{HSCRC13} Hymn #8, Faith of Our Fathers

Hymn Challenge #8: Faith of Our Fathers
Refrain Written by: James G. Walton
Sts. 1-2 Written by: Frederick William Faber
St. 3 Written by: Anonymous

Wow, did you see how many people helped with this hymn? I noticed in most hymnals that the text is attributed to Frederick W. Faber. So, we will focus on him for a short background study. Mr. Faber was born June 28, 1814. His father was a clergyman as well as his grandfather. It's no wonder Mr. Faber himself became an ordained minister. He had seen the "faith of his fathers." He was also a hymn writer and wrote three volumes of hymns with this particular hymn being one of the most well-known. He died in London on September 26, 1863.

Is there someone in your life that you would call your "faith father or mother"? Do you remember that person sharing their faith with you? What effect has that had on your life? What do you think your life would be like had their faith not been lived out and shared with you?
My precious girls graduated from Bible Study Fellowship (BSF) on Monday night. They started in BSF when they were 3 1/2 years old. Think of the Biblical foundation they have received through studying God's Word since they were very young. I am in awe. I didn't come to know Christ until I was 33 but praise God, they have known Him since they were very young and were able to accept Christ as their personal Lord and Savior when in elementary school.

So, as my girls attended their last BSF class in the school program, I began looking over my year's worth of notes from our study of Genesis in BSF this year. As I looked through my notes, I looked at the life of Abraham, our faith father. I reviewed Genesis 12 where God called Abraham to leave his country, his people, and his father's household and go to an unknown land.

Genesis 12:1 "The Lord had said to Abram, 'Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.'"

Abraham was an ordinary man. Now our family just moved across the country 10 months ago. If my husband would have said "Patter, we are moving. I can't tell you where we are going but leave your parents, your friends, your BSF class, all of the blessings that you have had here for the last 14 years and let's go." I think I would have told my husband he was nuts and that I wasn't going! Abraham's family must have completely trusted God and Abraham to agree and follow him as they did. Now, I completely trust God and my husband but would I have truly followed as they followed Abraham? I can't honestly say I would. But Abraham's faith effected an entire family and many, many generations to come!

Because of Abraham's faith, it was also passed down to his descendants. One person's faith in God can effect this generation and generations to come. Praise God He moved in my life and I accepted His gift of grace and became a child of God. Because of that, my girls now know Him, and they can pass their faith down to their children and generations to come.

Psalm 22:4 "In You our ancestors put their trust; they trusted and You delivered them."

So, did your ancestors put their trust in Him and it has been passed down to you? Or, are you the 1st generation to place your trust in Him? What are you doing to pass your faith on to your family and the generations to come? Do others see you live out your faith each day? 

Matthew 5:16 "In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven."

Maybe you have not accepted Christ as your Lord and Savior. He is just a prayer away!

Hebrews 11:6 "And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him."

Hebrews 12:1-2 "Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before Him He endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."

And will you continue to add to and grow in your faith so that you are effective for Christ? How will you pass that on?

2 Peter 1:5-8 "For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ."

So, will you be faithful and pass on the faith that was given to you so that generations to come might be able to live for Him as you have? Continue to grow in your faith and reach the next generation!

Below you will find the sheet music to "Faith of Our Fathers." To listen to this hymn, please click here. Be sure to look at the beauty of this organ in this video too!

For my 6x6 page today, I used the Psalm 22:4a and 2 Peter 1:5a verses from above. I also used the Blue Fern Studios Tuscan Window chipboard. I painted it with Tim Holtz crackle paint and then spritzed it with two different mists. This window was the perfect piece for my scriptures.

Papers: Magenta Dancing Butterfly, K&Co. Amy Butler Sola 
Embellishments: Blue Fern Studios tuscan window chipboard (painted with Tim Holtz picket fence crackle paint and Mister Huey clover and bluegrass); honeydew twine from The Twinery; Kaisercraft Marigold Collectables; Petaloo Mantis Green mini floral; Prima Cabaletta C flower; flowers by Wild Orchid Crafts; The Crafter's Workshop Flower Frenzy template with Liquitex light modeling paste; sewing machine

Have a blessed Mother's Day everyone, and remember, you are someone's "faith mother or father." Please use Keyword HSCRC13 when posting your creations in any online galleries. Also, please leave a link to your creation here using Inlinkz! To see all of the information regarding this challenge and the previous studies, please see this post here. Have a blessed week ahead!