Wilson created a medley in which he paired this hymn with “Great is the Lord.” Cindy Berry also has a creative medley of “Great is Thy Faithfulness” partnered with “My Jesus, I Love Thee” in 4/4 time.T. It could be sung with songs of hope, such as “Tis so Sweet to Trust in Jesus,” or hymns of grief and comfort such as “Be Still My Soul.” If one wants to focus on the greatness of God, John F. When/ Why How:Īlthough sung at any time of the year, it is often chosen for both funerals and weddings as a testament to God’s unchanging nature no matter the circumstance. It has a repeated refrain similar to the repetition in modern praise songs, but retains the structural elements of a traditional hymn. The tune has a wide appeal across diverse congregations who prefer different musical styles. Runyan wrote: “This particular poem held such an appeal that I prayed most earnestly that my tune might carry over its message in a worthy way, and the subsequent history of its use indicates that God answers prayer.” Sung to the tune FAITHFULNESS by William Runyan, written specifically for this poem and published by Hope Publishing Company. The NCH also changes “Father” to “Creator,” which actually helps the transition to stanza two because of its focus on creation (and occasionally is not sung because it does not seem to fit with the other stanzas). The drawback to this is that, in order to complete the rhyme in stanza one, they modify “with thee” to “we see,” which changes the meaning slightly from complete emphasis on God to the agency of those speaking. The New Century Hymnal (1995) completely modernizes all direct addresses to You and Your. The text of the hymn is consistent to what was originally written, other than one minor change in the third stanza from “thy” to “thine” by the United Methodist Hymnal (1989) and Baptist Hymnal (1991) which is just a matter of tradition and preference. He mailed it to his friend William Runyan, who set it to music. This hymn was written in 1923 by poet Thomas Chisholm, author of more than 1,200 poems during his lifetime. So whether we are at a place in our lives where everything is pretty ordinary, or whether we are in a period of grief: no matter what our circumstances, God never changes and is faithful to us, sustaining us in his compassion and faithfulness each and every day. But in the midst of that utter devastation, Jeremiah still offers them hope on the horizon: they are not completely destroyed because of the LORD’s compassion and faithfulness, and in the morning, after this “dark night of the soul,” things will be better. God allowed them to be conquered by the Babylonians, resulting in their entire world being laid to waste. He also lamented the consequences of their faithlessness. The people to whom he prophesied did not listen, and he was ostracized and completely alone because of what God called him to do. They are new every morning great is your faithfulness.” Jeremiah, on the other hand, was in tumultuous circumstances when writing Lamentations. Instead, he found truth in the words he encountered in Lamentations 3:22-23: “Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. He did not write this hymn during a period of intense grief or after encountering God in a profound way. Thomas Chisholm, author of “Great is Thy Faithfulness” led a pretty ordinary life. It also reminds us that Jesus has never failed us in the past, so we have no reason to doubt his faithfulness in the future. Although I must not fail to record here the unfailing faithfulness of a covenant-keeping God and that He has given me many wonderful displays of His providing care, for which I am filled with astonishing gratefulness." The hymn reminds us that God doesn't only work in dramatic or miraculous ways, but also in simple, everyday ways. He wrote, "My income has not been large at any time due to impaired health in the earlier years which has followed me on until now. Unlike many hymns that have heart-wrenching stories behind them (for instance "It Is Well With My Soul"), "Great Is Thy Faithfulness" is inspired by the simple realization that God is at work in our lives on a daily basis. Thomas Chisholm, the author of "Great Is Thy Faithfulness" and 1200 other poems was born in a log cabin in Kentucky in 1866, and he lived a pretty unremarkable life: he worked as a school teacher, a newspaper editor, and insurance agent, then he retired and spent his remaining days at the Methodist Home for the Aged in New Jersey.
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