“It Is Well with My Soul”: Can You Say That?

EXPOSE | Taught to say, it is well

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

– Horatio Spafford, lawyer and Presbyterian church elder, from his hymn “It Is Well with My Soul”

EXPLORE | What does “it is well” mean?

No doubt you are familiar with the hymn. Sung the world over, it has ministered to millions. And probably why it resonates so deeply, is that for Horatio Spafford, the author, these lyrics are autobiographical.

Horatio wrote the lyrics to this hymn while on the SS Ville du Havre enroute to Europe in 1873. Two years earlier, in 1871, Spafford’s four-year-old son died of scarlet fever, and just a year after that, the Great Chicago Fire nearly wiped out all of his real estate investments.

Having to stay back to attend to some business, he was unable to join his wife and four daughters on this voyage crossing the Atlantic in 1873, but was to join them later. Tragically, the ship sank in the Atlantic Ocean. His wife survived, but his four daughters were among the 226 passengers who lost their lives.

Despite the years of tragedy he and his wife had endured, these lyrics are a testament to his faith and trust in God. It is this idea that even in the midst of great loss and sorrow, we can find peace and comfort knowing that God is sovereign and that He cares deeply for His children.

Marshall Segal, writer and managing editor at Desiring God, asks the question that most likely comes to mind for most of us when experiencing this song: “It is well? What could anchor the mind and heart of a man in tragedies like these and free him to sing “well” when everything he had was lost?”

It begs the question, What does it mean for it to be ‘well with my soul’?

The song is anchored and begins by focusing on the word peace: “when peace like a river.”

“Even though peace is not mentioned that much more in the song, it is really a song about having peace within your soul.”  

Susie Hawkins presented this series of messages at Focus–a Bible study luncheon for working women in downtown Dallas at First Baptist Church, Dallas.

The Hebrew word for Peace is “shalom”. If our current understanding of the word “peace” simply refers to being without chaos or free of strife, we really don’t share the understanding the Israelites had of the concept of shalom. The biblical concept of peace is much larger than just a harmonious existence.

According to the Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology, ‘peace’ “rests heavily on the Hebrew root slm, which means “to be complete” or “to be sound.”” With this as a foundation, we begin to get a sense for it’s depth and wholeness, which imparts the concept of living well. The Baker dictionary goes on to describe the nuances as “wholeness of life or body (i.e., health)” as well as “victory over one’s enemies or absence of war” and when used in a greeting or farewell, conveys a blessing to that end.

You may be familiar with the word, shalom. It is not just peace. It also brings a strong, strong connection with wholeness or wellness… It means I wish for you or I pray for you peace… that everything is in order in your life, that everything is as God intended it to be.

Susie Hawkins

“It is well… with my soul…” is a profound wholeness that cannot come from any external source. This is the peace of Christ: not as the world gives—or could even give. It is a gift of God that we could not possess otherwise.

The peace that God offers is not outwardly (Matthew 10:34-36), though let the reader understand that we should still find peace with others if possible (Romans 12:18). The peace that God grants to us is inwardly. It is this internal joy in which we can proclaim: it is well with my soul, repeated in the refrain after each verse.

Vince Wright, from The Berean Test, a website that analyzes hymns

We see this depicted in Scripture, with verses like:

“So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and
help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” – Isaiah 41:10

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let
your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” – John 14:27

“Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” – 1 Peter 5:7

Having this better understanding of what peace actually is, can make it more easily able for us to see what ‘not peace’, or, ‘it is not well with my soul’ looks like. Leslie Bennett, Director of Women’s Ministry for Revive Our Hearts, provides some indicators as to why we might be “in the winter of our soul”:

• A frenetic season of work, ministry or family life has come to a close and you crave stillness
• You continue to push forward with a task that used to give you joy but now feels only exhausting
• What used to facilitate your connection and growth with God now feels dry
• God has recently done some serious renovation in your heart and now it’s settling in, being put to the test

It may be that your soul is being neglected. If that is the case, Leslie’s article titled, Your Neglected Soul Cannot Fix Itself, includes a quote from Del Fehsenfeld, Pastoral Services Director of Life Action Ministries, regarding the need to care for our soul: “The neglected soul won’t go away—it goes awry.”

