It Is Well

Once a month I will be inviting a "guest writer" to the blog. I'm excited about this opportunity for us to hear from other people, and hopefully you are too. Today's blog was written by Brother Charlie Bell.

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One of my all time favorite hymns is “It Is Well With My Soul.” The faith spoken in this song ignites and renews my desire to stand on the faith in Jesus Christ. To speak of victory even when we feel defeated! The Prophet Joel said, “let the weak say, I am strong” (Joel 3:10). We are instructed in the Word to speak our victory before and during our battles, and to always let the power of our God be our strength and to let His praise fill our mouth (Psalms 71:8)! Never forget “the battle is not yours, but God's” (2 Chronicles 20:15). I recently read the article below, written by Lloyd Newell that rehearsed the origin of this precious song. Even if you can’t sing, you can rejoice in the comfort and strength in the poetry! 

Life can be so unpredictable—joys and sorrows, beautiful blessings and distressing difficulties can come unexpectedly. Our life’s dreams and plans can change in an instant. We all know this to be true. So how can we find peace amid such turbulence?

Horatio Spafford knew something about life’s unexpected challenges. He was a successful attorney and real estate investor who lost a fortune in the great Chicago fire of 1871. Around the same time, his beloved four-year-old son died of scarlet fever.

Thinking a vacation would do his family some good, he sent his wife and four daughters on a ship to England, planning to join them after he finished some pressing business at home. However, while crossing the Atlantic Ocean, the ship was involved in a terrible collision and sunk. More than 200 people lost their lives, including all four of Horatio Spafford’s precious daughters. His wife, Anna, survived the tragedy. Upon arriving in England, she sent a telegram to her husband that began: “Saved alone. What shall I do?”

Horatio immediately set sail for England. At one point during his voyage, the captain of the ship, aware of the tragedy that had struck the Spafford family, summoned Horatio to tell him that they were now passing over the spot where the shipwreck had occurred.

As Horatio thought about his daughters, words of comfort and hope filled his heart and mind. He wrote them down, and they have since become a well-beloved hymn:

Verse 1:

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.

Chorus:

It is well, (it is well),

With my soul, (with my soul)

It is well, it is well, with my soul.

Verse 2:

Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,

Let this blessed assurance control,

That Christ has regarded my helpless estate,

And hath shed His own blood for my soul

(Repeat chorus)

Verse 3:

My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!

My sin, not in part but the whole,

Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,

Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul

(Repeat chorus)

Verse 4:

And Lord, haste the day when the faith shall be sight,

The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;

The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend,

Even so, it is well with my soul.

(Repeat chorus)

Perhaps we cannot always say that everything is well in all aspects of our lives. There will always be storms to face, and sometimes there will be tragedies. But with faith in a loving God and with trust in His divine help, we can confidently say, “It is well, it is well with my soul.”