When Peace Like a River (ELW 785)
1 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.
Refrain
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.
2 Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,
Let this blest assurance control,
That Christ has regarded my helpless estate,
And hath shed His own blood for my soul.
Refrain
3 He lives, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought;
My sin, not in part, but the whole,
Is nailed to his cross and I bear it no more.
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!
Refrain
4 And Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight,
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;
The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend,
Even so, it is well with my soul.
Refrain
Devotion
An art contest asked painters to depict a perfect picture of peace. All kinds of entries with images of peace were painted, including such as that of the quiet of a lake on a windless summer day. The winner was surprising. The artist painted a tumultuous waterfall cascading down a rocky precipice. Stormy gray clouds threatened to explode with lightning, wind, and rain. Amid it all a spindly tree clung to the rocks at the edge of the falls. And in that tree a little bird had built its nest. Content and undisturbed in her stormy surroundings, she rested on her eggs. She manifested peace that transcends all earthly turmoil.
By God’s mercy we have this kind of peace in the midst of turmoil. “Our sin…is nailed to Christ’s cross.” We are made right with God through “his own blood shed for us.” No matter what happens to us, we are not dismayed. For we know that “it is well with our soul.”
Prayer
Merciful God, remind us of your invitation to live in your peace which passes all human understanding. Amen.