History

Palmer Hartsough was born in Michigan to Wells and Thankful Palmer Hartsough in 1844. He was born into a faithful household, and his father was active in the Michigan Baptist Convention. During his college years at Kalamazoo College and Michigan State Normal (what we now know as Eastern Michigan University), Palmer became

interested in music, especially singing. He taught singing in rural areas before becoming an itinerant music teacher throughout six surrounding states over the following ten years.

Eventually, he settled down in Rock Island, Illinois, where he opened a music studio and served as the music director for a local baptist church. During his time there, his writing ability caught the attention of the Fillmore Brothers Publishing Company, which was based in Cincinnati. After about six years in Illinois, he moved to work with the Fillmore brothers, providing the text for the music they wrote.

This hymn was composed as a tribute to Francis Edward Clark, who founded the Christian Endeavor movement, an interdenominational organization to provide a framework for the Christian lifestyle and service to the local church. James Henry Fillmore began composing the tune before the 1896 World Endeavor Convention, as the official delegation song for Ohio. The hymn was first performed at that convention, and later published in the Fillmore collection, The Praise Hymnal.

Hartsough would continue his writing career at Fillmore and contribute to over 1,000 hymns over the next seven years. After leaving Fillmore in 1903, he began a brief career of full-time song leading and evangelism, eventually becoming a Baptist minister in 1906. He served in ministry until his retirement in 1927, at 84. His full life of ministry and continual service are a testament to what he suggests in this very hymn—that he spent his days working for things to come.

Devotion

There comes a point that every believer must wrestle with the things we hold dear. We harbor pet sins and dangerous practices that we know we should probably deal with, but we can’t bring ourselves to manage them. At some point, we just have to want to. I love this hymn because it draws attention to this very real truth. There comes a moment where, if we want to change to be more like Jesus, we must resolve ourselves to that change.

I don’t want to downplay the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives, because His supernatural work is beyond compare in transforming us into the image of Christ. This idea, admittedly, balances on the razor’s edge. It’s about the battle between our own personal responsibility and trusting the work of the Spirit. And I don’t want to suggest that the Holy Spirit is limited or subordinate to our willingness to change. Make no mistake, God is subordinate to nothing. He chooses to allow us the opportunity for obedience, however.

I also want to be careful to make the distinction that we don’t follow a behavioral religion, but a personal faith. What we long for is not simple behavior modification—following a set of morals and rites hoping to gain favor. What we have, as believers in Jesus, is grace. A grace that is the gift of God and that enables us to have a supernatural faith in who He is and what He has promised. It’s because of this amazing gift from God that we have the desire for obedience and true fellowship.

But there again, we must truly come to want it. We must come to face our sin and boldly choose to reject it. In Romans 1, we see that over time, because of a pattern of disobedience, God will eventually give the unfaithful over to their own sin. But His grace is full, and He desires mercy. The Holy Spirit speaks reminders of His promises and convicts us of what we know to be impure in our lives. But He has given us the responsibility of dealing with it.

It’s easier said than done, to follow the old cliche. Sure, there are some things we do that are relatively easy to get rid of, especially the big ones. It’s not hard for me to not steal a TV from the store or commit murder. It’s the small things that we leave around: the tempting images and videos we see on social media; the ease of shopping through any app on our phone; it’s the small satisfaction we feel when we know our friend has the same thought about that other person at work, and then we begin to gossip.

These are examples of things we know we must reject, but we can’t bring ourselves to. It reminds me of the verse in Hebrews about Esau: “he found no chance to repent, though he sought it with tears.” (Hebrews 12:17) Have you ever felt that way? There’s something you know you need to deal with, but you just can’t. We all have those things we just don’t want to deal with, though deep down, by the conviction of the Spirit, we seek to be rid of it once and for all. It’s a complex facet of the Christian walk, to be sure.

Here is my encouragement:

Trust the Holy Spirit. Confront your sin. Reject isolating yourself from others and share your struggle with a trusted friend. Ask the Holy Spirit for the strength to remove that stain from your life and daily habits once and for all.

Be specific in that prayer. Name it. And buckle up, because that is a prayer that the Holy Spirit loves to answer.

Related Scripture

Luke 9:57-62; Romans 1:18-22; Philippians 3:12-16

I Am Resolved lyrics

I am resolved no longer to linger,
charmed by the world's delights;
things that are higher,
things that are nobler,
these have allured my sight.

Refrain

I will hasten to Him,
hasten so glad and free;
Jesus, greatest, highest,
I will come to Thee.

I am resolved to go to the Savior,
leaving my sin and strife;
He is the true one,
He is the just one,
He has the words of life.

I am resolved to follow the Savior,
Faithful and true each day.
Hold to his word
And seek out his will
He is the Living Way.

I Am Resolved Lyric Video

What to know about I Am Resolved:

• Who wrote “I Am Resolved”?

  • Palmer Hartsough wrote “I Am Resolved” as a tribute to Francis Edward Clark.

• When was “I Am Resolved” written?

  • “I Am Resolved” was written in in the late 1800s and first performed as the delegation song for Ohio in the 1896 World Endeavor Convention.

• What is “I Am Resolved” about?

  • “I Am Resolved” expresses a firm commitment to leave behind worldly pleasures and sin, seeking instead the higher, nobler path of following Jesus, the true and just source of life and guidance. The refrain emphasizes an eagerness and joy in coming to Jesus, acknowledging Him as the greatest and highest.