The Rock That Is Higher than I

These were difficult days as the country experienced a major financial panic. There was concern even among the believers who gathered in 1871 as delegates to a YMCA convention in Carlisle, Pennsylvania.

Erastus Johnson, who was born on this day in 1826, was one of those delegates. In his autobiography, he recalled that, during the convention, a telegram arrived announcing that a major banking house had failed. More reports started coming in and “a pall of gloom” settled over the convention.

As the delegates struggled with fear and worry, Johnson felt a conviction that God wanted to remind everyone that they could trust in Him. With this inspiration, he wrote a hymn he called, “O Sometimes the Shadows are Deep.” (This often is remembered for the words, “The Rock That Is Higher Than I”). The message was so timely that, there, at the convention, William Fisher wrote accompanying music.

The new hymn seemed to speak God’s peace and perspective. When it was sung, the mood was changed, and spirits were lifted. They began to focus on God, not the economy or their problems.

In this hymn, Johnson wrote, “Oh! sometimes the shadows are deep, and rough seems the path to the goal, and sorrows, sometimes how they sweep like tempests down over the soul.” At times like that, what do we need to do? “O then to the Rock let me fly to the Rock that is higher than I!”  When they flew to the Rock, everything changed!

Today, no matter what problems you face, the Bible assures us that you can depend on God. You can turn to Him when you are tired or weary, afraid or confused. He is your Rock!