Check out the best Jim Elliot quotes to strengthen your faith, inspire courage, and remind you to live with purpose and conviction.

Jim Elliot was an American Christian missionary, writer, and martyr whose unwavering faith and dedication continue to inspire generations.

Born in 1927, he dedicated his life to sharing the Gospel and serving others, ultimately sacrificing his life in 1956 while reaching out to the Huaorani people of Ecuador.

Through his journals and letters, Elliot inspires us to trust in God fully, live boldly, and pursue a life of meaning.

He believed in total surrender to God’s will, often emphasizing courage, sacrifice, and devotion in his teachings.

His most famous quote, “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose,” reflects his deep conviction about faith and eternity.

Today, Elliot is remembered for his wise words and quotes about Christianity, but most importantly, his undying love for God.

Here are the most powerful Jim Elliot quotes to inspire your spiritual journey of faith and purpose.

Top 10 Jim Elliot Quotes 

1. “It’s hard to steer a parked car.” — Jim Elliot

   

   
   

2. “Wherever you are – be all there.” — Jim Elliot

   

3. “That saint who advances on his knees never retreats…” — Jim Elliot

   

4. “I seek not a long life, but a full one, like you, Lord Jesus.” — Jim Elliot

   

5. “Begin each day with private reading of the Word and prayer.” — Jim Elliot

   

6. “God always gives His best to those who leave the choice with him.” — Jim Elliot

   

7. “When it comes time to die, make sure that all you have to do is die.” — Jim Elliot

   

8. “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.” — Jim Elliot

   

9. “Forgive me for being so ordinary while claiming to know so extraordinary a God.” — Jim Elliot

   

10. “Missionaries are very human folks, simply a bunch of nobodies trying to exalt somebody.” — Jim Elliot

    

Best Jim Elliot Quotes 

1. “Why do you need a voice when you have a verse?” — Jim Elliot
2. “Let not our longing slay the appetite of our living.” — Jim Elliot
3. “Oh, the fullness, pleasure, sheer excitement of knowing God on earth!” — Jim Elliot
4. “If we are the sheep of His pasture, remember that sheep are headed for the altar.” — Jim Elliot
5. “Wherever you are, be all there! Live to the hilt every situation you believe to be the will of God.” — Jim Elliot
6. “God is still on His throne, we’re still on His ‘footstool,’ and there’s only a knee’s distance between!” — Jim Elliot
7. “Children are arrows in a quiver, and they are to be trained as missionaries and shot at the Devil.” — Jim Elliot
8. “Lord, give me firmness without hardness, steadfastness without dogmatism, love without weakness.” — Jim Elliot
9. “The sound of ‘gentle stillness’ after all the thunder and wind have passed will the ultimate Word from God.” — Jim Elliot
10. “He is no fool who parts with that which he cannot keep, when he is sure to be recompensed with that which he cannot lose.” — Jim Elliot

Famous Quotes By Jim Elliot

1. “Domesticated males aren’t much use for adventure.” — Jim Elliot
2. “What good are Greek, commentaries, insight, gift, and all the rest, if there is no heart for Christ?” — Jim Elliot
3. “God is still on His throne, we’re still on His ‘footstool,’ and there’s only a knee’s distance between!” — Jim Elliot
4. “One does not surrender a life in an instant – that which is lifelong can only be surrendered in a lifetime.” — Jim Elliot
5. “Grieve not, then, if your sons seem to desert you, but rejoice, rather, seeing the will of God done gladly.” — Jim Elliot
6. “Unwillingness to accept God’s ‘way of escape’ from temptation frightens me – what a rebel yet resides within.” — Jim Elliot
7. “Be on guard, my soul, of complicating your environment so that you have neither time nor room for growth!” — Jim Elliot
8. “Rest in this – it is His business to lead, command, impel, send, call… It is your business to obey, follow, move, respond.” — Jim Elliot
9. “Lord, make my way prosperous not that I achieve high station, but that my life be an exhibit to the value of knowing God.” — Jim Elliot
10. “The will of God is always a bigger thing than we bargain for, but we must believe that whatever it involves, it is good, acceptable and perfect.” — Jim Elliot
11. “We wouldn’t think of rising in the morning without a face-wash, but we often neglect that purgative cleansing of the Word of the Lord. It wakes us up to our responsibility.” — Jim Elliot
12. “God, I pray Thee, light these idle sticks of my life and may I burn for Thee. Consume my life, my God, for it is Thine. I seek not a long life, but a full one, like you, Lord Jesus.” — Jim Elliot
13. “I many no longer depend on pleasant impulses to bring me before the Lord. I must rather response to principles I know to be right, whether I feel them to be enjoyable or not.” — Jim Elliot
14. “Father, make of me a crisis man. Bring those I contact to decision. Let me not be a milepost on a single road; make me a fork, that men must turn one way or another on facing Christ in me.” — Jim Elliot
15. “Live every day as if the Son of Man were at the door, and gear your thinking to the fleeting moment. Just how can it be redeemed? Walk as if the next step would carry you across the threshold of Heaven. Pray. That saint who advances on his knees never retreats.” — Jim Elliot

Conclusion

Which of these Jim Elliot quotes and sayings inspired you the most? If we missed one of your favorites, share it with us in the comments below!

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