An Unlikely Discovery

Season 3 Episode 33 -- We all have heard stories of how mistakes led to new discoveries.  Remember the story of the firemen who accidentally discovered bake-and-serve rolls when he had to put a batch of half-baked rolls in the freezer because he had to go to a fire?  There are MANY such stories.  Today, I want to share a story of a mistake that God has used for over 60 years to save many millions of lives... and share some biblical principles demonstrated in this story.  Curious?  Listen to this episode and learn more.

"Reflect on This" is a once-a-week, short devotional podcast, where I share what I am learning about following Jesus, through applying eternal biblical principles to life, in practical ways.  Not religion, but RELATIONSHIP - relationship with Jesus!
 
If you like the podcast, please tell your friends and family about it, and subscribe/follow it, because it helps others to find the podcast more easily.
 
Resources that inspired some episodes:

“Agape Puppets” (ministry)
This is an amazing world-wide ministry that uses puppet shows to reach children (and their parents) for Christ, in cultures that are generally not very open to the Gospel.  To learn more, go to: https://www.theagapepuppets.org/  

"The Seven Primal Questions" by Mike Foster

"Worship Is My Weapon" podcast by Rita Springer:  https://youtu.be/RucXhr1zYGU?si=WeVTpssmUP4rMXlL 

"My Heart, Christ's Home" by Robert Munger

"The Language of Rivers and Stars" by Seth Lewis

“Dream Small:  The Secret Power of the Ordinary Christian Life” by Seth Lewis

Seth Lewis blog:  https://sethlewis.ie/

35 Bible Verses About Listening to Others (Explained) - Bible Repository 

"Restoration Year: Devotions to Transform Your Relationships, Spirit, and Faith" by John Eldredge

"Boundaries" by Henry Cloud and John Townsend

"The Pleasure of His Company" by Dutch Sheets

"Fresh Air" by Chris Hodges

“The 5 Love Languages: The Secret to Love that Lasts” by Gary Chapman

"The Lies We Believe: Renew Your Mind and Transform Your Life" by Dr. Chris Thurman

Featured ministries and resources:
 
“Agape Puppets” (ministry)
This is an amazing world-wide ministry that uses puppet shows to reach children (and their parents) for Christ, in cultures that are generally not very open to the Gospel.  To learn more, go to: https://theagapepuppets.org/ 

"Manufacture Good" (ministry)
Manufacture Good is a Christian ministry that offers paid apprenticeships to men who need a second chance.  These apprentices learn biblical principles, character, and valuable woodworking and metalworking skills which lead to employment opportunities.  You can shop their catalog of fine home and office products, order a standard or custom piece of furniture, make a donation, and learn more about this amazing ministry, at: https://manufacturegood.org/.

"The World and Everything in It" (podcast)
This is a weekday 35-minute podcast that presents headline news, in-depth news articles, media reviews, and opinion pieces from a Christian world view.  Their stated mission is "biblically objective journalism that informs, educates, and inspires."
 
“Crazy Little Thing Called Marriage” (podcast) 
This is a once a week 30-minute podcast hosted by Greg and Erin Smalley, who head up the marriage team at Focus on the Family.  Each episode addresses a different aspect of marriage, using biblical principles, featured guests, practical advice, and a mixture of humor and candidness.  
 
Music credits:
Beauty by MaxKoMusic | https://maxkomusic.com/
Music promoted by https://www.chosic.com/free-music/all/
Creative Commons CC BY-SA 3.0
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

Transcript

It was 1956 at the University at Buffalo. Wilson Greatbatch was an electrical engineer trying to build a device to record heart rhythms for research. Nothing big. Just a recorder to help doctors listen to the heart.  He was tired after many hours of work, and he accidentally soldered a wrong value resistor into the circuit.  He connected the wires, and turned on the power.

The circuit did not record anything. It began to pulse. Blip. One second of silence. Blip. One second of silence.  Greatbatch watched the green line on his oscilloscope. A spike appeared for a few milliseconds, then disappeared. Exactly one second later, it came back. Perfect rhythm. Perfect timing.

This was not a failed recorder. It was something that created rhythm instead of recording it. The mistake was beating like a real heart.

“I stared at the thing in disbelief,” he later wrote, “and then realized this was exactly what was needed to drive a heart.”

He had seen a heart stop before. When the heart’s electrical system fails, it can stop beating properly. In the 1950s, this often meant death.  The only treatment was using an external pacemaker as big as a television.  The patient could not leave the room because they were tied to a power cord.  If a storm cut the electricity, the machine stopped. The heart stopped. The patient died.

Greatbatch looked at his small circuit. It fit in his hand. A new thought came to him. It did not need to stay outside the body. It could go inside.

Doctors had a firm rule. Electronics do not belong inside the human body.  Most experts agreed. External machines were painful, but safer than putting electronics in the chest.

Greatbatch went home and checked his savings. He had 2,000 dollars. It was his only safety net.  He cleared space in his barn in Clarence, New York. He withdrew the money, and told his wife Eleanor they would grow vegetables to save money. He quit his job.

For two years, the barn became his lab. The hardest problem was protecting the device from the body.  He tried all kinds of approaches. Each failure costs money. His savings were shrinking.

Doctors warned him. “The battery will die,” they said. “Then you must cut the patient open again.”  Engineers warned him too. Corrosion. Battery life. Legal risk.  But he kept going. He worked through winter with a wood stove. The barn smelled of solder and chemicals.  His wife helped him to test parts.

On June 6, 1960, a 77-year-old man with complete heart block was dying at Millard Fillmore Hospital in Buffalo. His heart beat so slowly he often blacked out. He even wore a football helmet to protect his head from falls.  There were no options left.

Surgeons opened his chest. They attached wires to his heart. They placed Greatbatch’s small device in his abdomen. They closed him up.  Everyone waited.

Lub dub. Lub dub.  His heart was beating.

Then they turned off the external machine.  His heart kept beating!

For the first time in the United States, a fully implanted machine was keeping someone alive.  The man left the hospital. He lived 18 more months and died from other causes.

In 1960, nine more patients received Greatbatch’s pacemakers. One young factory worker recovered, found a new job, joined a bowling league, and was still alive when Greatbatch met him again 30 years later.

In the ensuing years, Greatbatch continued improving the battery, so it would last longer.  In the early 1970s, Greatbatch developed a lithium iodide battery that lasted more than 10 years. That design is still used today.

He believed his discovery was guided by God. “The Lord was working through me,” he said.  Wilson Greatbatch died on September 27, 2011, at age 92.

Today, nearly one million pacemakers are implanted each year around the world.  It began because one tired engineer picked up the wrong part, and, guided by God, saw the potential in his failure.

What are the spiritual lessons we can glean from this story?

As we love and follow God, every failure is an opportunity for learning and growth.

Romans 8:28 NASB  And we know that God causes all things [even our failures] to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.

Instead of dwelling on what went wrong, we can look to God, thank Him for our failures, and shift our focus toward the future and what we can learn from the past.

1 Thessalonians 5:18 NASB  In everything [even our failures] give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 3:13-14 NLT  No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead,  (14)  I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.

Today, I encourage you to "Reflect on This."