From time to time I have come across parts of the story of William Borden. Yes, he was from "that" Borden family, he was heir to the Borden Dairy estate. Yes, his family was very rich, and yes, he was a millionaire right out of high school. He was born in 1887 and graduated from Yale. He didn’t live the typical life of a boy growing up in wealth.
William Borden was a dedicated Christian and felt the call of missions in his life. He gave away hundreds of thousands of dollars. His call to missions caused a friend to say that he was throwing himself away as a missionary. I guess that was because he was so rich and could have and do anything. But, William didn’t think missions was a waste. Because of his response to God’s call in his life, his influence stretches into eternity.
During his time as a student at Yale, he was so dedicated to reaching students for the Lord that he started a prayer meeting. That meeting was replicated in other meetings and he influenced hundreds of students for Christ.
One of the entries in his journal said "Say ‘no’ to self and ‘yes’ to Jesus every time." That’s just one example of his commitment to Jesus.
Borden was called to be a missionary to the Muslim Kansu people in China. He never wavered from God’s call in his life.
He sailed for China to fulfill the call of God. His first stop was in Egypt to study Arabic. It was there that he contracted spinal meningitis. Within four months, William Borden was dead at age 25.
Some would look at his short life and say it was a waste. He would disagree. He was obedient to God’s plan for his life. He had written some words in his Bible that expressed his approach to life. He wrote:
No reserves – No retreats – No regrets.
His epitaph on the grave talks of his love and sacrifices for God and his love for Muslim people. Here’s how it ends. "Apart from faith in Christ, there is no explanation for such a life."
There is so much we can learn from his dedication to Jesus and how he lived his life. We could write volumes on those six words No reserves – No retreats – No regrets. I want to challenge you to think on them and how you can apply these principles to your life. Holding nothing back, with no quit in you, you will never have to regret your life and choices.
And, it is so true what was written on his grave, "Apart from faith in Christ, there is no explanation for such a life." It is only the power of Jesus in a life that will cause such a sacrifice based on love.
There are many lives we can learn from. Let this be one of them.
