Many people know and love the hymn ‘Great Is Thy Faithfulness,’ but not everyone knows the quiet, personal story behind its words.
The hymn ‘Great Is Thy Faithfulness’ was written in 1923 by Thomas Obadiah Chisholm, a former Methodist minister from Kentucky. Chisholm became a Christian at age 27 and felt a strong call to ministry.
In 1903, he was ordained and briefly served as a pastor in the Methodist Episcopal Church, South. However, due to ongoing poor health, he was forced to resign after just one year.
Though this was a disappointment, Chisholm continued to serve God through writing. He worked as a life insurance agent in New Jersey to support himself.
Despite personal struggles, Chisholm wrote over 1,200 poems, many of which were turned into hymns that focused on God’s mercy and truth.
Chisholm once explained, “My income has not been large at any time due to impaired health in the earlier years which has followed me on until now. But 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.”
The hymn is deeply rooted in Lamentations 3:22–23, which says, “Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.”
In 1923, Chisholm sent a selection of his poems to William M. Runyan, a musician and composer affiliated with Moody Bible Institute and Hope Publishing Company.
Runyan was particularly moved by the poem ‘Great Is Thy Faithfulness.’ He later recalled, “This particular poem held such an appeal that I prayed most earnestly that my tune might carry over its message in a worthy way.”
Runyan’s music matched the tone and message perfectly. The hymn was published by Hope Publishing that same year and quickly gained popularity within the Moody community.
It remained relatively unknown to the wider public until George Beverly Shea, the soloist for Billy Graham, began using it during evangelistic crusades, starting in Great Britain in the 1950s.
Since then, ‘Great Is Thy Faithfulness’ has become one of the most beloved hymns in churches around the world. It is often sung during worship, memorials, and personal devotion.
This hymn encourages us to rest in God’s promises. His mercies are new every morning. Whatever season we’re in, He is enough.
WATCH: George Beverly Shea Sings ‘Great Is Thy Faithfulness’
