“Trust in the LORD with all your heart; and lean not to your own understanding.” (Proverbs 3:5; NKJV)

One of my all-time human heroes is George Washington Carver. Almost 35 years ago, I read an article that highlighted his testimony before Congress where he shared about his discoveries and conversations with God. His words blew my mind. I still quote them to this day because they’re so inspirational. Unfortunately, I lost that original article, but today a ministry emailed a similar account to me. I trust you’ll also be inspired by his life, because God is no respecter of persons and wants the same type of intimate connections with you. 

Carver (1864-1943) was born a slave and experienced severe poverty. He later became an agricultural chemist who discovered uses for the peanut (over 300 items), soybean, pecan and sweet potato (over 118), including vinegar, cosmetics, different oils, instant coffee, leather stains, and non-toxic colors. He founded the Tuskegee Institute, which was visited by presidents and other international leaders. 

When asked how this had happened, Carver answered: “The secret of my success? It is simple. It is found in the Bible, ‘In all your ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct your paths.’” (Proverbs 3:6) He went on to explain: “Years ago I went into my laboratory and said, ‘Dear Mr. Creator, please tell me what the universe was made for.’

“The Great Creator answered, ‘You want to know too much for that little mind of yours. Ask for something more your size, little man.’

“Then I asked. ‘Please, Mr. Creator, tell me what man was made for?’

“Again, the Great Creator replied, ‘You are still asking too much. Cut down on the extent and improve the intent.’

“So, then I asked, ‘Please, Mr. Creator, will you tell me why the peanut was made?’

“…And then the Great Creator taught me to take the peanut apart and put it together again. And out of the process have come forth all these products!”

Additional reports reveal “Carver named his laboratory God's Little Workshop and never took any scientific textbooks into it; he merely asked God how to perform his experiments.” He would lock the door to his laboratory, stating: “Only alone can I draw close enough to God to discover His secrets."

This beautifully describes both Carver’s intimate relationship with God and his perspective on being God’s co-worker: Here are some of his additional insights. 

“When I read in the Scriptures, ‘In Him we live and move and have our being,’ (Acts 17:28) I knew what the writer meant. Never have I been without this consciousness of the Creator speaking to me...The out of doors has been to me more and more a great cathedral in which God could be continuously spoken to and heard from....

“Man, who needed a purpose, a mission, to keep him alive, had one. He could be...God's co-worker....

“My purpose alone must be God’s purpose - to increase the welfare and happiness of His people…Human need is really a great spiritual vacuum which God seeks to fill...With one hand in the hand of a fellow man in need and the other in the hand of Christ, He could get across the vacuum and I became an agent. Then the passage, ‘I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me,’ (Philippians 4:13) came to have real meaning. As I worked on projects which fulfilled a real human need, forces were working through me which amazed me. I would often go to sleep with an apparently insoluble problem. When I woke the answer was there. Why, then, should we who believe in Christ be so surprised at what God can do with a willing man in a laboratory?” 

Doesn’t God want the same access to your mind and heart to share His secrets when you’re in a classroom, an RV factory, a surgical center, an auto repair shop, a bedroom or the grocery store? Since Jesus’ gift of new life, we no longer have to go to prison or the desert to get alone with God and dialogue with our Father. He can make anywhere into a meeting place like the Garden of Eden. He absolutely wants that for us. The good news is Jesus said ANYONE with ears to hear the Spirit and hearts to understand qualifies. Let’s be an anyone like George Washington Carver and listen with delightful expectation for whatever He wants to share with His beloved children.