It is well with my soul…

How many of us have heard this hymn and found so much comfort in it. This hymn is a beautiful expression of worship. Each verse contains wonderful expressions of faith and truth. It is a ray of hope in spite of the horrible tragedy that we face. It is a comfort that comes from a strong faith in God that shines brightly through the gloom. This hymn echoes of pain and suffering but also of the eternal hope that all believers have. But how many of us know the story behind this hymn.

Horatio G. Spafford, a 43-year-old Chicago businessman, had suffered a personal financial calamity in the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. He and his wife were still grieving over the death of their only son shortly before the fire. Spafford realized they the family needed to get away for a vacation. He decided to take his family on a trip to England, knowing that their friend and well-known evangelist Dwight L. Moody was going to be preaching in England that fall. However, urgent business delayed Mr. Spafford, so his wife Anna and his four daughters sailed on ahead and he made plans to set sail a few days later.

The ship that his wife and four daughters were sailing on was struck by another ship and sank in 12 minutes in the cold waters of the Atlantic Ocean. Two hundred and twenty-six people lost their lives in this terrible accident. Mrs. Spafford amazingly survived, but all four of their daughters drowned at sea. On reaching the European mainland, Mrs. Spafford sent her husband a telegram with the sad message, “Saved alone.”

Stories differ as to when the hymn, “It Is Well With My Soul,” was written. Some believe it was written while Spafford was on a ship to rejoin his wife in Cardiff, Wales, when the captain informed him that they were passing over the scene of the accident, this bereaved, loving father longed for the day when he would see his four beautiful daughters and son again and penned these words. “And Lord haste the day when the faith will be sight, the clouds will be rolled back as a scroll; the trumpet shall sound and the Lord shall descend, even so, it is well with my soul.” The hope of being reunited with their beloved children gave these parents the courage to continue on by living in faith." 

Their hearts were comforted and strengthened by the truth of the resurrection. For more than a century, the tragic story of one man has given hope to countless thousands who have lifted their voices to sing,  It Is Well With My Soul. When Spafford wrote the heart gripping words to the hymn, he was not insinuating that all things were going well in his life. In fact, Spafford's words were meant as a song of thanksgiving and praise to our God in the midst of deep grief and loss as a result of a series of tragedies that can only be imagined by most. Can you imagine the depth of pain and the grief that must have flooded over him. It could have been at that moment that the Holy Spirit inspired him to put in writing these words, “When sorrows like sea billows roll; whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say, it is well, it is well, with my soul.” Spafford, in spite of his anguish, could say along with the apostle Paul, “I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances” (Philippians 4:11). Would you or I be content if we were faced with a similar situation? Can you praise God in the midst of what you have going on right now? 

Today on this Worship Wednesday, I wish you peace, the kind of peace that Horatio Spafford had that surpassed all understanding. The peace that only comes when we trust God with every fiber of our being. Knowing deep within us that, no matter where we are in this life, no matter what answers we don't have, no matter how difficult the path ahead may be, we can sing and truly believe "It is well, it is well with my soul."

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To discover more about Quentin Bethea visit qbetheamusic.com