“For the Lamb who is in the midst of the throne will shepherd them and lead them to living fountains of waters.” (Revelation 7:17)
Fanny Crosby wrote over 8,000 hymns during her lifetime, many of which still appear in today’s hymnals. Hymns like 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, He Hideth My Soul, and Praise Him, Praise Him continue to draw souls to God for both salvation and comfort.
No hymn writer has ever had a clearer vision of Jesus than Fanny Crosby even though she never saw life as it passed right before her own eyes. Fanny Crosby was blinded by an eye infection when she was only six-weeks old. Yet she never allowed her disability to become a handicap. In fact, when she was only eight-years old, she wrote:
Oh, what a happy child I am,
Although I cannot see!
I am resolved that in this world
Contented I will be!
How many blessings I enjoy
That other people don’t!
So weep or sigh because I’m blind
I cannot and I won’t.
I once had a boss who told me that the only difference between an opportunity and a problem is perspective. Fanny Crosby’s story brought life to those words.
The Bible teaches us that “All things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.” (Romans 8:28) But somehow when handicaps and disabilities come our way, we view them as a problem instead of an opportunity.
Jesus taught his disciples that a disability doesn’t have to become a handicap. In fact, the Bible records that Jesus once met a man who was also blind from birth. Jesus’ disciples were puzzled about why infirmities come our way questioned the Master as to why this particular man went blind. Listen to Jesus’ answer: “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him” (John 9:3)
Fanny Crosby’s life reminds all of us who allow sickness, disability or some other weakness to get us down that hope is never lost for the Christian who is willing to reach out in faith and trust Christ. She may have never seen a sunrise or a rainbow, but she knew the one who made it all happen. And her faith reassured her that the day would come when He would restore her sight. That’s why she wrote:
When my life is ended and I cross the swelling tide,
When the bright and glorious morning I shall see,
I shall know my Redeemer when I reach the other side,
And His smile will be the first to welcome me.
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1 Comment
This is a great devotional for all of us, but especially for those that are elderly residents of care facilities. We will be sharing this with the two assisted living facilities that we visit in Raleigh and with our “Love Notes” Newsletter subscribers.
Thanks for your ministry and for being a great example in our community.
Larry Wasserman
Founder and President of Faithful Friends Nursing Home Ministry
Raleigh, NC