There’s something special about those times of trials that are filled with pain and sorrow. There’s something unique about the way our world gets turned upside down, and how our everyday life begins to fall apart. Just like how there’s great beauty in seasons like Spring or Summer, there is likewise also remarkable beauty in Winter, despite how it seems so cold and desolate.
It’s only during those seasons of spiritual winter, in which we face our hardest times, that we can hear the true sound of songs like “It is Well With My Soul.” The fragrance of such a song is hidden from those who do not know anguish, but to those who are well acquainted with sorrow, the music takes on new colour and comes alive.
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
Without understanding sorrow, you would not appreciate such a song. Likewise, without going through times of anguish, you would not learn to appreciate many of the hidden joys in life. There is great value in suffering, so much so that we might not fully comprehend it. Yet, there is comfort in knowing that pain has glorious meaning in God’s eyes. Hebrews 2:10 — In bringing many sons to glory, it was fitting for God, for whom and through whom all things exist, to make the author of their salvation perfect through suffering.
Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come
Let this blest assurance control
That Christ has regarded my helpless estate
And has shed His own blood for my soul
Jesus Himself, being the man of sorrows, knew more suffering than we could ever dare to imagine. Yet despite knowing how great a pain He would have to suffer, He submitted Himself to it, knowing that it was the will of God. He did not flee, nor did he question the Father, because He knew that it was for good, and that God had a purpose for his pain.
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
Because of what Jesus did on the Cross, and the salvation that is open to us through the Gospel, we can have hope no matter the circumstance. The comfort that we have in God’s abundant grace can lift us and bring us to praise the Lord, even in our deepest mourning. In the assurance that we have in Christ, no worldly grief can take away our joy. In fact, the greater our worldly sorrow is, the more focused we become on the things that truly matter. The darker our lives become, the brighter the light of the Gospel shines.
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
As Christians who are certain in Christ’s victory, worldly affliction serves also to give us new longing for heaven to come, of which we know that God will make all things new. We are reminded in suffering that this is not our home, and that blissful eternity with our loving Father awaits. Let us be eager for the day in which, “He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” (Revelation 21:4)
It is well (it is well)
With my soul (with my soul)
It is well, it is well with my soul
God uses pain and suffering to bring us to Him. Through our hardest times, He teaches us, disciplines us, humbles us, and helps us focus on the things that truly matter. When we trust that “in all things God works for the good of those who love him” (Romans 8:28), all will be well with our souls.
“God permits what He hates to accomplish what He loves” — Joni Eareckson Tada
