By Danny Minton

We never know how we will react when faced with trauma in our lives. Sometimes we take it in stride and move on, while at other times we find it challenging to handle. I have faced things in my life both ways. I’m reminded of an old hymn that H.G. Spafford wrote. It was a hymn written after several major traumas in Spafford’s life. The first was in 1870 when his 4-year-old son died of scarlet fever. Then the Great Chicago Fire of October 1871 ruined him financially. Remaining in Chicago on business in 1873, he decided to take his family on a trip to Europe aboard the S.S. Ville du Havre. Due to business, he sent his wife and four daughters, promising to join them later. 

On November 22, 1873, while crossing the Atlantic, all four of Spafford’s daughters drowned when their ship was involved in a collision with another ship. Spafford’s wife, Anna, survived and sent him the now-famous telegram, “Saved alone.” Several weeks later, as Spafford’s own ship passed near the spot where his daughters died, the Holy Spirit inspired these words. They speak to the eternal hope that all believers have, no matter what pain and grief we face on earth.

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.

Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,
Let this blest assurance control,
That Christ hath regarded my helpless estate,
And hath shed His own blood for my soul.

But, Lord, ’tis for Thee, for Thy coming we wait,
The sky, not the grave, is our goal;
Oh trump of the angel! Oh, voice of the Lord!
Blessed hope, blessed rest of my soul!

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.

The Psalmist wrote in Psalm 46 how he urges those who know God to look to Him in times of trouble. Some of the thoughts he shared remind us that God is our refuge and source of strength. He writes:

Psalm 46:1-7 (NIV2011)
¹ God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.
² Therefore, we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
³ though its waters roar and foam, and the mountains quake with their surging.
⁴ There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells.
⁵ God is within her; she will not fall; God will help her at break of day.
⁶ Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall; he lifts his voice, the earth melts.
⁷ The LORD Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress.

He then closes with the reminder:

Psalm 46:10 (NIV2011)
¹⁰ He says, “Be still, and know that I am God;

When we find ourselves in life’s low points, we should learn to look to God for strength. Maybe it’s illness or death, or possibly weariness from caring for those who depend on us. God is our refuge and fortress. It is He that we turn to when there is pain in our hearts, it is He whom we go to when we don’t feel like we can go on anymore.

Again, he tells us, “Be still and know that I am God.” If we stop and take the time to listen to and for Him, we will hear His voice. Oh, it won’t be out loud, but through His Spirit, who gives us that inner peace to survive whatever we face.

In 1873, when Horatio Spafford penned those words where he had lost his daughters, he had to have felt the peace of God in his heart. When the hymn was set to music in 1876, he gave those who trust in God a gift. It was a gift to remember that no matter where we are or what we are going through, God will give us the strength to survive. A hymn written in the depths of grief became a hymn of comfort for generations to come. My prayer for you is that, when you are down, when you are troubled, when everything seems hopeless, find a place to sit quietly, be still, and know that your God is there beside you, and then feel, “It is well with my soul.”

Danny Minton is a former Elder and minister at Southern Hills Church of Christ