Since I was led to share my grandmother’s and my mother’s favorite hymns as launching pads to share how sacred songs have influenced and are influencing my life, I had a slight struggle with where to go to next. There are so many hymns that have shaped my life–so many that God and I use to keep my relationship with Him fluid and growing, even to this very day.
If I had to choose one that has consistently and persistently shaped my life of faith, it is this one–Great is Thy Faithfulness. It is not about me, the creature; but rather it is about the Creator-God and this attribute of His that I have known, depended on and trusted most of my life. Through the many storms of my life, His unchanging faithfulness, has continually carried me, whether I was aware of it or not..
This hymn has been labeled “a hymn for Ordinary Christians,” largely because the author referred to himself as “just an old shoe.” He was just a simple man with simple faith in an extraordinarily faithful God! I believe ordinary would describe most of us, if we are honest.
Ordinary Christians need to know of God’s unchanging character and unfailing compassions; we need to be reminded of God’s faithfulness in maintaining the order of His universe; and we need the comfort of God’s faithfulness in forgiving our sins, providing strength for today and hope for tomorrow. All leading to the great and robust crescendo of the words that Jeremiah coined in Lamentations–Great is Thy Faithfulness, Great is Thy Faithfulness, morning by morning new mercies I see, All I have needed Thy hand has provided…
It is a hymn that we did not sing in the church of my upbringing; it is one I actually learned as a young adult. However, it speaks volumes over how and why my ordinary life continually finds its “extraordinary essence” in Him!
My Story…My Song…GREAT IS THY FAITHFULNESS
Great is Thy Faithfulness, O God, My Father,
There is no shadow of turning with Thee,
Thou changest not, Thy compassions they fail not,
As Thou hast been, Thou forever wilt be.
Summer and winter and springtime and harvest,
Sun, moon, and stars in their courses above,
Join with all nature in manifold witness,
To Thy great faithfulness, mercy and love.
Pardon for sin and a Peace that endureth,
Thine own dear Presence to cheer and to guide,
Strength for today, and bright hope for tomorrow,
Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside.
CHORUS:
Great is Thy Faithfulness, Great is Thy Faithfulness,
Morning by morning new mercies I see,
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided
Great is Thy Faithfulness, LORD unto me.—-Public Domain
THE ORIGIN OF GREAT IS THY FAITHFULNESS: Thomas Obediah Chisholm was born in a log cabin in Franklin, Kentucky in 1866. He received his education in a little country schoolhouse, and at age 16 began teaching there. He became a Christian at age 27, and with no college or seminary training was ordained to the Methodist ministry at age 36. He served as a Methodist minister for a year, but ill health made it impossible for him to continue. He moved to Vineland, New Jersey, where he opened an insurance office.
Always interested in poetry, Chisholm wrote hundreds of poems during his lifetime. He was inspired by Lamentations 3:22-23 to write the text for “Great Is Thy Faithfulness.” Those verses read, “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.”
Chisholm experienced that faithfulness. He suffered ill health most of his adult life, and never made much money –– but he said, “God has given me many wonderful displays of His providing care which have filled me with astonishing gratefulness.”
Chisholm sent the words to “Great Is Thy Faithfulness” to his friend, William Runyan, and Runyan wrote the music for this hymn. Runyan was a friend of Dr. Will Houghton, the president of Moody Bible Institute, and “Great Is Thy Faithfulness” soon became Houghton’s favorite. Dr. Houghton invited George Beverly Shea, an unknown singer at the time, to sing hymns on the Institute’s radio station. Shea, of course, included Dr. Houghton’s favorite hymn in his repertoire.
Billy Graham, then a student at Wheaton College, became familiar with George Beverly Shea (and this hymn) through those radio broadcasts, and invited Shea to become part of his ministry. It was through their work that this hymn became popular internationally.
Even though he suffered ill health for most of his adult life, Chisholm lived to the ripe old age of 94. During his later years, he lived in Ocean Grove, New Jersey, a Methodist camp meeting town, where he died in 1960. (www.lectionary.org, –– Copyright 2007, Richard Niell Donovan)
HOW I HAVE BEEN SHAPED BY THIS SONG
From a child I have had a love affair with the Church. I always loved going and worshipping and being involved! Most of my life has been spent as a “faithful member” according to the standards of human church leadership. However, there were days (in my young adult years) that I found myself being in greater relationship with the Church than I was with The God of The Church.
