There are sorrows that come into our lives that we don’t understand. There are prayers which God in His Wisdom does not answer in the manner we have asked; yet, we know that He does hear our cries and in the center of what we may see as inconceivable sorrow–His plan is one of love. Lindsey, I love you and my prayers for God’s comforting arms to embrace you and your family are constant through this.
Psalm 34: (NASB) 18 The Lord is near to the brokenhearted And saves those who are [d]crushed in spirit.
Following a long period of sorrow, one day these words began to flow from my pen and I hope you find in them the comfort you need.
T o GOD-MY LOVE, MY HOPE, MY JOY
My life-so filled with hopes and dreams
Lay shattered at Your feet
So many tears, so many pains
I’d laid before Thy seat
Can I look upon Your face of love
And question what You’ve done?
For You have been my only hope
My only morning sun
You’ve seen my heart when crushed with pain
Your hands have held it tight
When I have been so weak, so frail
You’ve shown Your strength, Your might
You’ve held me close within Your arms
When darkness filled my night
And when I could not see my way
Your eyes, they gave me sight
I lay my life within Your hands
That You may heal my soul
And keep my eyes upon You Lord
That I may reach Your goal
Shine forth Thy grace, Thy mercy Lord
And let me be Thy light
That all may see Your eyes of love
The blind, they might have sight
Let not the sorrows, nor the pains
Bring bitterness within
And give me strength to walk this path
Protect my heart from sin
I lay my heart, my soul, my dreams
Before Thy throne of love
I lift my eyes to You, My God
And seek Your will above
Thou art the only one I need
To fill my heart with glee
It is Your face, my one true love
Tis all I need to see
So lift me up and hold me close
Reveal Thy love divine
That through the holes within my heart
A world might see You shine
And if the sorrows of my past
Can touch a wayward one
I thank you Lord for each dark path
That lead them to Your son
I praise You now from mountains high
For each dark path I’ve trod
Twas there I found Your heart, Your love
Twas there I found You God
What great and wondrous joy I know
Because You are my king
And though the path I cannot see
My heart will trust and sing
A song of praise unto You Lord
Who knows what’s best for me
You’ll hold my hand and lead me on
In darkness, I can see
Your love, Your help, Your guiding hand
Is all I’ll ever need
So hold me close unto Your path
For this is all I plead
I’ll skip with joy along this path
Though darkness may surround
Because I know You hold my hand
My feet will e’er touch ground
I cannot fall outside Your love
I cannot lose my way
I’ll hold my broken dreams once more
And see them real, one day
A song of praise unto You Lord
Who knows what’s best for me
You’ll hold my hand and lead me on
In darkness, I can see
Your love, Your help, Your guiding hand
Is all I’ll ever need
So hold me close unto Your path
For this is all I plead
When held tightly within the arms of God, you can truly feel that “All is well with your Soul” and find peace through what might seem a great tragedy. This knowledge was what allowed Horatio Gates Spafford to write the hymn “It is Well with my Soul.” He was a lawyer from Chicago who had planned a vacation with his family across the Atlantic to provide his family with comfort and hope following the tragedy that they had just endured. He had been financially ruined by the Great Chicago Fire in October, 1871. He sent his wife and four little girls, Annie, Maggie, Bessie, and baby Tanetta ahead and planned to join them that they might forget the loss that had just occurred in their lives and thus bring solace to his family. The ship, that his precious family was on, collided with another ship. His wife alone survived and sent him the telegram of the tragic news that his four daughters had drowned. He boarded another ship to join his wife as soon as possible. As his own ship crossed the Atlantic, it paused over the spot where his children had died and there he penned these famous words.
It Is Well With My Soul
by Horatio Gates Spafford
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.
Refrain: 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.
Refrain
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!
Refrain
For me, be it Christ, be it Christ hence to live:
If Jordan above me shall roll,
No pang shall be mine, for in death as in life
Thou wilt whisper Thy peace to my soul.
Refrain
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!
Blessèd hope, blessèd rest of my soul!
Refrain
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 song and the peace it proclaims in the midst of great sorrow could not have come from anyone except God through the Holy Spirit as He comforted this man. He was able to see the magnitude of God’s love for him and could thereby see these tragedies through God’s eyes. This is true peace, true joy, and true success. How many people have heard or sung this song and been comforted. A simple man filled with an unexplainable peace in the midst of tragedy will be remembered forever and continue to comfort many a broken heart because he was illumined by the Spirit to understood God’s love. There is no other way to find that kind of peace or joy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FSXzDiGpYZ8 (Preview)
New American Standard Bible (NASB)
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