I get a lot of strength and comfort from reading the word that I try to live my life by, especially when things are not going the way that I want, and things get a little rocky.  I find a lot of comfort in versus like (Matt 6:25-34), but I also get a lot of comfort and strength from many of the hymns that we sing at church.  I even find myself meditating on the words of some of these hymns during the week.  However, the one hymn that is my favorite and that I turn to on those reeeeeelly bad days.  You know those days that nothing seems to go right, and just want to throw up your hands and give up, is a hymn titled “It is Well With My Soul”.  This hymn just says it all for me, and gives me inner peace, no matter what is going on in my life, personal or business.  As much as this hymn is a source of peace for me, the story of how it came to be written has also become a resource for me to draw strength from.

“Peace Like A River”  was written by Horatio Spafford, a Chicago businessman who had a very successful law practice, had invested large sums of money in downtown Chicago real estate market, and was a prominent church leader in the Presbyterian Church.  Spafford had everything going for him, he had the type of life that most people dream about.  But in 1871 tragedy struck his life and tested his trust and faith in God.  Spafford had five children, four girls and one boy.  In early 1871 the first of two tragedies struck, Spafford lost their only son.  This tragedy was soon followed by a second.  Spafford was a very wealthy businessman as I mentioned before, who had invested much of his money into the downtown Chicago real estate market.  On October of 1871 downtown Chicago was destroyed by what has become to be known as the “Great Chicago Fire”.  Because of his enormous investment in downtown Chicago property, Spafford lost huge sums of money and was ruined financially.  This fire not only destroyed most of the building in the downtown Chicago area, it also took a lot of lives.  When the fire had finally been put out, 300 people were dead and 100,000 were left homeless.  Despite these two tragic losses in his life, Spafford and his Norwegian-born wife, Anna, dedicated themselves for two years to helping those who had lost there homes and were ruined by the fire.

The tragedy in Spafford’s life would not stop here.  After two years of dedicating himself to helping others, Spafford and his family decided to take a much needed vacation.  They decided to go to England along with their good friend Dwight Moody (founder of Moody Bible Institute) and Ira Sankey on one of their evangelistic campaigns in Europe. The Spafford’s and their four daughters booked passage on the steamship called the Ville de Havre, which was sailing from New York to England.  However, a problem came up in Spafford’s business as they were about to sail.  Not wanting his family to have to wait for him, he told his wife and daughters to go ahead and that he would to join them later. For some reason that he was unable to explain, at the last moment he changed their stateroom from amidships to near the bow of the vessel.  Anna and the girls boarded the ship and sailed for England, but when their ship reached the coast of Newfoundland, the Ville de Havre collided with an English sailing ship the Loch Earn.  The Lech Earn ripped a massive hole amidships in the hull of the Ville de Havre. So large was the hole that the Ville de Haver sank to the bottom of the frigid Atlantic Ocean within 20 minutes. Had Anna and the four girls been in their original stateroom, they all would have been killed instantly.  As it was, Anna and the four little girls were cast into the sea. She frantically tried to save her daughters, she even managed to briefly grasp the hem of one of their nightgowns, but she slipped away from her grip and was never found again.  Anna was later found floating unconscious on a piece of wreckage and was rescued.  Of the hundreds of people aboard, only forty-seven were rescued. 

It was ten days before the survivors of the shipwreck were brought to safety in Cardiff, Wales, and were able to finally contact anyone.  As soon as she landed in Cardiff, Anna sent a telegram to her anxious awaiting husband.  It contained only two works “Saved alone”.  Spafford immediately boarded the next available ship sailing for Europe.  As he was in route, the captain of the ship he was sailing on called him to the bridge.  Pointing to a chart, the captain told him that they were just passing the spot where the Ville de Havre had gone down. As Horatio walked the deck in his sorrow, his faith was all that kept him together.  But instead of being overtaken by grief and sorrow, he was overtaken by a feeling of peacefulness.  As he watched the waves rolling on the ocean he recalled the words of Isaiah 66:12, "For thus says the Lord, I will extend peace to her like a river..." and he wrote the words to what has become my favorite hymn.

It Is Well With My Soul

Horatio G. Spafford                       Phillip P. Bliss 

When peace, like a river, attendeth my way, 
When sorrows like sea billows roll; 
Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say, 
It is well, it is well, with my soul. 

Chorus

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

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. 

Chorus

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! 

Chorus

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. 

Chorus

I would like to close this Post by posing a few.  How many of us could deal with our grief the way that Horatio Spafford did?  How many of us when faced with what he had just been through, could turn around and say that we were at "Peace Like A River"?  How many of us in a time like this would praise God for taking away all of our sins, and praise him for nailing them to a cross?  How many of us in this time of grief and sorrow would ask him to haste his return so that we could look upon Him whom we have put all our trust and faith in?  

I hope that by sharing this with you that you to can find the peace, comfort, and strength that I have found from the words that Horatio Spafford penned.  The type of peace, comfort, and strength that will also allow you in times of your deepest troubles to say "it is well with my soul".

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Info about the author: George Souto is a Loan Officer who can assist you with all your FHA, CHFA, and Conventional mortgage needs in Connecticut. George resides in Middlesex County which includes Middletown, Middlefield, Durham, Cromwell, Portland, Higganum, Haddam, East Haddam, Chester, Deep River, and Essex. George can be contacted at (860) 573-1308 or gsouto@mccuemortgage.com