Tuesday, September 23, 2014

Jenny Adams - Unknown missionary on earth, but famous in Heaven

On a recent trip to the jungle I heard a story about a woman named Jenny Adams, who was a missionary in Peru.  Her story was incredible so I researched her name on the internet and virtually nothing was found about her.  She was well known in Northern Peru, but outside of that, most have not heard of her.  She is a perfect example of faithfully serving God will all your strength for your whole life, for God alone.  Since I could not find much information about her, I can only re-tell the story as I heard it.  I have no way of knowing if these details are accurate.
 
Jenny was from the United States and came to Peru as a Baptist missionary.  She fell in love with a Peruvian captain of the army, who later died.  Jenny stayed in Peru, resolved to serve God. 
 
In those days the Independent Baptist church did not allow woman to travel alone since there was a war.  They also required that women wear skirts and have long hair.  Jenny did not obey any of these rules.  One day she disappeared from Trujillo and hiked into a very remote village in the Andes.  No missionary was ever there before, male or female.  She began to teach the people in their homes and many people began to love her.  She taught the men the Scriptures and then told them to preach to the people.
 
One day the people told her that many people in the village assumed she was a prostitute.  Their Andean beliefs were such that any woman with pants and short hair was dishonest and a prostitute.  When she found this out she began to wear skirts and grow her hair out for the sake of the gospel.
 
Over the years the ministry thrived and bore fruit.  She walked everywhere or took a bus or train until someone gave her a car.  One day she picked up some people that needed a ride and was later pulled over by the police at a check station.  They searched her car and found that a bag of cocaine was hidden in a gas can that belonged to the people she just picked up.  Jenny was hauled to jail for transporting cocaine. 
 
Jenny took full responsibility for having drugs in her car, even though she had no idea they were there.  She eventually shared the gospel with the guy who was hiding the drugs and he was saved.  He became a pastor and Jenny discipled him from prison.  I was told that she stayed in prison for eight years.  One day in prison she broke her leg, and because of bad medical attention, she was badly crippled.  After she was released from prison, she was unable to hike into all the villages she once ministered in.  After 40 years in the field, Jenny died on January 17, 2005 at the age of 84.
 
The life of Jenny bore much fruit.  Many of the Baptist pastors in Northern Peru have come from the fruit of her bold ministry.  Jenny is almost unknown in the world, but she is famous in Heaven.

7 comments:

Paul and Vicki Young said...

Hey Scott,
Today after lunch, our family was reading CT Studd's Biography by Norman Grubb, so I asked my husband and kids, "Who would you write a biography about, if you could?" Then I told them I'd like to write one about Jenny Adams. I don't know much about her, about as much as you've written here, but what I've heard sounds like good story material.
I met her once in Lima when she was there to have her broken hip treated, and I was a teacher at Fetzer. It was about 1989. Now we live in Cape Town, South Africa.

Scott Doherty said...

That is great you met her in Lima, although I was hoping you could tell me more about her. She is a very interesting and unknown missionary I would like to know much more about.

Lisa G. said...

Is this the same Jennie Adams as the story here: http://www.ccel.us/alifewelllived.ch2.html? The Jennie F Adams I am researching right now was a nurse in Germany during the war and missionary in Peru from at least 1974 to about 2003 before dying in Washington in 2005. In speaking to her sister this week she indicated someone called her about Jennie because they were writing a book and I just wasn't sure if this was the same person.

Rq Garcia said...

Hello everyone.. Im peruvian. I met Miss Jennie when a was a child. I have to tell you that somethings you wrote are not true. Im glad there are people who wants to make her name known. You can find more about her here https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=416343105131779&id=213680328731392
It's her biography written in Spanish by people who was with her during her life in Trujillo Peru
I hope anyone who wants to know more about her can find more of her service to God in English soon. I heard there will be a book about her life ... Don't know when.

Lisa G. said...

Thank you, thank you Rq Garcia! That link helped me know more about the Jennie I was researching. Her brother was my paternal great-grandma's 2nd husband. I never knew any of them.

Mrs. Lay said...

I know this is quite an old post & comments, but Jennie is my great-aunt whom I recently learned about. I am trying to do some research on her, especially her earlier years before going to Peru. I am wondering if Lisa G. could contact me. mrs.hlay@gmail.com

Unknown said...

My parents named me after Jenny Adam's and so my name is Jennie Ann. I was told she was decended from John Adam's and John Quincy Adam's, and was the first woman to ride the mudslides.