November 2018
A white moustache and goatee, thick-framed glasses and a
string tie, he is now world-famous for his restaurants. But not everything went well for the young
Harland Sanders. When he was only 5, his
father died. Later he argued with his
step-father and left home. He worked on
a farm, then briefly joined the army. He
was fired from several jobs for fighting and was well known for his constant
swearing. By the age of 40 he had a
petrol station and was trying to provide for his family through the Great Depression. Setting up the old family dining table and
chairs in a corner of the petrol station he started selling food. One of his best meals was fried chicken and
Harland developed a novel pressure-fryer and his still-secret blend of 11 herbs
and spices. Eventually ‘Colonel’ Sanders
began to sell franchises – the first ‘Kentucky Fried Chicken’ opened in Utah in
1952. There are now 22,000 world-wide.
Even after he sold the business Sanders continued to be the
instantly-recognisable face in the KFC advertisements, but as he grew older he
knew something was wrong. He later
wrote, “If God created the world – and I know He done that – and I am part of
His creation, then I should have a close relationship with Him. I didn’t and it bothered me … all the success
I’d had with my franchising business … still left me with a hollow feelin’ … I
was a good citizen and all that. But all
this while I knew I wasn’t right with God.”
He was persuaded to go a church meeting where it dawned on
him that this was exactly the mission of Jesus – to take on himself the weight
of our guilt and so to put us right with the God who made us. Sanders began to put his trust in Jesus
rather than in his own effort to be good enough.
It “just seemed like a great burden was lifted off my shoulders. I’d never felt anything like that before, and
here I was seventy-nine years old.”
Colonel Sanders continued, “I pray to God Almighty my story
will encourage you also to commit your life to Jesus. If you will, no matter what hard times you
may go through – if you keep turning to Him, acknowledging Him, and honouring
Him in all you do – He’ll help you through.”
Sincerely
Graham Burrows
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