The hearing and singing of the hymn, It Is Well With My Soul, has touched and renewed my heart over and over again. What joy to be able to lift these words up to our Lord having the very truth of them penetrate our spirit!
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!
As our lives bring struggles and challenges, we often cannot see beyond what human eyes will allow. Yet to know Him is to know that He walks with us through it all.
“When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, nor shall the flames scorch you. For I am the Lord, you God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.” Isaiah 43:2-3.
It is because of our Savior that our hearts and voices can swell above life’s clamor with the profoundness that indeed “It is well, it is well with my soul!”
Though written in 1873; today, almost 150 years later, we can still find more than 150 recordings on YouTube with various artists, choirs, families, and groups expressing their own hearts with renditions of this well-loved hymn.
One of my personal favorites is the attached Mormon Tabernacle Choir whose Christmas rendition includes a history of the grave circumstances in which these words were originally penned. Through music and drama, they convey the story of the author’s family including their lives beyond the origin of this hymn. What a blessing and example the Spafford family showed in living the lyrics!
It Is Well With My Soul
Original words by Horatio G. Spafford 1873
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.
Refrain:
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 hath regarded my helpless estate,
And hath shed His own blood for my soul.
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!
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.
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 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.
While there are many ‘tweeked’ versions of this hymn available, my all-time favorite and most familiar version is the one I grew up with from The Apostolic Christian Hymnal (aka the Zion’s Harp or ‘Heft’ #325)
When Peace in My Savior My Soul Overflows
When peace in my Savior my soul overflows
Though storm-winds may threaten me hard,
My heart in its faith this glad song ever knows:
It is well with my soul in the Lord.
It is well (It is well) with my soul (with my soul)
It is well with my soul in the Lord!
When Satan would seek me, and fearful I’d be,
Then glows like a star, this true Word:
My Jesus has all things perfected for me:
I am pure through the blood of my Lord.
I am pure (I am pure) through the blood (through the blood)
I am pure through the blood of my Lord!
My burden of sin did the Lamb, Jesus, bear;
My sin He will no more regard;
He died on the cross, shed His blood for me there;
O my soul, praise the Lord, praise the Lord!
O my soul (O my soul), praise the Lord (praise the Lord),
O my soul, praise the Lord, praise the Lord!
Now live I in Jesus for Jesus alone,
My guiding star is His true Word.
In Him I have peace, full redemption I own,
Now my soul blessed is in the Lord!
Now my soul (Now my soul) blessed is (blessed is),
Now my soul blessed is in the Lord!