He was about to be married, but was faced with some bad news. He would be totally blind. To make matters worse, his fiancée, upon hearing the diagnosis, informed him that she couldn’t live the rest of her life with a blind man.

Crushed and defeated, George Matheson retreated into depression. He even thought of taking his own life. But then God got a hold of him and George wrote the amazing hymn that still inspires believers today, O Love That Will Not Let Me Go. The first verse shares his journey from sorrow to joy:

O Love that will not let me go

I rest my weary soul in Thee

I give Thee back the life I owe

That in Thine ocean depths its flow

May richer, fuller be.

He also shared these words, “My God, I have never thanked Thee for my thorns. I have thanked Thee a thousand times for my roses, but not once for my thorns. I have been looking forward to a world where I shall get compensation for my cross; but I have never thought of my cross as itself a present glory. Teach me the glory of my cross: teach me the value of my thorn. Shew me that I have climbed to Thee by the path of pain. Shew me that my tears have made my rainbow.”

What is your cross to bear today? Is it sickness, loss, rejection? Ask God to give you strength as you carry it for Him.