"I can do everything through Him who gives me strength." Philippians 4:13
What might God want to accomplish through you in your lifetime? As a workplace believer, you may yet have your greatest contribution to society. Such was the case of Cyrus McCormick, born in 1809. Raised on a farm by an inventor father, Cyrus McCormick sought to invent a mechanical reaper to harvest wheat. His father's attempts at inventing a successful machine had failed until Cyrus, at twenty-two, created one that worked. McCormick had to overcome many setbacks including the loss of his patent fourteen years after his first invention. This opened up competition.
Then, in 1837 he went bankrupt because of the bank panic of 1837. However, these setbacks did not prevent McCormick from achieving his goals.He expanded his market by trying to sell his machine to European farmers in 1851. A long series of honors compensated for the lack of recognition and praise from his American compatriots. By 1856, he was not only a world figure but his factory produced more than four thousand reapers a year.McCormick was a committed believer. He lived during the time of D. L. Moody and gave $10,000 to Moody to start the Chicago YMCA in 1869. That building burned along with his Chicago factory in 1871. By this time, McCormick was over sixty and wealthy enough to retire.Before his death in 1884, he had given $100,000 to help open Moody Bible Institute. His son, Cyrus Jr., was to become the first chairman of the school's board.
Cyrus McCormick was a devoted Christian who passed his faith on to his son who later met J. Pierpoint Morgan and became the first president of a combined reaper firm, the famed International Harvester Corporation.
[John Woodbridge, ed., More Than Conquerors, (Chicago: Moody Press, 1992), 328–331.]
Click on Faith and Work Resources.com bookstore link to the right of this page to access resources by this and other authors.
William Wilberforce (August 24, 1759 – July 29, 1833) was a British politician, philanthropist and a leader of the movement to abolish the slave trade. A native of Hull, Yorkshire, he began his political career in 1780 and became the independent Member of Parliament for Yorkshire (1784–1812) and a close friend of Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger. In 1785 he underwent a conversion experience and became an evangelical Christian, resulting in changes in his lifestyle and in his interest in reform. He was 28 years old at the time and wondered whether he could stay in politics and remain a follower of Jesus Christ. His good friend John Newton, who was a converted slave trader and author of the famous hymn, Amazing Grace, convinced him to stay in politics to model his faith in the public sector. His life was dramatized in a 2007 movie production from Walden Media entitled Amazing Grace.
He didn’t begin this job until he was sixty-nine years old. He had already had a successful Hollywood movie career and decided to try his hand at politics. He would be known by one job more than any other. He would also be known as one of the United State’s greatest statesmen. He had a faith that was genuine but not intruding or very public, but you knew where he stood. He always treated people, even his detractors with grace. He was known for his extraordinary love he had for his wife.
This is chapter one from the book, Mastering Monday, by John Beckett, a business owner in Ohio who was featured on ABC News for operating his business on Christian principles. John is also author of Loving Monday.
Visitor Comments (0)
