July 31, 2005

Have faith in God –
His Word! The spade sustains it;
Have faith in God –
As history maintains it;
Have faith in God –
Again the world regains it!
Have faith, dear friend, in God.

Follow On

William Orcutt Cushing, 1823-1902

    Let us acknowledge the Lord; let us press on to acknowledge him. As surely as the sun rises, he will appear; he will come to us like the winter rains, like the spring rains that water the earth. Hosea 6:3.

    “I wrote this hymn in 1878,” the Rev. W. O. Cushing tells us. “Longing to give up all for Christ Who had given His life for me, I wanted to be willing to lay everything at His feet, with no wish but to do His will, to live henceforth only for His glory. Out of this feeling came the hymn, Follow On. It was written with the prayer and the hope that some heart might by it be led to give up all for Christ. Much of the power and usefulness of the hymn, however, are due to Mr. Lowry, who put it into song.”
    Cushing’s parents were Unitarians, and his early training was along these lines. After entering the ministry, his first pastorate was at Searsburg, New York. He married in 1854, and went on to serve in Auburn, Brooklyn, Buffalo, and Sparta, New York. After his wife died in 1870 and his health declined, he retired from the pastorate and began writing hymns. He completed over 300 in his lifetime.
    Cushing was an exemplary Christian, ever mindful of the suffering of others. Once he gave $1,000—all he had, an enormous sum in those days—to a blind girl so she could get an education.

Down in the valley with my Savior I would go,
Where the flowers are blooming and the sweet waters flow;
Everywhere He leads me I would follow, follow on,
Walking in His footsteps till the crown be won.

Down in the valley with my Savior I would 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 would 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.

Chorus:
Follow! follow! I would follow Jesus!
Anywhere, everywhere, I would follow on!
Follow! follow! I would follow Jesus!
Everywhere He leads me I would follow on!

Have Faith in God by H.M.S. Richards, Used by Permission