl stood alone in her place, waving the people back; but her mother and other relations called, and reminded her that her furlough was due; she must not break the rules. And being tired and needing a change, she had to go and rest for awhile; but no one was sent to guard her gap, and over and over the people fell, like a waterfall of souls. Once a child grabbed at a tuft of grass that grew at the very edge of the ravine; it clung convulsively, and it called - but nobody seemed to hear. Then the roots of the grass gave way, and with a cry the child went over, its two little hands still holding tight to the torn-off bunch of grass. And the girl who longed to be back in her gap thought she heard the little one cry, and she sprang up and wanted to go; at which her friends reproved her, reminding her that no one is necessary anywhere; "The gap would be well taken care of!", they said. And then they sang a hymn.

Then through the hymn came another sound like the pain of a million broken hearts wrung out in one full drop, one sob. And a horror of great darkness was upon me, for I knew that it was "The Cry of the Blood".

Then a voice thundered. It was the voice of the Lord, and He said, "What hast thou done? The voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground."

The tom-toms still beat heavily, the darkness still shuddered and shivered about me; I heard the yells of the devil-dancers and weird, wild shrieks of the devil-possessed just outside the gate. What does it matter, after all? It has gone on for years; it will go on for years. Why make such a fuss about it?

God forgive us! God arouse us! Shame us out of our callousness! Shame us out of our sin!


"Thy Brother’s Blood Crieth" by Amy Carmichael, Missionary to India,

Never Again

I came across this story that I had written, over a year ago, when I was first headed to the New Tribes Missionary Training Center.  It no longer seems fitting to my life, but someone might benefit from it, so I'm posting it anyway.  :)



(Walking with Him in the cool of the evening....)


*looking up, with a sigh*  I was ashamed today....

Ashamed, Dearest?  Of me? 

Yes.  Well no.  I mean, I didn't MEAN to be.  I just... I found myself blurting out a misleading answer to a simple question.  And before I knew it, I was...I was avoiding the opportunity to talk about you, and rambling on about....some trivial thing.

What 'trivial thing?'

Well, see, they asked me about college, and then if I was going to grad school.  And I AM going to a KIND of school....after I have graduated, so...I said yes.  Then they asked for more details, and I just, kinda, acted like I'm continuing in music-training, post-college...

Why did you feel like you needed to do that?

Well.....I don't know.  They didn't look like people who would care about...I mean, who would understand if I said that I was...I...I don't really know.  Somehow, I thought it would just be simpler to mention music and move on.

But they didn't move on?

No...they kept prodding.  And by then, I had to keep on running circles around their questions so that it would SOUND credible, without actually lying.

Did you think you would get a better tip that way?

Oh, no, I didn't really think about the money.

Did you think they would mock you if you told them you were pursuing missions?

No...I don't think so....

What happened after that?

Well....it turned out that they were believers, too.  They started telling me about activities at their church, and, well....  Immediately I was ashamed of mySELF, for having acted ashamed of you.  I don't know why I didn't just tell them in the first place.  I don't know why....I'm sorry.  I'm so sorry.  I'm NOT ashamed of You, of the Gospel.  I'm so proud and blessed to be a part.    I WANT to be a part...I want to share it with others.  I don't understand why I responded that way.

Dearest, I am never ashamed of you.

......I know.....


I WANT to include you in what I'm doing to bring glory to my name, to see the nations come to know me, to see people from EVERY tribe, tongue, and language praising me on earth, and before my thrown in Heaven.


....I know......I don't know why I responded the way I did.  Please forgive me.  Please make my perspective to ALWAYS be focused on you, boldly sharing about my love for you.  Please fill my heart so full of your love for others that it spills out in everyday conversation.  Please make me SO EXCITED about what you're doing, that I want to share that with EVERYONE I meet, even if it's "random people" at work.  I know nothing is random with you.


You can trust me to do all of these things.  As we spend this time together, I am aligning your heart with mine, filling you with MY love for others.  It's because of MY love that you can love others, and desire to show them my love.  I love you more than you will ever be able to comprehend or imagine.

I love you too....Please teach me how to love you more....

Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day comes with chocolates and flowers. But it's not that way for all of us, is it?

We live in a world where "happily ever after" doesn't always come true.

So today if you find yourself with a sweetheart, celebrate with much joy.

And if you don't, let me lean and whisper you are still loved.
Higher than the sky.
Deeper than the ocean.
More than you've even dared to dream.
The hairs on your head are numbered.
The cares in your heart are too.
You are fearfully and wonderfully made.
You are have a purpose and there is a good plan for you.
You are not alone--you are fully and beautifully known by One who loves you more than you can even imagine.

I just wanted to whisper that to your heart again, especially today.

-Holley Gerth