WESTLAND – I can remember as a young child listening to the lyrics of the song “It is well with my Soul” by Horatio Spafford, being sung by my grandmother in worship service and trying to understand exactly what the words meant.
Now that I am an adult this is one of my all-time favorite hymns to listen to when I just need some reassurance from the Lord. Around this time of the year the holidays are hard for some people dealing with grief, loss, and loneliness. With God we will never be alone in this world. God is with us through all our life’s journey.
Psalm 46:1-3 says, “God is our refuge and strength, a helper who is always found in times of trouble. Therefore, we will not be afraid, though the earth trembles and the mountains topple into the depths of the seas, though its waters roar and foams and the mountains quake with its turmoil.”
This scripture gives us reassurance that no matter what we are going through, we must go to the Lord with it. Trying to handle our problems on our own won’t get us anywhere, but further and further in a hole. When we feel sad from the loss of a loved one the Lord will ease all your pain.
I am not saying that the pain will go away over night, but he will be there for your every need. Before we can hear the sweet words from the Lord we must start with prayer. You can start like this… Lord, help me to be more intentional when it comes to being in your word! Lord, help me to build a closer relationship with you! Romans 8:28 says “We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.” CSB
Some of us may be dealing with loneliness at this time of the year. Not all of us have large families, or families that we have close relationships with that we could be around for the holidays. As Christians we should be those open arms for people that you know who would benefit from being around you and your family for the holiday.
If the holiday is over it's okay to open your home to invite someone over for a meal or for coffee from time to time. The Lord blesses us with things so that we can share them with others, not to hold everything to ourselves. Sometimes even if you offer a phone call just to chat with someone who lives alone, it may be just as good as an invite to your home.
When I wake up in the morning, I ask the Lord how can I be used today? That is a great way for us all to start our day. Everyday my hope is to be more and more like Jesus so that when the storms come, I can say, “It is well with my Soul.”
The writer wrote this song because he lost his whole family in a short period of time. He couldn’t see the big picture at the current moment, but he knew that it would be okay because of his trust in God.
What do you do in trying circumstances? Can we say “it is well with my soul”l when everything is going badly? I know that God has a purpose for all our lives, and we must trust him in everything that we do.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jessica Wimberly is the 1st Lady of One Mission Church in Westland Michigan. Jessica and Pastor Antonio have 4 children, Savanah 18, Antonio ll 11, Alexandria 1, and Anthony 7 months. Jessica is the Director of the Children’s Ministry, Women’s Ministry, and assists with the Media Ministry at One Mission Church. A nurse by profession, loves art and spending lots of time with her family. Outside of family time, she enjoys arts and crafts, writing, fellowship with her church family, and helping seniors in the community.
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