EXECUTE | How you can say, “it is well with my soul”

The indicators Leslie provided could be setting off a couple of alarms regarding the “damage of soul negligence.” The good news is that we can be taught, as Horatio was, to say “it is well with my soul.”

Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say
It is well, it is well with my soul

Horatio Spafford, first stanza from his hymn “It Is Well with My Soul” (emphasis mine)

Indeed, God is quite committed to our being able to say it.

Sue Schlesman, author of Soulspeak: Praying Change into Unexpected Places, suggests several reasons why this hymn “still hits home today.” It would be hard for anyone to not, in some way, relate to what Horatio and his wife went through. Sue points to the fact that we all experience grief, struggle with the question of ‘why?’ and ‘how can I go on?’, and that we all need to find comfort.

Spafford could never have written this song from a place of affluence, although he had been blessed with much. He wrote it after years of heartache and loss… his strong faith pushes past the why and chooses to believe in God’s sovereign will. How he and Anna reacted to their loss revealed and bolstered their dependence on God’s comfort and peace… the song causes us to seek God for comfort. Perhaps we can follow the song itself and apply its truths to our daily lives.

Sue Schlesman, Crosswalk.com contributing writer and author of Soulspeak: Praying Change into Unexpected Places

In light of God’s intention for His leading, I want to highlight several considerations Leslie Bennett refers to that we can use to begin the process of caring for our souls.

We first want to join the author of Psalm 42:5 in asking ourselves a penetrating question: “Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me?” Sit with that thought for a while. What does God bring to mind that may be contributing to the “winter of your soul?”

Asking this question regularly will prevent us from drifting back out into the cold and is also what we offer to God in prayer. When we do, we allow the Spirit to lead us to the promises of God in His Word—and away from those things we’ve allowed to creep into our lives that may be the cause of our neglecting our souls.

Corella Roberts, in her article, Is Your Soul In a Spiritual Winter? offers additional spiritual disciplines, or practices as she prefers to call them, that encourages the necessary “thawing” to take place.

She first suggests a Sabbath. “Sabbath is for remembering, with thankfulness, what the Lord has given you already. Winter tempts us to bemoan our losses, while Sabbath encourages us to embrace the abundance that is already ours in Christ Jesus.” This is most likely where asking the question of Psalm 42:5 will lead us.

To benefit from this practice, we can’t overstate her next recommendation of separating ourselves, for a time, from anything that would keep you from talking honestly and listening intently, to God. It is during this time that she suggests “wordless prayers.” She says that God is “not impressed with your words, but He adores your trusting gaze. Use your imagination to take you into the throne room, onto Jesus’ lap like a child, or into a favorite Bible story and simply be there with Him.”

There is reason for hope—always. While the first part of Psalm 42:5 begins with facing the reality of the condition of our soul, it finishes with what we need to do about it: “Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God” (Ps. 42:1–2, 5–6). The Psalmist, while dealing honestly with the condition of his soul, was able to conclude ‘it is well with my soul’.

Trust God to teach you to say “it is well with my soul”—and mean it.

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“Streams in the Desert provides a river of wisdom, encouragement, and inspiration to weary travelers.”

Life brings seasons of heartache, loss, and moments that test our strength. It is during these times that we long for comfort and a clear sense of God’s presence. Streams in the Desert flows with inspiration, reassurance, and encouragement, offering a sanctuary of hope for the weary soul.

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Further reading:

Reasons why the classic hymn It Is Well with My Soul still hits home today
God’s comfort: it is well with my soul
It is well with my soul Bible verses
Horatio Spafford, it is well with my soul
Is your in a spiritual winter
Your neglected soul cannot fix itself
Desiring God: It is well
Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology: Peace

Photo by Mateus Guimarães on Unsplash

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