We are living in unprecedented times right now and a lot of us are going through one thing or the other.  As Christians, we are to trust in the Lord, no matter how dire things might seem.   Various Scriptures tell us so: 

In Hebs 2: ¹³ And again, “I will put my trust in him.”And again he says, “Here am I, and the children God has given me.”  

In Nahum 1: 7 The Lord is good,  a refuge in times of trouble. He cares for those who trust in him.  

In Jer 17: 7“But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. 

In Ps 16:1 Preserve me, O God, for in You I put my trust. 

And my last Scripture on the word trust is from 2 Sam 22:31 As for God, His way is perfect; The word of the Lord is proven; He is a shield to all who trust in Him.

I hope that as you read the story of this famous hymn writer, Fanny Crosby you will be encouraged and not give up on God.

Francis Jane Crosby wrote more than 9,000 hymns, some of which are among the most popular in every Christian denomination. She wrote so many that she was forced to use pen names lest the hymnals be filled with her name above all others. And, for most people, the most remarkable thing about her was that she had done so in spite of her blindness.

“I think it is a great pity that the Master did not give you sight when he showered so many other gifts upon you,” remarked one well-meaning preacher.  Fanny Crosby responded at once, as she had heard such comments before. “Do you know that if at birth I had been able to make one petition, it would have been that I was born blind?” said the poet, who had been able to see only for her first six weeks of life. “Because when I get to heaven, the first face that shall ever gladden my sight will be that of my Savior.”

Born in Putnam County, New York, Crosby became ill within two months. Unfortunately, the family doctor was away, and another man—pretending to be a certified doctor—treated her by prescribing hot mustard poultices to be applied to her eyes. Her illness eventually relented, but the treatment left her blind. When the doctor was revealed to be a quack, he disappeared. A few months later, Crosby’s father died. Her mother was forced to find work as a maid to support the family, and Fanny was mostly raised by her Christian grandmother.

Her mother’s hard work paid off. Shortly before her fifteenth birthday, Crosby was sent to the recently founded New York Institute for the Blind, which would be her home for 23 years: 12 as a student, 11 as a teacher. She initially indulged in her own poetry and was called upon to pen verses for various occasions. In time the principal asked her to avoid such “distractions” in favour of her general instruction. “We have no right to be vain in the presence of the Owner and Creator of all things,” he said.

Another member of the institute, former pupil Alexander van Alstine, married Crosby in 1858. Considered one of New York’s best organists, he wrote the music to many of Crosby’s hymns. Crosby herself put music to only a few of hers, though she played harp, piano, guitar, and other instruments. More often, musicians came to her for lyrics.

Though she was under contract to submit three hymns a week to her publisher and often wrote six or seven a day (for a dollar or two each), many became incredibly popular. When Dwight Moody and Ira Sankey began to use them in their crusades, they received even more attention. Among them are “Blessed Assurance,” “All the Way My Savior Leads Me,” “To God Be the Glory,” “Pass Me Not, O Gentle Savior,” “Safe in the Arms of Jesus,” “Rescue the Perishing,” and “Jesus Keep Me Near the Cross.”

She could write very complex hymns and compose music with a more classical structure (she could even improvise it), but she preferred to write simple, sentimental verses that could be used for evangelism. She continued to write her poetry up to her death, a month shy of her ninety-fifth birthday. “You will reach the river brink, some sweet day, bye and bye,” was her last stanza.

Reference: https://www.christianitytoday.com

The paperback version of my books, are available for purchase from Amazon and the e-books are available on www.toladehinde.com :

• Prayer Personified

• Godly Declarations