I have a long list of favorite hymns, but perhaps the great hymn that always come to my mind first is “Great is Thy Faithfulness.”
Perhaps it’s because my Mom had the words framed in our home growing up.
Or, perhaps I liked how the second verse spoke about the world around us (always a topic of awe to me, even as a child).
Maybe I liked the uplifting tune and the words of praise that even I as a child could understand.
Whatever the reason, “Great is Thy Faithfulness” has become a well sung, well loved hymn of praise that I go to in all different situations.
The Lyricist: Thomas Obadiah Chisholm
The man who wrote this beautiful hymn of praise was a man named Thomas Chisholm.
Thomas was an American hymnwriter and poet, as well as a Methodist minister.
He was born in a log cabin in Tennessee, and became a teacher at the age of 16.
When he was about 27, he became a Christian at a revival service, and went on to become ordained in the Methodist Church.
To his disappointment, He was only able to serve as a minister for about a year due to poor heath, and ended up having to selling insurance instead.
Regardless, Thomas wrote over 1200 sacred poems that appeared in various Christian periodicals.
In 1923, he sent his poem ” Great is Thy faithfulness” to his friend, William Runyan at Moody Bible institute to see if he would be interested in putting it to music. Which, Obviously he was!
William also wrote the lyrics for the hymn, “ Living for Jesus”( Another beautiful hymn if you wanted to check it out!)
The Composer: William Runyan
William Runyan was a Christian composer from the United States. He was born to a Methodist minister and his wife in the city of Marion, New York.
When William was 14, his family moved to Marion, Kansas.
William served as a Church organist as a teenager, and later was ordained as a Methodist minister when he was 21 years old.
William eventually moved to Chicago, where he was a part of the Moody Bible institute. He wrote the music the “Great is Thy Faithfulness” in 1923 from a poem written by his friend and fellow minister, Thomas O. Chisholm
The Words to Great is Thy Faithfulness
There are three verses and a chorus for this song. Here they are below:
“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 will be.”
(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, until me!”
Verse 2:
“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.”
Chorus
Verse 3:
“Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth,
Thy own dear presence to cheer and to guide,
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow–
Blessings all mine with ten thousand beside!”
Chorus
Listening to “Great is Thy Faithfulness”
There are many different renditions of this great hymn, so I have added some below. If you have another favorite, leave me a comment below so I can hear it too!
Legacy Five
For a more traditional version with a twist, this is a beautiful one!
Anthem Lights
For a more modern take, Anthem Lights is my favorite!
Instrumental Piano
Sometimes its just nice to hear the melody of the hymn. Here is a piano version of Great is Thy Faithfulness so you can hear the melody alone.
You certainly do not need to listen to all these versions of “Great is Thy Faithfulness”, but it’s amazing to hear some of the different renditions of this beautiful song!
I hope you enjoyed this little study about one of the great hymns of faith!
What is your favorite hymn?
If you enjoyed this, you may also enjoy Free and Simple Music Lessons for the family to continue learning more about music!
Another Hymn Study you may enjoy is Learning the Great Hymns: The Doxology ( Praise God, From Whom All Blessings Flow)
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