Hymns to be buried to (part 1)

I am not planning to die this week but I do have some of my funeral hymns chosen. I reckon we could break the tradition of two or three hymns and have five or six. One of them would be It is well with my soul.

The story of this hymn is often told. Horatio Spafford was a man familiar with grief. He lost wealth in the 1871 Chicago fire and around that time his only son died of Scarlet fever. Then in November 1873 tragedy struck again.

At that time he decided to take his wife and four daughters on a trip to England. His departure, however, was delayed by some urgent business and so the others went on ahead of him. The liner that his family was on hit an iron sailing ship and the vessel went down in only two hours. Spafford received a telegram from his wife with the simply message, 'Survived alone'.

He left immediately to join her in England. On that journey, on a cold winter night, the captain called him aside and said, 'I believe that we are now passing over the spot where the ship went down.' Unable to sleep that night Spafford could only find comfort in the words, 'it is well, God's will be done.' This later became the title phrase of the famous hymn which was put to the music of Philip Bliss (to a tune Bliss called 'Ville du Havre' after the stricken vessel).

When peace like a river

attendeth my way,

when sorrows like sea-billows roll;

whatever my lot

Thou has taught me to say,

'It is well, it is well with my soul.'

I love the following verse, which reminds us of the peace that we can have because our sin has been dealt with on the cross:

My sin - O the bliss

of this glorious thought -

my sin - not in part - but the whole

is nailed to His cross;

and I bear it no mare

praise the Lord, praise the Lord,

O my soul.