It Is Well

Hello everyone! I didn't get this up last week because I was on vacation, and yesterday I was running home from SC away from the hurricane. It threw me off my groove. Regardless, I wanted to get one up for this week!

"It is Well with My Soul" by Horatio Spafford is one of the most popular and well-known songs in all of Christian history. You may already know the story behind the hymn, but I'm going to share it here briefly.

Spafford was a prosperous lawyer and an elder in a Presbyterian church in Chicago. In 1871, the Great Chicago Fire destroyed his business and wiped out his investments. He recovered and in 1873, he decided to take his family to Europe for his wife's health. Some business matters came up that delayed him, so he sent his wife and four daughters ahead and planned to join them later. On the Trans-Altantic crossing, the ship his family was on was struck by another ship and sunk very rapidly. All four of his daughters drowned. His wife was found unconscious in the wreckage and rescued. When she got to Europe, she sent a telegram back to Horatio that simply said, "Saved alone. What shall I do..." He immediately got on the next ship and the captain let him know as they passed over the spot where his four daughters drowned. It was there, standing at the rail of the ship, that he penned the immortal words; "When peace like a river attendeth my way, when sorrows like sea billows roll. Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say, 'It is well, it is well with my soul.'"

Can you imagine the strength of faith it took to write those words? He is just two years away from an immense financial tragedy. ALL of his children are dead in what, I might add, is a horrifying way to die. Do you see him, on the rail of the ship, weeping, letting his tears mingle with the waters that buried his girls? Do you see his trembling hand as he writes this amazing song of faith? Can you see the smudges on the paper as his tears drop on the page and cause the ink to run? Every time I sing this hymn, I am stunned by the faith it expresses.

And that's where the story ends for most of us. I've been in church since my birth and I've known this story for a very long time. We love it because it is a story of victory in the midst of tragedy. We LOVE winners and so the church chose to ignore the rest of the story. For us, the story ends on this high note, but life isn't really like that, is it? I didn't know there was more to this story until 2014.

Horatio did pick up his wife. They eventually returned to America and three years later had a son. It must have been like a gift for them. However, their son died in 1880 at age four from scarlet fever. This seemed to break them. Horatio and his wife started grasping for answers. It led them into a focus on Jerusalem and a belief that Jesus was going to return soon. It wasn't precisely heresy, but it was weird, especially in the late 1800's. Their raw pain and this grasping was too much for their church and they were basically driven out. They decided to move to Jerusalem with a group of families that agreed with them and they spent the rest of their lives establishing dates for the return of Christ, hiking up to the Mount of Olives to wait for Him, and being disappointed. They would return, set a new date, and do it all over again. While they were waiting, they established ministries in Jerusalem. They took care of the poor. They built an orphanage called the Spafford House that still exists and takes care of orphans today.

Now, this seems like defeat. It seems like they gave in to their pain and went off the rails in their grief. Certainly their church in America thought so. But I like this story better because it is real. We want the fairy tale ending, but the truth is that life is not like that. The GREAT victory is this: "In this world you will have trouble but take heart. I have overcome the world." Even in the depths of their pain, the Spaffords sought Jesus. They left a legacy of faith and ministry that carries on to this day. Often, Christians struggle with how to help someone else in their grief. We just want them to get over it, move on, have faith, trust God, etc. We say things like, "God will not give you more than you can handle," when the truth is that God tells us He will often give us far more than we can handle so we rely on Him and each other. We say, "Everything happens for a reason," like that makes anyone feel better. It's true, but not helpful.

Just this week, I sat in the office of someone who had a loved one die by suicide last year. They have great faith in God, but they are struggling. People in their lives have sort of moved on because they expect that this person should have moved on by now. But this person hasn't been able to yet. It is well with their soul because they know God's promises, but it's not as well with their heart and mind. Not now, anyway. It will get better. I know because I have walked that road.

Now, when I hear this song, I still think about Horatio Spafford's faith on the day he penned those amazing words. I also think about how hard this life can be. I remember that life is not a fairy tale and maybe I need to give myself a little grace when I struggle. I remember that others are struggling too, and maybe instead of judging their pain and accusing them of lack of faith, I just need to put an arm around them and struggle with them. So say we all...

If you want to read more about Horatio Spafford's life and see some pictures, you can go here: https://www.loc.gov/exhibits/americancolony/amcolony-family.html

SONGS FOR SUNDAY:

You Are Good

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ul6i6Kz2p2k

Freedom

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qiO_Eteee1U

Come Thou Fount

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=svWaaVbOQps

It Is Well

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n_EE1dnr0DA

My Chains Are Gone

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jbe7OruLk8I