A couple weeks ago I was having a particularly hard day and out of no where this Hymn came to my head quite loudly, "It is well with my soul" (in specific it was the Crystal Lewis version which I used to own)
I even started to sing it out loud in my car driving home. Then I paused, that is so weird, It is SO not well with my Soul!!!
Why am I singing this Hymn? I hardly ever have Hymn's running through my head, there are a few on repeat in my head but this is not one of them.
Then just last week this Hymn came across my path
Sunday I was visiting a church and then what song did we sing... none other than "It is well with my soul". I was once again struck by this Hymn. Every time this Hymn in sung in the company of others I can't stop my body from breaking out in "Chicken Skin". But even still I found myself getting bothered by the wording.
I know the History of this hymn and maybe I have not been impressed with it since learning the history. The writer of this Hymn if you already don't know first lost his son to scarlet fever, then lost his business, then lost all four of his daughters in a ship sinking. And how his wife survived the ship wreck is a tragic story. But maybe this is where I am different from MOST people who JUST LOVE THIS hymn. I found myself on Sunday while singing, wondering how much we would sing this song if he had wrote everything the same but instead the Chorus would be sung, "My soul it is heavy", "It is not well with my Soul" .
I am not trying to say that the writer of this hymn did not have a heavy soul. I think he had to have many a days that trying to write/sing that hymn was more than difficult.
I think it just hits me in a different way. I am not impressed with Christians who can't mourn, lament, and struggle. I think I am getting more bothered with Christians needing to tie a "But God is Good" bow onto to tragedy.
Maybe I am just not getting it?
Maybe I am missing the Point?
What if when Tragedy hits I don't/can't sing this Hymn or believe it?
What then?
-----
i'm still not able to sing that song friend...
ReplyDelete