William Borden
It’s very rare that someone who was unable to achieve his life’s goal would inspire a generation, but that’s what William Borden did. When he died on the way to the mission field, three sentences were found written in the back of his Bible. “No reserves. No retreats. No regrets.” Those words were repeated around the world.
William Borden was a millionaire early in life. He was heir to the Borden Dairy estate. This gave him the opportunity to travel through Asia, the Middle East, and Europe as a youth. He was moved by the suffering he saw while traveling and that led him to write home that he had decided to become a missionary.
One of his friends accessed him of throwing away his life. Borden’s response was to write in the back of his Bible, “No reserves.”
He began his college education in 1904 at Yale and quickly began to make his mark, not for his wealth but for his spirituality. Another student wrote of him, “He came to college far ahead, spiritually, of any of us. He had already given his heart in full surrender to Christ and had really done it. We who were his classmates learned to lean on him and find in him a strength that was solid as a rock, just because of this settled purpose and consecration.”
During that time, Borden wrote in his journal, “Say ‘no’ to self and ‘yes’ to Jesus every time.”
Borden was concerned about the lack of faith and the ruined lives he saw at Yale. He and a friend started a breakfast prayer meeting for the campus. A scripture was read and explained followed by a time of prayer. Soon the meeting began to grow into a movement. By the end of the first year 150 students were meeting together weekly. By his senior year, one thousand students were meeting in similar Bible study and prayer groups.
One of his fellow students described their strategy for reaching Yale, “In his sophomore year we organized Bible study groups and divided up the class of 300 or more, each man interested in taking a certain number, so that all might, if possible, be reached. The names were gone over one by one, and the question asked, ‘Who will take this person?’ When it came to someone thought to be a hard proposition, there would be an ominous pause. Nobody wanted the responsibility. Then Bill’s voice would be heard, ‘Put him down to me.’”
In addition to his work on campus, Borden did work in the community of New Haven. He cared for widows, orphans, and those who were crippled. To help those suffering from alcoholism, he started the Yale Hope Mission.
Borden did well at his studies and found himself with many high-paying job offers. He turned them down in favor of the mission field. In the back of his Bible, he wrote, “No retreats.”
He did his graduate work at Princeton Seminary and then sailed out to China and his new mission. His desire was to minister to Muslims there.
Toward that end, he stopped off in Egypt to study Arabic. He contracted spinal meningitis and died within a month. He was 25.
News of his death, his mission, and his character were covered in nearly every newspaper in the United States. As was the message written in the back of his Bible. Just before his death, William Borden had added after the sentences, “No reserve. No retreat.” A last sentence, “No regrets.”
Those three sentences became the inspiration and the rallying cry to a generation of missionaries.