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Everywhere He leads me, I will follow on
Everywhere He leads me, I will follow on!
Ever heard of William O. Cushing? Possibly you never have but his life was definitely not wasted. He was born in 1823 to Unitarian parents and trained as such until he was a teenager. He began to study the Word for himself and then joined the Christian church. At the age of 18 he was called to the ministry, finished his education first and then began to work for God. He pastored in Searsburg, New York, where he met Miss Hena Proper, and married her on February 4, 1854. Hena was a wonderful partner and help to him in the Church. Together, they pastored in Auburn, Brooklyn, Buffalo and Sparta, New York. Hena became ill and they returned to pastor in Searsburg. Cushing cared for his ailing wife until she passed away on July 13, 1870.
Not long after his beloved Hena had gone on to be with the Lord, Cushing also became ill. Paralysis was affecting his voice, he could no longer preach the Gospel and suddenly retired. But he didn’t want to just sit in a rocking chair and be of no use so he prayed, “Lord, still give me something to do for Thee!”
God heard his prayer and Cushing began to write; he wrote more than 300 hymns, some you might recognize today, such as:
- Ring the Bells of Heaven
- We are Waiting, We are Watching
- When He Cometh
- Hiding in Thee
- Do they Know
- There’ll be no Dark Valley
- Down in the Valley
- Beautiful Valley of Eden
- I am Waiting by the River
- The Name of Jesus and many, many more.
Cushing was also known as a noble and honorable Christian. It is said, to know him was to love him. He was very compassionate and empathized with those who were suffering, all the while ignoring his own handicap. He truly ministered to others through his giving and life’s work.
It is told that he once gave $1,000 to a girl who was blind so she could obtain an education. That would be over $20,000 today!
He wasn’t wealthy, he might even have been considered poor by his bank account that dwindled due to his kindness. His generous spirit inspired many and his songs live on to bless countless Christians.
One of the most familiar songs he penned (or that I readily recognize anyway) was Follow On, music by Robert Lowry. It was written in 1878, following much suffering, born out of Psalm 17:8, “Hide me under the shadow of your wings.”
Down in the valley with my Savior I will go,
Where the flow’rs are blooming and the sweet waters flow;
Everywhere He leads me I will follow, follow on,
Walking in His footsteps till the crown be won.
Follow! follow! I will follow Jesus!
Anywhere, everywhere, I will follow on!
Follow! follow! I will follow Jesus!
Everywhere He leads me I will follow on!
Down in the valley with my Savior I will go,
Where the storms are sweeping and the dark waters flow;
With His hand to lead me I will never, never fear,
Danger cannot fright me if my Lord is near.
Down in the valley, or upon the mountain steep,
Close beside my Savior will my soul ever keep;
He will lead me safely in the path that He has trod,
Up to where they gather on the hills of God.
Are you in the valley today? Discouraged or confused by your circumstances? Much pain came to the life of William Cushing but he found a way to give God praise and give back to others. He encouraged us through his hymns to love and trust God and we then will experience that peace that passes all understanding. Grab hold of that peace today and share it with someone who is hurting!
You can be the hands and feet of Jesus, and in the process, He will strengthen and encourage you.
Sharing with Good Morning Mondays, Me Coffee & Jesus, Mama Moments Monday, Words of comfort, Friendship Friday
When your WHAT IFS control you
“Worry gives a small thing a big shadow.”—Swedish Proverb.
When your WHAT IFS control you.
Do your What ifs control your life? Are you scared of every shadow, every possibility and every sense of dread known to man? Do you get up with worry, carry worry all day long and since it’s been with you for the majority of the day do you decide to just take it to bed with you again every night?
It is said that at least one in four of us, that’s over 65 million Americans, will experience anxiety disorder some time in our life. One in four! That’s a whole lot of anxious people filled with fear, worry, doubt and distress. And the other three might not have a panic attack but you can rest assured they are worriers.
Did you know the Old English origin of the word worry meant to strangle? Even to wring, annoy, bother and vex were some of the earliest versions of the word. And in 1804 it was defined as anxiety arising from cares and troubles.
[Tweet “Worry can choke the life right out of a Christian, leaving them crippled with fear and anxiety.”]
Is worrying a sin? The Bible doesn’t come right out and specifically say so but if we search scripture we will find that worrying is a clear indication that we are not trusting God with our problems!
“Cast your cares on the LORD and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous fall.” Psalm 55:22.
Jesus tells us in the Sermon on the Mount not to worry. “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes?” Matthew 6:25.
So, to continue to allow worry and anxiety to dominate our everyday life is surely a lack of trust and confidence in the One who created us with purpose in the first place!
Isn’t it amazing as a child of God that we can believe He is able to save us, gave His life for us, redeemed us and will come back to take us to our eternal home but we can’t find enough trust and faith in Him to carry us through the day?
If we can trust God with the big things, such as salvation, do we not think He is capable of handling the day to day worries of our lives?
“Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” 1 Peter 5:6-8.
Peter tells us to let God handle our problems because He cares. But looking at the rest of the verse, isn’t he saying if we worry that we are fair game for the enemy? If we allow worry and anxiety to be a regular part of our diet the enemy has gained a foothold into our minds, and little by little, he will gain more control until we are easily devoured and deceived.
Controlled by your circumstances or casting your care?
How will you choose to live out your life? With worry and dread, consumed with what might happen and what could happen or would it not be much easier, less stressful even, to give those worries to a God that never slumbers or sleeps? He invites you to surrender and let Him handle the issues that keep you awake at night. When we learn to hand them over to Him, and realize we have no control over them anyway, we can rest in peace that all is well. He sees down the road and has our best interest in mind!
Remember that worry is a lack of faith and trust in God.
[Tweet “If you do not trust God then you do not KNOW your God!”]
Spend time in His Word every day, take the time to pray every day and get to know Jesus, who gave His life for you and promises you eternal life.
And if you can trust Him with your eternity isn’t it safe to say He can handle what you face today?
“The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” Lamentations 3:22, 23 ESV.
Sharing with Making your home sing, Good morning Mondays, UNITE, Testimony Tuesday, Titus 2uesday, Titus 2 Tuesday, #RaRA linkup, Wedded Wednesday, A Little R & R, Wholehearted Wednesday. Grace and Truth, Faith Filled Friday, Blessings Counter, Dance with Jesus