“IT IS WELL WITH MY SOUL”
INTRO:
This past week on Thursday morning. I nearly died and I mean that! My defibrillator fired off knocking me unconscious to the floor and then fired again after I got up! I’ve had some heart issues & the Dr.'s implanted it a little over 5 yrs ago. It has never went off until the other day.
It was about 5:40 am when it fired off. I was scared to say the least! Since I'd felt no previous issues or complications that would precede the episode I began to consider that the device had malfunctioned. Frankly, I was hoping the device had malfunctioned! I texted one of my District Officials explaining what had happened & asked for prayer.
I didn't want to scare her but I'm not ashamed to say I was scared myself! I didn't want to be alone but I didn't want to scare her. I went to bed and got up. She came home from working at the church for a bit & I drove her back & finally told her at the church door. We went inside & the ladies there laid hands on me & prayed for me! Thinking the episode was over & I was OK it took some coaxing from Darla & the ladies for me to agree to go to the ER. As fear began to overwhelm me I started feeling a little emotional! In the back of my mind I was praying that all would be well and I could go home.
Tests were run, blood was taken, I was hooked up to wires from head to toe, monitors started whirring with my name on them, lines running across monitors jerking every time I moved or breathed, as well as a battery of questions to be answered.
Finally it was decided that I wasn't dying at that moment but obviously something had happened. The ER Team called the company who made the device & they sent a Technician out some 3 hours later. He interrogated the device & looked at me & stated that the device had not only "NOT" malfunctioned but had saved my life. His words were, "You're alive because of this device."
Pretty sobering words to hear in anybody's ears & heart. I began to think about my wife, my kids, family & grand kids. Yes, I did thank God, but not in all the earnestness you would think, surprisingly at least not at that moment. I guess was just dumbfounded by the whole episode. In fact it has taken me a few days to come to terms and face in my spirit what had happened and finally breakdown to pieces before God utterly speechless before him. Can't explain it other than I guess I didn't want to face what had happened!
I guess I didn't want to face it head on anymore than I had already been forced to face, but I came face to face with it again when I posted on Face Book what happened and during my initial feeble response to what happened and what God had done for me I started crying and fell apart before God at my desk as I began to realize in a stronger way just how close I had come to death! DEATH STARED ME IN THE FACE AND GOD STARED IT DOWN!
I saw a post, under mine, of a trio singing "It Is Well With My Soul!"
It was written by Horatio Spafford a wealthy Chicago lawyer who lived in the mid 1800's with a thriving legal practice, a beautiful home, a wife, four daughters and a son. He was a devout Christian and faithful student of the Scriptures. His circle of friends included Dwight L. Moody, Ira Sankey and various other well-known Christians of the day.
At the very height of his financial & professional success, Horatio & his wife Anna suffered the tragic loss of their young son. Shortly thereafter on October 8, 1871, the Great Chicago Fire destroyed almost every real estate investment that Spafford had.
In 1873, Spafford scheduled a boat trip to Europe in order to give his wife & daughters a much needed vacation and time to recover from the tragedy. He also went to join Moody and Sankey on an evangelistic campaign in England. Spafford sent his wife & daughters ahead of him while he remained in Chicago to take care of some unexpected last minute business. Several days later he received notice that his family's ship had encountered a collision. All four of his daughters drowned; only his wife had survived.
With a heavy heart, Spafford boarded a boat that would take him to his grieving Anna in England. It was on this trip that he penned those now famous words,
"WHEN SORROWS LIKE THE SEA BILLOWS ROLL; IT IS WELL WITH MY SOUL, IT IS WELL WITH MY SOUL."
For more than a century, the tragic story of one man has given hope to countless thousands who have lifted their voices to sing, It Is Well With My Soul. Somewhere between Thursday morning and yesterday afternoon I was reminded that "IT IS WELL WITH MY SOUL!" With that in mind I couldn't help but zero in on that subject this morning for you!
Folk, let me tell you something! A life threatening moment can make you think more soberly than you have in a long time! When Horatio Spafford penned those immortal words he was facing a life threatening and changing moment like he'd never faced in his life! He was alone on the deck of a ship looking out at the waters that had claimed his precious daughters and his wife by herself in England waiting on him.
How his heart must have broken a 1000 X on that lonely trip to his wife's side! "What am I going to say to her?" he must have thot! His heart must have cried out to God for comfort and for words of comfort and then the Holy Spirit must have softly whispered to him something like, "With all of this what of your soul? What of your God? What of your future?" He must have looked out over those billowing seas and waves thinking and taking comfort, "IT IS WELL WITH MY SOUL!"
