Missionary Gracia Burnham will be sharing her story with us. Invite the ladies you know and come hear her at 9AM at Grace Fellowship Church. Gracia’s books will be available at the resource table. Visit her website https://graciaburnham.org to learn more about her life for Christ.
Gracia Burnham is the widow of Martin Burnham and the mother of Jeff, Mindy, and Zach.
For 17 years, Gracia and Martin served with New Tribes Mission in the Philippines where Martin was a jungle pilot delivering mail, supplies, and encouragement to other missionaries, and transporting sick and injured patients to medical facilities. Gracia served in various roles supporting the aviation program and also home-schooling their children – all of whom were born in the Philippines.
On May 27, 2001, while celebrating their 18th wedding anniversary at Dos Palmas Resort off Palawan Island, the Burnhams were taken captive by a militant group of Muslims called the Abu Sayyaf Group. In addition to the Burnhams, the group seized several more guests and took them to Basilan Island, an ASG stronghold.
In the ensuing months, some of the hostages were killed, but most were set free. From November 2001, only the Burnhams and one other hostage remained in captivity.
For more than a year, and under the total control of their captors, they were constantly on the move living in primitive conditions in the jungle, evading capture from the Philippine military, enduring gun battles, and witnessing unspeakable atrocities committed by the men of Abu Sayyaf Group.
Soon after the events of September 11, the news media took a greater interest in Gracia and Martin’s plight and kept their story in the national headlines.
On the afternoon of June 7, 2002, over a year since their abduction, the Philippine military attempted another rescue. Tragically, Martin was killed during the gunfight. Wounded, but alive, Gracia was rescued and returned home under a national spotlight.
Since that time, Gracia has authored two books, In The Presence Of My Enemies, and To Fly Again.
Gracia resides in Rose Hill, Kansas. Her unique story and the captivating way she tells it makes Gracia a popular speaker for churches, conferences, and schools. As Gracia travels throughout the country, she talks about the spiritual lessons she learned during her captivity and how God has blessed her and her family since Martin’s death.
If you ask Gracia about life these days, she will say, “the Lord’s mercies are new every morning. Great is His faithfulness.”