James Hudson Taylor (1832-1905) was born in Yorkshire, England. He went to China in 1854, after studying medicine and theology, to become a missionary with the China Evangelization Society. He adopted the then unique custom of wearing only Chinese clothing so as to assimilate better into the local culture. In 1860 he returned to England to begin translating the New Testament into the Ningpo dialect. After completing this project in 1866, he returned to China with his wife, children, and a group of other missionaries as founding members of the newly formed China Inland Mission (CIM). By the time of his death there were more than 200 CIM stations throughout China. His belief that missionaries should dress and live like the people they are trying to reach continues to influence mission efforts to this day.
Inland China Mission
Studd, Charles T.
Charles T. Studd (1862-1931) was a national sports hero in England and a renowned cricket player, Studd abandoned fame and fortune after his conversion at a Moody-Sankey evangelistic crusade. He gave away over 100,000 pounds and went to China in 1885 to serve under Hudson Taylor at the Inland China Mission. He married an Irish missionary and the two worked together until ill health forced them to return to England in 1894. They traveled in America for a time – where Studd ministered on various university campuses – until he received a call in 1900 to work as a missionary in South India. After another brief return to England in 1906 he decided to undertake a mission campaign in Central Africa. Eventually his wife, daughters, and two sons-in-law joined him and together they founded the Worldwide Evangelization Crusade. He remained in Africa until his death. He is a wonderful example of someone who abandoned the temporal pleasures of this world in favor of eternal riches in heaven.