I know a lot of you guys do all those really neat posts weekly, like the Friday Funny’s and Monday musings, etc etc. so I was trying to think of something that might be interesting yet a theme that I can stick to every week. (The catchy weekly title :) so on Sunday afternoon I decided I would blog about Songs. Songs that have been on my heart, hymns that have such a wonderful special meanings, or other music/lyrics that have a biblical message! So I hope you enjoy these posts. This first song I am going to start with has been one of my favorites, and I'm actually doing a speech on this, so some of this is bits and pieces of my speech. But this song has some powerful words, and the testimony of the writer just clenches my heart. So here it is
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It Is Well With My Soul- some of you may or may not have heard this hymn, and you may or may not know the story behind it. So I am going to share it with you.
Horatio Spafford lived in the mid 1800's I guess you could say life was pretty good for him. Living in Chicago, with his wife Anna and 5 children Annie, Maggie, Betsey, Tanetta, and Horatio Jr. Spafford ran a very successful law practice, and had invested much of his wealth in the real estate. But Spafford could not see the dark and heavy storm clouds that were gathering on his life's horizon, tragedy had marked her sights on this man, Spafford stood in the cross hairs of sorrows scope.
As fast as a gale overtakes a ship on the ocean, the storm soon began to rage it’s furry on Horatio's life. It started with the death of his 4 year old son, (Horatio Jr.) due to scarlet fever. As you may imagine, the whole family was devastated. But this was only the beginning, not long following the death of their son; the Spafford's were one family of thousands that were affected by the great and terrible Chicago Fires. Losing all of their finances the Spafford's struggled to stay on their feet. while continuing to show others the Love of Christ. Now the climax of the storm is on her way. The tragic memories, of their son’s death, and the fires had sent Anna Spafford's health into a downward spiral. Hoping a vacation would help put the recollections of the past behind them; the Spafford's planed an extended trip to Europe. On the day they were to set sail, everything had been set in order, but unexpectedly a business emergency came up so that Mr. Spafford could not sail. Of course not wanting to disappoint his wife and daughters, He boarded his precious cargo on the Ville du Havre planning to follow them as soon as he could in another ship. Now imagine the emotions that swept through Spafford’s life, the grip of sorrow that pierced his very soul, when he received the telegram “Saved Alone” ---- his 4 precious daughters, drowned in the Sea. The Ville du Havre never made it to its destination. She had been hit by a British iron ship, and split in to; casting the majority of her occupants into the icy waves. Mrs. Spafford was one of the very few people pulled from icy grip of death. Mr. Spafford boarded a ship immediately to go and be with his wife. And this is the part of the story that AMAZES me. When sailing over
the exact place where his daughters drowned, Spafford penned the song “
It Is Well With My Soul” his decision was made. Spafford chose to trust the Lord no matter what. Through all the heartache and tears, Spafford chose to praise the Lord. Here’s a closer look at the words that Spafford penned.
(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" God wants to bless us with his peace no matter what our situation is. God doesn’t promise us, that as a Christian life will be a bed of roses, but He promises us that he will be with us through those trials, and tribulations.
~Isaiah 43:2-3~ when thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee. For I am the Lord they God, the Holy One of Isreal, they Savior” we must remember that, whenever those storm clouds gather over our path, we can have Gods perfect peace, he will never leave us.
(Verse 2)
"Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come, Let this blest assurance control, That Christ has regarded my helpless estate and hath shed his own blood for my soul" I believe 1Peter 5:7 pretty much sums up this verse -
Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you. (I would write more about this verse, but im trying to keep this from being 5 pages long ;)
(Verse 3)
"My sin O the bliss of this glorious thought, My sin not in part but in whole, Is nailed to the cross and I bear it no more. Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul" this is probably my favorite verse. How wonderful it is to know that because of what Jesus Did for us, our sin is COMPLETELY forgotten!!!!!!! Isn’t that the most wonderfulest thing in the whole entire world? (sorry I know, -bad grammar- but I don’t care) Jesus Christ loves me so much that he came to die for me! His blood covers my sin, from the past, the present, and into the future! When Satan tempts me to despair, Jesus Christ stands right beside me, and reminds me that his blood is still there. What a wonderful savior!
(Verse 4)
"And Lord haste the day when my 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" this is an exciting verse. But as I read it, I wonder – how in the world could Spafford write this verse? How could he stand on the deck of that ship, right on top of where, the angry sea swallowed all of his daughters, and be excited about Jesus Christ coming back? Then I realized, he wasn’t relying on his own strength, there’s no way a human being could do it, but Spafford was resting in Gods field of grace. Spafford knew that because Jesus Christ is risen,
we can have hope. That’s what the Lord wants to give us, if we let him. He wants to provide us with his precious unlimited amount of hope. When we feel like we are drowning in trails, and tribulations God wants us to rest in his field of grace, it is open to all.
So what is our situation right now? It is so easy to Praise the Lord, and thank him for his goodness when were on top of a mountain, when everything is going good. But what about down in the valley, during a storm? When sorrows like sea billows roll. Do we keep our focus on our Savior? Or do we blame God for the circumstances? Are we able to rely on God’s grace and claim his peace so that we can say in our lives, no matter what the trail, or tribulation “it is well with my soul”?
Ok sorry! I promise that future
“Sunday Songs” will not be this long. But I hope you have enjoyed this post, and that it encourages your heart. God has taught me so much through the example of Horatio Spafford and the song he wrote. Praise the Lord for his goodness.
