It is Well with my Soul

This hymn was written by a Chicago lawyer, Horatio G. Spafford. You might think to write a worship song titled,
'It is well with my soul', you would indeed have to be a rich, successful Chicago lawyer. But the words,
"When sorrows like sea billows roll ... It is well with my soul”, were not written during the happiest period of
Spafford's life. On the contrary, they came from a man who had suffered almost unimaginable personal tragedy.

Horatio G. Spafford and his wife, Anna, were pretty well-known in 1860’s Chicago. And this was not just because
of Horatio's legal career and business endeavors. The Spaffords were also prominent supporters and close
friends of D.L. Moody, the famous preacher. In 1870, however, things started to go wrong. The Spaffords' only
son was killed by scarlet fever at the age of four. A year later, it was fire rather than fever that struck. Horatio
had invested heavily in real estate on the shores of Lake Michigan. In 1871, every one of these holdings was
wiped out by the great Chicago Fire.

Aware of the toll that these disasters had taken on the family, Horatio decided to take his wife and four
daughters on a holiday to England. And, not only did they need the rest -- DL Moody needed the help. He was
traveling around Britain on one of his great evangelistic campaigns. Horatio and Anna planned to join Moody in
late 1873. And so, the Spaffords traveled to New York in November, from where they were to catch the French
steamer 'Ville de Havre' across the Atlantic. Yet just before they set sail, a last-minute business development
forced Horatio to delay. Not wanting to ruin the family holiday, Spafford persuaded his family to go as planned.
He would follow on later. With this decided, Anna and her four daughters sailed East to Europe while Spafford
returned West to Chicago. Just nine days later, Spafford received a telegram from his wife in Wales. It read:
"Saved alone."

On November 2nd 1873, the 'Ville de Havre' had collided with 'The Lochearn', an English vessel. It sank in only
12 minutes, claiming the lives of 226 people. Anna Spafford had stood bravely on the deck, with her daughters
Annie, Maggie, Bessie and Tanetta clinging desperately to her. Her last memory had been of her baby being
torn violently from her arms by the force of the waters. Anna was only saved from the fate of her daughters by a
plank which floated beneath her unconscious body and propped her up. When the survivors of the wreck had
been rescued, Mrs. Spafford's first reaction was one of complete despair. Then she heard a voice speak to her,
"You were spared for a purpose." And she immediately recalled the words of a friend, "It's easy to be grateful
and good when you have so much, but take care that you are not a fair-weather friend to God."

Upon hearing the terrible news, Horatio Spafford boarded the next ship out of New York to join his bereaved
wife. Bertha Spafford (the fifth daughter of Horatio and Anna born later) explained that during her father's
voyage, the captain of the ship had called him to the bridge. "A careful reckoning has been made", he said, "and
I believe we are now passing the place where the de Havre was wrecked. The water is three miles deep." Horatio
then returned to his cabin and penned the lyrics of his great hymn.

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

It would be very difficult for any of us to predict how we would react under circumstances similar to those
experienced by the Spaffords. But we do know that the God who sustained them -would also sustain us.

Imagine yourself on a 747 jetliner, 35,000 feet in the air, and the word came from the Captain, "We are in trouble, and the aircraft is going down. Prepare yourself for a crash landing." You are sitting there with one and a half minutes to live. Could you sing the song that the choir sang a moment ago with the assurance that they sang it?
You are off by yourself somewhere and there is a severe pain in your chest and your breath leaves you. Death will be upon you in 90 seconds. What would you do?

Maybe a different proposition - Some one slips up behind you in the service this morning and whispers in your ear, "You have an emergency telephone call." You leave the service and go to the phone. The voice on the other end tells you that your home is burning down at this very moment.
Maybe when you get to work tomorrow morning the boss calls you in and says, "We are making some changes in the company and our plans no longer include your services. Here is your final paycheck."
The doctor calls you and tells you that the tests he ran last week have the worst possible news.

1.    Let me ask you "Is it well with your soul" this morning? Not just a “How ya doin” but really……..Are you absolutely confident that everything is all right?

2.    Is it well with others?  Is our attitude right? Our motives?

3.    Our actions? Our reactions? Our concerns and compassion's?

4.    Is everything well?

     What matters at the end of the day…

What matters at the end of the week…

What matters at the end of this trial…

What matters even if no one else goes with me is this...

      Is it well in my soul?

 Deuteronomy 6:18
And you shall do what is right and good in the sight of the LORD, that it may be well with you,