His Arm Alone Sustained Me: The Faith of Susanna Anthony

Originally published by So We Speak on January 12, 2022.

Susanna Anthony (not to be confused with Susan B. Anthony) is a little-known figure who deserves to be remembered.  Her journal and short biography, titled “The Life and Character of Miss Susanna Anthony”, were published by Samuel Hopkins in 1791 and can be found here.

Susanna’s struggle with the flesh, surrender to the sovereignty of God, and deep love for her Savior all make her story worth telling. Though her story follows familiar patterns of the Christian life, the very fact that she chronicled her journey in such detail—speaking the truth to herself in her darkest moments—makes her writings immensely beneficial to believers today.

A Life of Hidden Devotion

Susanna was born in Rhode Island in 1726, the youngest of seven daughters. She never married and lived with her parents until their passing. She was deeply involved in her church and loved her brothers and sisters in the faith with sincere affection.

Her biographer notes:  “[She] was a remarkable example of devotion, benevolence, and Christian friendship; of self-denial, sobriety, modesty, humility… and of a careful circumspection and consciousness in all her concerns and conduct.”

Her character spoke for itself and was evident to all who knew her. There’s no doubt she carried the “aroma of Christ” (2 Cor. 2:15) in her community.

The Value of Her Words

Her writings have personally impacted me on a deep level. They’ve deepened my appreciation for God’s sovereignty and shown what it means to seek Him in the midst of hardship and inward struggle.

Drawing from the imagery of Psalm 23, she writes what I believe is one of the most powerful reflections in her journal:

“And though God has hence sometimes corrected my backslidings and hid his face for a small moment; yet his lovingkindness has he not taken from me, nor suffered his faithfulness to fail; but has graciously led me along by still waters and in green pastures he has caused me to feed.  His rod and his staff have comforted me. In and by every affliction, he has taught me his tender care over me.  In every cross and disappointment, he has, sooner or later, made me to adore his wisdom, and see his kind designs of love and mercy.  And though he has sometimes called me into the field of battle, yet has he harnessed me for battle, and fought for me.  Innumerable evils have compacted me around. Satan, the world, and my own wicked, deceitful heart, all combined to devour me quick; yet his arm alone sustained me. Even when every refuge failed, and my faith was ready to stagger, my extremity has been his opportunity. He has never left me.”

Weakness that Leads to Worship

Like all believers, Susanna struggled with her flesh. At one point, she battled thoughts of suicide. She recounts how God used a providentially-timed book to confront her despair, helping her see suicide as a false escape from emotional hardship and a distortion of hope.

She also faced significant physical suffering, often bedridden for weeks at a time. Yet in those moments, her heart turned to God:

“While I am weak, feeble, and faint all the day, yet I can rest and rejoice in God, more than when at ease and in health without him.”

Susanna found ways to turn every weakness—both physical and spiritual—into a reason to draw near to Christ, who never lacks strength. She embodied Paul’s exhortation: “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord” (1 Corinthians 1:31).

A Life Fully Yielded

Her heart belonged to her Lord. She sought to align her desires with His will as best she could. Undoubtedly, she may have longed for marriage, for health, or for less spiritual conflict. But she laid it all before her sovereign God.

“I have laid all my wishes, hopes, desires, and expectations, on the perfections of His nature, the unchangeableness of His being, and the truth of His word; and here will I confide forever.”

Her inner struggle with sin and her desire to please Christ ultimately led her to deeper worship. She wrote:

“For when the glory of God is my highest end and desire; and I firmly believe that God, who has the ordering of all my affairs, has this in view, namely, His own glory, well may I rejoice. For I have nothing to fear.  He has infinite wisdom to direct and almighty power to affect what He pleases, and therefore can never fail of His purposes.  All His dispensations towards me, I would always realize, as the result of infinite wisdom and eternal counsel; and therefore most perfect.  And though my proud rebellious heart dare rise up in opposition, and call into question His ways, yet through grace, I never leave struggling, until the conquest is gained and my soul submits to the scepter of Jesus.”

Our Tendency and God’s Grace God’s sovereignty and His love for His own glory give the Christian every reason to rejoice—and no reason to fear. All His dealings with His saints are designed to form Christlikeness in us.

And yet, like Susanna, our human tendency is to resist. We question His ways. We stagger in our faith. But God, in mercy, gives grace to joyfully submit to His will. As Susanna’s life shows, even weakness can be worship when offered to a faithful God.

She constantly allowed herself to fall back—not into despair—but into the grace, mercy, and lovingkindness of God toward her in her sin. This is often our struggle as well.

A quote from The Valley of Vision puts it well:  “My sin is to look on my faults and be discouraged, or to look on my good and be puffed up.”

It takes divine grace to see both our faults and our gifts as reminders of God’s goodness, meant to keep us humble and dependent.

May our prayer and desire be to grow more into the image of Christ as we wrestle with sin and submit our lives to our sovereign God, who loves us deeply and delights to care for our souls.

Brittany Proffitt lives in North Texas and is a writer and content manager for So We Speak.