Faithfulness

 “God’s loving compassion renews every morning." ~ Lamentations 3:22-23

Thomas Chisholm was born in a Kentucky log cabin in 1866. Amid the turbulent post-Civil War times, people relied heavily on their spirituality for survival.

He received his education in a one-room schoolhouse, and at age 16 started teaching at the same school. He became a Christian at age 27, and with no college or seminary training, he became a pastor nine years later where he developed a knack for writing poetry.

There in 1903, he married Catherine, the love of his life and they started a family. It seemed his life was going according to God’s plan.

Frail health proved otherwise. After six years of deteriorating fragility that often left him bedridden, he left the ministry and spent the rest of his life selling life insurance in New Jersey. Thomas found great comfort in the Scriptures and the fact that God faithfully carried him in times of illness, weakness, and financial stress.

He said about his meager and difficult life, “God has given me many wonderful displays of His love which fill me with astonishing gratefulness.” Thomas could now spend more time writing poetry and with his family. His routine job allowed them to stay (barely) ahead of the bills.

Despite health and financial struggles, Thomas’s positive outlook never faltered. In 1923, he even wrote his most famous poem:

“Morning by morning new mercies I see; All I have needed Thy hand hath provided - great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me."

He sent the poem to a fellow pastor, William Runyan, a musician and editor of Hope Publishing Company. Runyan loved the poem and prayed that God would reveal a tune worthy of the lyrics.

When he found a suitable tune, “Great Is Thy Faithfulness” as a hymn was born in 1923. But it didn’t become popular until a certain preacher heard it and began using it in his evangelistic crusades in 1945. What began as a simple poem from a humble salesperson suddenly reached Billy Graham’s audiences worldwide and has continued to do so ever since.

Until his retirement, Chisholm remained working in his New Jersey office. He continued to express his love for God until his death at age 94, writing nearly 1,200 poems throughout his life, taking most of his ideas directly from God's Word.

Thomas Chisholm was not out to win the world or make a splash. He didn’t go to college, failed to finish his preaching ministry due to illness, and worked an ordinary job as an insurance agent. “Great Is Thy Faithfulness,” a testament to God’s unchanging and compassionate nature, was written by a man who suffered prolonged trials in life yet chose to see God’s faithfulness through it all. This hymn continues to inspire and bless those who sing it.

God our Father, “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 10,000 beside.” Great is Your faithfulness. Amen