In 1856, with a love of church music and the desire to share his faith, Johnson Oatman wrote an average of over two hundred gospel songs and hymns a year for over twenty-five years. His total output of songs and hymns was over five thousand. When his publishers insisted that he set a price for each hymn, Oatman would charge a single dollar per hymn.
In 1898, he wrote a popular hymn that many people still sing today, “Higher Ground.”
Lyrics:
I’m pressing on the upward way,
New heights I’m gaining every day;
Still praying as I’m onward bound,
“Lord, plant my feet on higher ground.”
Refrain
Lord, lift me up and let me stand,
By faith, on Heaven’s table land,
A higher plane than I have found;
Lord, plant my feet on higher ground.
My heart has no desire to stay
Where doubts arise and fears dismay;
Though some may dwell where those abound,
My prayer, my aim, is higher ground.
Refrain
I want to live above the world,
Though Satan’s darts at me are hurled;
For faith has caught the joyful sound,
The song of saints on higher ground.
Refrain
I want to scale the utmost height
And catch a gleam of glory bright;
But still I’ll pray till Heav’n I’ve found,
“Lord, plant my feet on higher ground.”
Refrain
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Sources: The Gaffeny Ledger – Hubble Site – Wikimedia Commons