It wasn't till yesterday afternoon I began to mull over in my mind thinking about what could have been and heard this song and my soul rejoiced as I was reminded "IT IS WELL WITH MY SOUL!"
What is it that makes it "WELL WITH MY SOUL!"
Deut. 31:6 says,
"Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them (your enemies), for the Lord your God goes with you; He will never leave or forsake you."
Horatio Spafford must have heard in the midst of his sorrow & pain from the Holy Spirit that "THE LORD YOUR GOD IS WITH YOU!" FOLK, I RATHER HAVE THE LORD GOD WITH ME & ON MY SIDE MORE THAN ANYTHING IN MY LIFE!
In the midst of MY FEAR, In the midst of MY SORROW, in the midst of MY DIFFICULTIES, in the midst of MY BATTLES, In the midst of MY STORMS, in the midst of MY CONFUSION, in the midst of MY ROLLING BILLOWS OF DESPAIR AND DESPERATION I NEED MY GOD AND MY LORD BY MY SIDE!
I guess my sermon this morning is one of "ENCOURAGEMENT & INSPIRATION" for you have to know in your heart, you have to know in your spirit "IT IS WELL WITH MY SOUL!" When you know that then you know that you can face anything in life because it is not only "WELL WITH YOUR SOUL" but He has spoken immortal words of encouragement in Deut. 31:6!
Saying...
"Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them (your enemies), for the Lord your God goes with you; He will never leave or forsake you."
Break it down for a moment!
He says to us..."BE STRONG AND COURAGEOUS..." Folk, it's a decision to be made by every single one of us! We will all face terrors in the night, in the day, in our spirits, in our lives but we have to make the decision to be "STRONG & COURAGEOUS!"
Will it be easy? OF COURSE NOT! It's never easy! Do you think it was easy for Jesus on the Via Delarosa while carrying that cross, while be spit upon by the very people he had earlier healed, while being whipped and beat, while being nailed to that cross,? I don't think so! But He didn't quite or give in or give up!
There will always be a battle, there will always be an enemy in this life but you will NEVER BE ALONE or WITHOUT GOD! In that you can take "COURAGE & STRENGTH!"
He says to us... "DO NOT BE AFRAID OR TERRIFIED BECAUSE OF THEM..." You're going to have enemies! Just face it! Some of them will be wolves in sheep's clothing, some of them will have been your friends, some of them will be strangers, some of them you may never see but just know that you will have enemies!
An old Chinese proverb says "YOU CAN JUDGE THE WORTH OF A PERSON BY HIS ENEMIES!" I like that! If the enemy of your soul is happy with where you are with God then something is wrong with where you are with God!
If you're not a threat or posing a threat to him then something is wrong! An "ENEMY" by definition is someone to be "DEFEATED!" He says to us "BE STRONG AND TAKE COURAGE! DO NOT E AFRAID OR TERRIFIED BECAUSE OF THEM!"
Remember I John 4:4 says...
"Greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world." And that also means not only "IN" you but "BESIDE" you as well!
He says to us...
"...for the Lord your God goes with you; He will never leave or forsake you."
"HE" goes with you! "HE" goes with "YOU!" Recently I've connected with an old friend who was older than I was but his parents were Evangelists & great friends of my parents and literally second parents to us, even to this day the surviving spouse is considered by all us kids as a second mother.
They were holding revival with us one time. Their son was older than I was & I looked up to him as an older brother. I told him I was having some trouble with a kid in town. I told him what he'd done to me & I was afraid of him. He told me to get in the car & we would go find him. We found him & as he was getting out of the car I wanted us to leave. He said to me, "Don't be afraid! I'm with you! While I'm with you nothing is going to happen to you!" I said, "But what about when you're not here?" He said, "I'll take care of it!" We walked by where he was & he did just what I expected & my friend/older brother, walked up to him & dealt with it decisively & made sure that it stopped then & there even when he was gone! I never had another problem with that kid again!
Folk, GOD is that Older Brother who will take care of your enemy! My friend told me right in front of him, "Don't be afraid of him! Look at him, how he backed down when someone stood up to him!"
God says to us..
"Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them (your enemies), for the Lord your God goes with you; He will never leave or forsake you."
Oh, Folk! BE STRONG! BE COURAGEOUS! DON'T BE AFRAID OR TERRIFIED! THE LORD YOUR GOD IS WITH YOU & HE WILL NEVER LEAVE YOU!
ALTAR CALL!
(During the altar I call I anointed their heads with oil as I prayed a prayer of encouragement, strength and boldness for the Lord God would be with them always even to the end!)
