Lydia A Seller of Purple: A Review

This book written by Josephine Cunnington Edwards is an amazing story of Lydia a young lady in America 100 years or so ago.

Lydia lived with her family in eastern Pennsylvania. It was a happy family.  Then her father died in an accident and the family moved to Philadelphia where Lydia’s mother s started baking cookies and cinnamon rolls and selling them to support the family. Soon it developed into more with a few tables for people to eat at and sandwiches, hot drinks pies and baked beans and more for people to buy and eat. It became a popular place to get a good meal at a reasonable price.

Lydia was a great help to her mother.

One day she saw advertised some evangelistic meetings and she talked her brother into going with her to attend them. She was thrilled with learning about the 2^nd coming of Jesus that the Bible predicted and other biblical truths including the 7^th day Sabbath. Her mother wasn’t pleased with Lydia’s new beliefs and sent her by train to visit Lydia’s Quaker grandmother a few hours away. Mom thought grandmother would straighten Lydia out.

Lydia was happy to visit grandmother and when grandmother asked her about her new beliefs, Lydia gladly shared them with her. Grandma had never heard such things and rushed down the street to talk to her pastor. When he could not explain away the things that Grandma had learned to her satisfaction she decided that she would have Lydia preach in the schoolhouse. So on her way back home she made arrangements for the use of the schoolhouse.

Lydia was a bit scared of preaching, but Grandma said the neighbors “need to hear what you have taught me which is more bible truths than I have learned in the last 40 years.” Grandma got the word around and there was an overflow crowd in the schoolhouse and Lydia preached 4 nights a week for several weeks. Many people accepted the biblical truths that she presented.

Lydia went to school to become Bible instructor and eventually married John, a young evangelist.  Grandma told John, “I know that thee will be happy. For thee has the most beautiful work in all the world. But don’t thee forget, that thee is not the only preacher. Lydia beat thee to the trade by three long years.”

This is an inspiring story. You can order it from Amazon.com or from Teach Services. Click here for more information.