When I first started going to Hope Methodist Church in 1998 They had a time during the service when all the children were invited to come to the front of the church and talk to the pastor. The pastor told good stories and the kids loved them, so did the rest of the congregation. After that pastor retired and we got a new pastor she did not want to do the time for children every Sunday so she asked anyone in the congregation that wanted to take a turn. One week I decided I wanted to do it. I went up to Peggy the lady who scheduled the talks and told her I was interested in doing one. She looked at her scheduled and gave me a date. It turned out to be Super Bowl Sunday but didn’t bother me. So I started figuring out what I wanted to say and how to say it. I also did a little research just to make sure all my facts were right.

When the time came Peggy (who is a very good friend of mine) said “Arnold, even if there are no kids in the first service tell you story anyway the adults like to hear it too”. So I did. The first service there was 1 little girl so I talked to her while the rest of the church listened. It went great. I gave the same talk at the second service I think I had 3 or 4 kids then. This was talk as well as I can remember it.

I held up a picture and asked if any of the kids knew who it was, none did. I did not expect anyone to. I said I bet if I showed this picture around the church not more then one or two people who know who she was, but everyone in this church has sung her music. Her name is Fanny Crosby she wrote over 8000 hymns and is the Guinness book of records for writing the most hymns . Here are some of my favorite Crosby hymns., More like Jesus, Pass Me Not, Praise Him Praise Him, To God be the Glory, and Saved by Grace.

What was unique about Crosby was that she was blind. She was not born blind but at the age of 6 months she got sick and the Doctor treating her used medicine that was too strong and she lost her sight. She often said she was glad she was blind because if she could see she would get side tracked and not be able to write as much.