21 November 2009

Fight For Joy






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 Spfford



On this day in 1873, an iron sailing vessel collided with the Ville du Havre steamship in the waters of the Atlantic. Among the 246 people who perished were four daughters of Chicago lawyer, Horatio Spafford. Mercifully, his wife, Anna, survived. Anna and Horatio had lost their four year old son to scarlet fever just two years earlier. And that same year the Great Chicago Fire of 1871 plunged him into financial ruin.

While sailing the Atlantic to reunite with Anna after the death of their daughters, he penned the beloved hymn It Is Well With My Soul as the ship passed the spot of the devastating accident.

There is more to Horatio's story.

From Mars Hill:




2 comments:

Unknown said...

Thanks for sharing this, I wonder how his wife faired through all of this.
How tragic.

Trina said...

I always think of his story every time we sing this hymn. Though the story was tragic his life continues to minister to generation after generation. Thanks for the reminder.