Biography

Lettie Burd (L.B.) Cowman was a native of Iowa, born there in 1870. Married at 19, she and her husband, Charles, spent a little time in Colorado but ended up in Chicago for nearly a decade before moving to Japan to engage in mission work. Lettie and Charles were among the founders of the Oriental Missionary Society. Schools for Bible training and frequent evangelical events were the mainstays of the society. After nearly 17 years in the mission field, Charles and Lettie returned to America. Charles died a slow, painful death. That experience led Lettie to write Streams in the Desert, a much-loved devotional book that has helped so many others walk with God through difficult circumstances. Lettie wrote several other books, such as Sit Still, Until, Thoughts for the Quiet Hour, and Springs in the Valley. On Easter Sunday in 1960, Lettie died at the age of 87, having assisted in the planting of the seeds of the Gospel in millions of people's hearts.

Wailand Groenendyk
CCEL Staff Writer