The Story of Horatio Spafford and "It is Well with My Soul"

My Grandma B. passed away 2 weeks ago; on 9/26/09 we held a memorial service for her. My dad, brother, and I performed this hymn. Below are the comments I had prepared for the performance.

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I desired that we play this hymn today for you all, in memory of Grandma B, b/c it holds deep significance for me when we ponder our place in this world and in eternity. If you are not familiar, "It is Well" was a hymn penned by a man named Horatio Spafford. Spafford was a very successful attorney in Chicago in the 1800's. He had considerable fortune in real estate, and he had a loving wife and 4 little girls. But tragedy first struck him in 1871 when the great Chicago fire swept through the city and destroyed his real estate holdings, which constituted most of his personal wealth.

In need of a break and to recharge his batteries, Spafford decided to take his family to Europe in 1873 to visit with his friend DL Moody, he of the Moody Bible Institute. However, detained by business, Spafford was held back, and instead sent his wife and 4 daughters on ahead of him to Europe. They set out on the steamship S.S. Ville du Havre. Unfortunately, on Nov. 22, 1873, tragedy struck Spafford again. While traversing the Atlantic, the steamship struck an iron sailing vessel, and over 200 people, including all four of Spafford's daughters, died at sea. Only his wife survived the tragedy. Upon reaching England, she sent home a telegram that said on it, "Saved alone."

Overcome with grief, but wanting to rejoin his wife, Spafford set out for England. And as he crossed the place where the steamship had sunk, moved by God's mercy and the text found in 2 Kings 4, he penned the words to this hymn - "It is Well."

So the question that the hymn poses is this - how can a man who has lost his fortune and his four little girls, in a moment of clarity, possibly utter the words "It is Well with my soul?" How is that possible?

The answer, I believe, is twofold.

1) He had a heavenly perspective on earthly riches. If all things truly came from God, then the wealth he had on earth was going to be fleeting anyway. The treasures he had stored on ahead in heaven would surpass any of it.

2) He had a heavenly perspective on the fate of man's soul. He had a supreme faith and confidence that, even though he had lost his little girls while on this early coil, that he knew that one day he would see them again. How could Spafford know this? Because he had a Lord who is mighty to save, and that though his daughters' bodies had perished in the sea, their souls were secure in heaven. And that one day he would see them again.

So I posit to you, that is the only way that a man who has lost almost everything can still say, "It is well." Because Spafford was no fool - he was willing to give up what he knew that he could not keep, because he had gained something he would never lose.