When you help the poor you are lending to the Lord—and he pays wonderful interest on your loan! Proverbs 19:17 TLB
When Arthur Guiness rode into Dublin, it was not the best place to live. In the 1600’s most of the waters in and around England and Ireland had become poisonous from poor hygine practices. The same water that the swerage was dumped in also was their source of drinking water, which led to sickness and deaths. Because of this, many people stopped drinking the water and began drinking alcohol. The alcohol consumption rose to an all time high when Parliment made a law prohibiting the impotation of liquor in 1689 and people began making their own. By 1759 every sixth house in England was considered a Gin House and so began the “Gin Craze” Era.
Arthur was impacted by the poverty and crime he saw because of the hard alcohol consumption. Although some people, especially Monks began to brew beer with a lower alcohol content and more nourishment, but it still was not enough. So often Arthur would cry out to God to do something about the problems he saw. He began to feel that God was calling him to make a beer that would be more impactful on the problems that beset his beloved Ireland. He began working on a stout that would be lower in alcohol and more nutricious than ale, so that it would be more filling and people would drink less. And he did just that. Ironically in 2003 research at the Univerity of Wisconsin proved that Guiness Beer actually bolsters health. Later is was discovered it can help decrease the effects of cholesterol on the arteries.
Arthur and his family attended church at St. Patrick’s Cathedral, which was an Anglican church. One Sunday John Wesley who started the Methodists, attended and spoke. Although there is no record of what he preached, almost certainly he shared his famous quote of “make all you can, save all you can and give all you can.” Wesley’s social teachings of reaching outside the church was stirring the hearts of the business men and middle class, which also led to the Great Awakening of revival. Arthur took it to heart more than most. Although he started the first Sunday School in Dublin, his true passion was to merge his faith with his work. This not only impacted Arthur and his family, but the entire community and brought reform that still can be seen in the Guiness business today.
If you’re beginning to think that one person can make a difference when they are willing to be used of God for the good of others, you will be amazed at the difference this one man made as we continue his story.
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