WHAT TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY GIRLS CAN LEARN from ELSIE DINSMORE

RUNNER UP — 12 and UNDER CATEGORY

Olivia Barrow

There are many things that twenty-first century girls can learn from Elsie Dinsmore. Her entire life was a wonderful example of what we should strive to be. The first thing that can be noted is that true happiness does not come without a love of God. There is a lot of evidence of this in the Elsie Dinsmore series. All of the non-Christians lived a very unhappy life because they never believed in God. They did not enjoy each other’s company and their interactions with each other were not pleasant. Yet in contrast, Elsie’s family and all of the Christians lived a wonderfully happy life through loving God. Even in the midst of the trials that they faced, they never forsook God and were very blessed because of it. They were a joyful family because of their trust in God.

A second thing to be learned from Elsie Dinsmore is how profitable it is to be sound in the scriptures. Elsie, from a young age, knew so much more scripture than many people today. When in trouble, she knew just where to turn in her Bible to find comfort. The Bible says in 2 Tim. 3:16 and 17 “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.” Having a sound knowledge of the scriptures helped when she was faced with someone who contradicted the scriptures. Without this knowledge it was merely her word against another’s. What we learn from this is that it is not our word that has power, but God’s.

Another thing that can be observed from the Elsie Dinsmore series is that if you desire the love of your children, you must love them yourself. Discipline is part of loving your child. The Bible says in Proverbs, “He who spares his rod hates his son, but he who loves him disciplines him promptly” (Prov. 13:24). Elsie did not spoil any of her children. Spoiling a child teaches him ungodliness. Elsie’s children were not spoiled, and they loved their parents for it. Elsie and Edward did give them many, many gifts, but they taught them to be extremely thankful, to share, and to be generous. They also taught and enforced honesty. Nowhere in the series was anyone rewarded for being deceptive. These things are profitable for girls to learn while they are young so that they can practice them all their lives and pass them on to their own children.

Obedience to parents is taught very clearly in the Elsie Books. Being the Fifth Commandment, this is very important. In John 14:15 Jesus says: “If you love me, keep my commands.” Therefore, if we love God, we will honor our father and mother. Elsie and her children are good examples of obedience. Because they were sinners, they did disobey sometimes, but when they did, they always repented. We should all try to be aware of our sins and repent. We must all strive to have the obedience that Elsie and her family had, realizing that by doing this we are being obedient to Christ.

There is another important thing that we can learn from Elsie Dinsmore. Elsie kept the Sabbath day holy. When her father unknowingly asked her to break the Sabbath she refused. She even refused when her father isolated her and was very harsh with her. She stood fast for months until she got sick and almost died. Her father relented and through her witness came to know Christ. This proved what keeping the Sabbath meant to Elsie. Keeping the Sabbath holy truly makes a difference in our lives. It is a perfect opportunity to read God’s Word and meditate on it. It is a wonderful gift God has given us because we are free from our normal activities and we can read our Bibles. There are so many things to do during the week that it is easy for many of us to push studying our Bible aside because there are more urgent things to do. If reading and studying our Bible is never urgent enough, then we will never grow spiritually. When we keep the Sabbath and meditate on God’s Word, it will have an effect on the rest of our week. We keep the Sabbath because it is a commandment. Elsie is a good example of following Christ in Sabbath keeping. Elsie’s life is also an example of the way her life was changed through keeping the Sabbath.

These are all things that twenty-first century girls can learn from Elsie Dinsmore. She is a very good example of following Christ’s life. We should try to be like Elsie because Elsie tried to be like Christ.

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