The Woman Who Thanked God for Her Blindness

Frances Jane Crosby lost her sight at six weeks old when a country doctor applied a mustard poultice to her inflamed eyes. The treatment destroyed her vision permanently. By every earthly measure, she had reason for bitterness. Instead, Fanny Crosby spent ninety-four years making a joyful noise to the Lord. From her small apartment in Manhattan's Bowery district, she composed over eight thousand hymns — more than any other writer in history.…