Women On The Frontlines: A Call To CourageSample

Jackie Pullinger: Lighting the Darkness

As a young woman, Jackie Pullinger attended a special prayer meeting with friends where she heard God speak to her. He said, Go. Trust me, and I will lead you. I will instruct you and lead you in the way in which you shall go; I will guide you with My eye. Jackie knew that she must take action and obey God’s call.

She bought the cheapest boat ticket that stopped at the greatest number of countries and prayed for God’s direction to know where to get off and how He wanted her to proceed from there. So, with this great act of faith, Jackie found herself stepping off a boat in Hong Kong in 1966 after traveling halfway around the globe.

There, Jackie began a youth club to reach out to the young people of the Walled City. This club enabled her to befriend young people who were members of the feared Triad organizations. Suddenly, light began to break through the darkness around her and lives began to be changed one by one.

Jackie took seriously her call to help the people at their point of need. She looked for ways to help and minister to the most “poor in spirit and body” of those around her, which ultimately led her to preaching Jesus and ministering to the needs of the drug addicts. Jackie discovered that a sincere heart, prayer, and praise could often help an addict go through withdrawal in a short and relatively painless way.

Jackie’s one-woman crusade within the Walled City not only led to the development of a very successful drug rehabilitation program but also gave birth to an active, vibrant, Spirit-empowered church within the confines of the Walled City.

Jackie Pullinger entered Hong Kong with no human resources to fall back on. She followed the Spirit’s leading to Hong Kong and knew that she was totally dependent upon God for her protection, resources, and success. Her life is a testimony to the truth that there is no limit to what one person can accomplish when he or she commits him or herself completely into the hands of the Lord.

(A Call to Courage includes multiple stories of warrior women on the frontlines of faith. Be sure to check out the book for more encouraging, inspirational stories of women such as Sojourner Truth, Corrie ten Boom, and more.)