I rarely ever missed and served religiously; I even made it a requirement for my children. In retrospect I can tell you that it was a “form of godliness,” but in sheer ignorance, I was denying the authentic power of God to be realized in my life. I loved the LORD, I was saved, but I was living my Christian life in my own power, under my own authority and my focus was getting what I wanted when I wanted it and how I wanted it. Life was all about my pleasure and my needs first, and even though I was usually sitting on a piano stool in the church, God was not my priority! My relationship with Him, other than when I was at the Church, consisted of me telling God what I wanted and needed and expected of Him and pouting when things didn’t come as requested. (I did have sense enough to thank Him when I got my way and to say grace before I consumed His blessings.)
Now, let me hasten to say that as I have begun maturing in my faith, I have come to believe that some of my old behavior falls under the category of youthful folly. The Bible speaks of it. And, my point is this: our faithful God even uses our ignorance, our youthful folly, our carnality, our disobedience, our sin, our feeble attempts at righteousness, our self-centeredness, even our religiosity to draw us closer and closer to HIS PURPOSE for creating us. How, I thank Him for His steadfast love and faithfulness, even in my wanton-ness and wandering–my blatant UNFAITHFULNESS.
I always loved the Bible; I think it was because of the fascination I had with my grandmother’s ability to read it and understand it, though she was limited by her education. But she did it several times a day EVERY day. It was as though she was meeting God in it. It was like He was speaking to her, solving her dilemmas, giving her direction or something. It was strange to me as a child, but it piqued my interest. I was drawn to it.
As I began to long for more than what Church was giving me, I returned to the example of my grandmother. And though I had to report for work very early in the morning, many of my nights, after finishing caring for my children, was spent devouring His Word. My love affair with the Church (as we know it) began to diminish, but my relationship with Jesus began to soar and broaden and deepen–ALL BECAUSE OF HIS FAITHFULNESS TO ME! Listen to Jeremiah’s words in Lamentations 3:19-24: “I remember my affliction and my wandering, the bitterness and the gall. I well remember them, and my soul is downcast within me. Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness. I say to myself, ‘The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for Him'” (Lamentations 3:19-24).
Nearly 75 years after Mr. Chisholm coined this great hymn about the incredible faithfulness of our God, an anointed choir director-mother-pastor’s wife penned words that very well could have been written by me, for they are MY WORDS! Carol Cymbala speaks of God’s faithfulness past tense as she is in the midst of one of the greatest storms of her life. Her words describe my sentiments and my journey perfectly. She said:
In my moments of fear,
Through every pain every tear,
There’s a God Who’s been faithful to me;
When my strength was all gone,
When my heart had no song,
Still in love He’s proved faithful to me;
Every word He’s promised is true.
What I thought was impossible I see my God do.
Chorus
He’s been faithful, faithful to me.
Looking back, His love and mercy I see.
Though in my heart I have questioned-
Even failed to believe, yet He’s been faithful, faithful to me.
When my heart looked away–the many times I could not pray,
Still my God–He was faithful to me.
The days I spent so selfishly
Reaching out for what pleased me,
Even then God was faithful to me.
Every time I come back to Him, He is waiting with open arms
And I see once again
Chorus
He’s been faithful, faithful to me
Looking back, His love and mercy I see,
Though in my heart I have questioned–
Even failed to believe, yet He’s been faithful, faithful to me.—————————————————Carol Cymbala
As I have traced the course of my life to this point, I see with great clarity the power of His Faithfulness to me! I have had numerous moments of fear; I have shed buckets of tears; there have been days when my strength was all gone and my heart had no song, but as I look back over my life, I can truly say, what I thought was impossible, I’ve seen God do! I cannot begin to count the many times that my heart looked away or the many times I could not or would not pray. If I tried to share the days that were spent in selfish pursuit of some worthless aim, seeking for something or someone to please me, only to be left broken-hearted and hurt again, words would fail. But every time, I knew I could run back to Him for shelter, comfort and help; and guess what, every time He was standing right there with open arms. I’m talking about a FAITHFUL GOD! A Faithful God, who, never left my side even though I was forever wandering…
There is someone just like I was 35 plus years ago at Church every Sunday out of habit more than sincere follow-ship, reading this. You have not yielded your life totally to Jesus…I write this one for you with tears streaming as I write. Please hear me. When I fully returned to The Faithful One I committed every member of my body to Him and pledged that “I will sing of the mercies of the Lord for ever: with my mouth will I make known Thy faithfulness to all generations.” (Psalm 89:1) That is my daily goal!
My prayer is that my story and my song might be the impetus for you to realize “Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord unto me.” And when you realize it, surrender completely to it! Your life will be blessed; He will make it brand new, I GUARANTEE!!
I’ve long made the stories behind great and familiar hymns parts of occasional sermons, or just brief devotionals in other moments, including Chisholm’s story.
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