Missionary Mondays: William Borden

“Missionary Mondays” is a weekly resource for parents.  Each week will feature a missionary story that is designed to be read to young children.  Also included is a prayer and corresponding activity.  Enjoy!

William Borden

There are many, many wonderful things about being part of the family of God.  Can you think of any?

A very special blessing that comes with being part of God’s family is that everyone’s story has a happy ending…there are no sad ones!  No one who loves and obeys God will ever be separated from His forever love…and because of that – no matter what happens to you – your life will have a happy ending.  You will end up in Heaven with your King and all of His people!

For those who belong to God, a happy ending is not decided by how many years you live, how much money you make, or if you become the best at something.  Even if none of those things ever go well for you, your life is is wonderful and important because God is the King of it.  Because you belong to Jesus and trust Him.

Happy endings come to God’s people no matter how long they live or how successful they are!

There is a man who lived a long time ago who loved God very, very much, and his story has a very happy ending.  But for people who didn’t understand God and His love, they thought that his life had a terrible ending.  They thought that God cheated him of a happy ending.

This story is about a man named William Borden.

William Borden had a wonderful childhood filled with love and adventure.  He grew up in a home with a mother who loved Jesus very much and who poured her life into teaching her children about Jesus as well.  Because of his mother’s teaching about the love and truth of Jesus, William accepted Christ into his heart as a very young boy.

William’s father was a hard-working businessman who became very successful.  In fact, his father made so much money that William’s family was one of the wealthiest families in the whole country!  There was nothing that William and his brothers and sisters wanted that they couldn’t have.

When William turned 16, his father surprised him by sending him on a trip around the world!  Can you imagine…being just a young boy and going all the way around the world by yourself?  Imagine the beautiful places that William saw, the strange animals, the new foods that he tried and the new languages that he heard.  It must have been quite an adventure!

One of the unique and spectacular things about William Borden is that all of the comforts of his life that were due to his family’s wealth were not important to him.  He didn’t want to keep all of that money for himself.  He knew that God made him wealthy because he was meant to help others.  Even the wonderful trip around the world that he was blessed to go on was much more than just a relaxing vacation for William.  He saw it as a time to understand the need that the entire world had for the gospel of Jesus.  When he returned home from the trip, he was completely convinced that the Lord wanted him to be a missionary on the other side of the world…all the way in China.

Before William headed to China, though, he decided to honor his father’s wishes first and get a college degree.  He entered Yale University in 1905 with the desire to keep his wealth a secret and blend in with all of the other students.  It wasn’t long before he became very popular among all of his classmates, and it had nothing to do with his money.

William was instantly recognized as a Christian leader on campus.  His love for God and his passion for telling others about Him was what everyone first noticed about William.  And everyone loved and respected him for it.

When William decided to start an early-morning Bible study and prayer time with one of his friends, it wasn’t long before another student joined, and then another, and then another.  Eventually, close to every student that attended Yale University was attending William’s early-morning Bible study!

God had fired up William’s heart for sharing the truth of Jesus, and because of William’s obedience to do so, he was making a difference on an entire college campus!

William was also very involved in serving and taking care of the poor and homeless people in the city.  He could often be found in dark alleyways on the weekends, where it was dangerous and where most people would never dare go.  He would buy food and clothing for people who had none.  And of course, he was always speaking of the kind and compassionate God whom He served.

William’s life amazed his friends, because it was so unlike what the typical college student was interested in.  William was interested in everyone except himself.  Rather than spending his time to enjoy his money and indulge in comforts, William’s purpose for living was to spread the good news of Jesus.

Once William graduated from college, he was more excited than ever to obey God’s call to join the mission field in China.  His heart was ready, he had obeyed his father’s instructions to graduate from college…it was time to go!

He boarded a ship that was to take him first to Egypt, for he wanted to spend some time there learning the language of the Muslims before arriving in China.

It is here that William’s story takes a surprising turn.  Rather than have William continue on to China and spend the rest of his life serving the Chinese Muslims, God decided that William’s work was already done.  He allowed William to get sick, and soon after, die in his bed and go home to Heaven.

William never made it to China, and this really confused many, many people.  Why would God give such a wonderful person such a sad ending?

The truth is, and what William knew, is that God’s plan was perfect for William.  And William’s story did, in fact, have a wonderful ending.  William lived his life in obedience to and with a big love for his Savior, and that is all that matters.  A certain number of years were not promised to William, but Heaven was.  And Heaven came to William right when God wanted it to.  William lived a very impactful life and he enjoyed a very happy ending.

After William died, his family found his Bible next to his bed.  Inside the cover of the Bible were written 3 sentences…3 sentences that sum up his life and his death:

No Reserves.
No Retreats.
No Regrets.

William wrote the last line – “No Regrets” – when he knew he was dying.  He was not afraid or confused or angry…he was content in God’s plan.  He had no regrets.

This story is a comfort to all of us because we are reminded that – no matter what trials come our way – our future is secured in Heaven with Jesus.  And it is when we know and love that truth that we can live our life without any regrets, the way William Borden did.

Prayer:  Holy Father, thank you for the life that you planned for William Borden.  Thank you for saving him and using him so that we can learn from his faith and obedience.  We ask that you would make us more in love with You than we are with money or comfort or even the desire for a long life.  Help us to trust Your perfect plan for us and to live a life with no regrets.  We love You so much, Jesus.  Amen.

Activity:  Make A Bookmark!

This is going to be a very special bookmark that you and your child will make and then keep in his own Bible.  It will remind him of the faith that William Borden had and what it is to live a life with no regrets.

Supplies:

• White paper
• Crayons
• Black Sharpie
• Hole punch, scissors
• Narrow ribbon
• Laminating machine, pouches

Directions:

1. Draw a template of a bookmark on the white paper.  I made ours 1 inch by 4 inches.
2. Allow your child to color the inside of the template however he sees fit.
3. With the Sharpie, write the words “No Reserves.  No Retreats.  No Regrets.”  inside the template.
4. Cut out the bookmark and laminate.
5. Hole punch the top and tie with ribbon.

Check out previous “Missionary Mondays” stories!

George Mueller
William Wilberforce
Mary Slessor
Hudson Taylor
Amy Carmichael

Lauren Souers

Hi, my name is Lauren. I am the wife of one fine man and the momma of four (huge) young children – three boys and one princess! I love all of them. I mostly clean up messes and feed people all day, and it’s really fun to write about it. Jesus is the rock of my family – we love and serve a mighty King! I hope you leave here full of hope that “tired” can be good.