Financial Discipleship - the Bible on SurrenderSample

Henry Parsons Crowell was born into a wealthy family, and as a young man received a large inheritance when his father died. He could have quit work that very day, adopting a life of leisure for the rest of his days. But that’s not the option he chose. Instead, young Crowell decided to work hard, committing to give ten percent of his income to the Lord’s work.

Crowell founded the Quaker Oats Company, and he proved to be an amazingly creative marketing genius. At that time oats were sold in large barrels, often rotting before being consumed. Crowell introduced the smaller round packaging we are familiar with to this day, and determined to use only the highest quality oats. His company became remarkably successful and literally changed the way Americans ate breakfast.

In 1898, Crowell’s perspective on money and business was radically transformed by participating in a Bible study on money and possessions. Not only are we to honor Christ in our company, he thought to himself, but everything we have belongs to God – even the business.

Recognizing this changed everything! He felt as if he had been elevated from the role of just operating his business and handling his money, to the most important position possible – a person entrusted with managing God’s business and resources. For more than 40 years, he gave away over half of his earnings.

(excerpt taken from Charting Your Legacy, Howard Dayton, 2022)