“We Have An Anchor” - Priscilla Owens

1829–1907

She taught children for half a century—for the city of Baltimore and for the Sunday school of Union Square Methodist Church. Before we consider the enduring contribution of Priscilla Owens to our hymnals, let’s consider the quiet impact she would have had on two, maybe three, generations.

There’s a hidden history written in the lives of students. If they somehow get famous, they might give thanks to a special teacher who helped ground them in the truths that guide their lives. More likely, the grounding happens without fanfare. Teachers prepare children for adulthood, when some have their own children and send them to teachers for more grounding. Thus civilization is preserved.

Besides teaching, Priscilla wrote songs. In 1882 she penned the lyrics for “We Have an Anchor,” clearly an expression of its era. She lived not far from Baltimore’s Inner Harbor, and in that time before air travel, ships were a common part of life. The song begins with a question—“Will your anchor hold in the storms of life?”—and that storm imagery continues throughout the song. Priscilla assures us that our faith is “grounded firm and deep in the Savior’s love.”

Flip through an old hymnal, and you’ll find a bunch of songs about storm-tossed ships. Almost all of them come from the 1880–1900 era, and that makes sense. It was a turbulent time. The industrial revolution was going full throttle. Society’s changes were fast and furious. Everything was unsettled. People needed an anchor “fastened to the Rock which cannot move.”

Life is still hurtling past us, fast and furious. If you are feeling unsettled, join the club. Fortunately, we still have an Anchor, as we put our faith in Jesus. New hymns will have to use newer metaphors—perhaps images of drifting in space—but we will always need to cling to something solid. We always need to get grounded in the Savior’s love.

More than a decade after she penned “We Have an Anchor,” Priscilla Owens was asked to write something for a church anniversary celebration focusing on missions. For this one, she looked past the insecurities of her age and offered the solidity of Jesus to the wider world. “We have heard the joyful sound: Jesus saves! Jesus saves!”

This hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls.

Hebrews 6:19