Fix My Eyes on Him

“See what God has done!” ~ Numbers 23:23

Born the eldest son of a well-known clergyman, young Sam had a passion for exploring things he didn’t understand – photography, electricity, human interaction.  But his real passion was for sketching, which consumed much of his idle time.

Educated at a Christian boarding school, and later at Yale College, he took a job working for a printer and bookseller.  And hated it. 

Despite his belief that being an artist was not a suitable occupation, his father agreed to send Sam abroad to hone his painting skills.  As his talents matured he gained notoriety for a few works while in Europe.

Upon returning to America, Sam earned money painting portraits of subjects including President James Monroe and French General Lafayette.  One large painting called ‘Representative Hall’, which displayed the House of Representatives in session, gained widespread attention.

Though his income was irregular, he generously supported missionaries and institutions training clergy.  He even established one of the country’s first Sunday Schools in his home church.

His work often took him away from his wife and children.  In 1825, while 300 miles away in Washington D.C., his young wife died suddenly in Connecticut.  He wasn’t able to attend her funeral as it took 10 days for the news to reach him by mail.

The tragedy of her passing fueled a passion to develop a faster method of communicating.  With some assistance from a university science professor, he spent the next 11 years developing a working prototype employing electro-magnets and a series of relays through a network of stations.  It used a simple code of dots and dashes for the letters of the alphabet which were transmitted as short and long electrical impulses with gaps in between.

He laid insulated wire across New York harbor in order to promote his invention publicly.  But when a ship’s anchor cut the wire, he unfortunately received more ridicule than support.

Penniless and frequently hungry, Sam never took his eyes off God.  In 1843, the federal government agreed to finance his ‘telegraph.’  Despite a number of technical difficulties, he successfully built the first telegraph line from Washington to Baltimore.

Early the morning of May 24, 1844, onlookers gathered in the Supreme Court’s chambers to receive the fateful transmission from Baltimore.  Sam had promised the daughter of a lifelong Christian friend the honor of choosing what would be said.  

Electricity raced through the lines with the message “What hath God wrought!”  She chose the words from the Bible (Numbers 23:23) because she recognized that it was God who had inspired and sustained Samuel Morse throughout.

Morse remained a humble Christian to the end of his days, describing his life’s work by saying that it was God’s work.  “Not unto us, but to Thy Name, O Lord, be all the praise.”

Father God, when we pridefully boast regarding our talents and accomplishments, we fail to appreciate Your role in all we do.  Remind us that none of us can succeed on our own strength or wisdom.  We need You!”  Amen