You’ve heard it. Maybe in a quiet church on a Sunday morning, or perhaps through a crackly speaker in a hospital waiting room. "It Is Well With My Soul" isn't just a hymn; it’s a survival mechanism. It is one of those rare pieces of culture that manages to be both deeply religious and universally human.
The story behind it is brutal. Honestly, if you saw it in a movie, you’d think the writers were trying too hard to make the protagonist suffer. But Horatio Spafford lived it.
Most people think they know the story. They know he lost his kids. They know he wrote it on a ship. But the nuances—the actual, gritty details of 1870s Chicago and the sheer weight of the legal and financial ruins Spafford was standing in—make the lyrics feel much heavier than the average Sunday school version suggests.
The Chicago Fire and the Ruin of Horatio Spafford
Before the song, there was the fire. In 1871, Horatio Spafford was a successful lawyer in Chicago. He had invested heavily in real estate along the shores of Lake Michigan. He was wealthy. He was influential. Then, the Great Chicago Fire leveled the city. In an instant, his portfolio was basically ashes.
Imagine losing your entire net worth in forty-eight hours.
Spafford didn't just lose money; he lost the stability of his world. Yet, the financial hit was just the preamble. Two years later, in 1873, he decided to take his family to Europe for a rest and to assist with D.L. Moody’s evangelistic campaigns in England. At the last minute, a business emergency kept him in Chicago. He sent his wife, Anna, and their four daughters—Annie, Maggie, Bessie, and Tanetta—ahead on the SS Ville du Havre.
On November 22, 1873, the ship collided with a British iron vessel, the Lochearn. It sank in about 12 minutes.
Twelve minutes.
Out of the 313 passengers, 226 died. Anna Spafford was found floating unconscious on a plank of wood. All four of their daughters drowned. When Anna reached land in Cardiff, Wales, she sent the famous, haunting telegram to her husband: "Saved alone. What shall I do?"
Writing It Is Well With My Soul in the Middle of the Atlantic
Spafford immediately boarded a ship to join his grieving wife. According to historical accounts from the Spafford family and the records of the Philip Bliss (the composer who set the words to music), the captain of the ship called Horatio to the bridge when they reached the approximate coordinates where the Ville du Havre had gone down.
He looked at the water that had swallowed his children. He didn't write a poem about how life is easy or how God makes everything better instantly. He wrote about peace.
"When peace like a river attendeth my way, when sorrows like sea billows roll..."
That first line is a direct acknowledgement of the environment. The "sea billows" weren't a metaphor to him. They were the literal grave of his family. He wasn't ignoring the trauma; he was staring right at it.
Why the theology of the song is actually quite radical
Usually, when people suffer, the "religious" response is to offer platitudes. But Spafford’s lyrics move into a very specific, almost defiant focus on the future. He shifts from the tragedy of the Atlantic to the concept of "the faith shall be sight."
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Philip Bliss, a friend of Spafford and a notable musician of the era, was so moved by the lyrics that he composed the tune we know today, naming it "Ville du Havre" after the sunken ship. The song was first performed in public at a convention of ministers in 1876. It didn't take long to become a staple. It’s the contrast—the major, soaring melody against the backdrop of absolute catastrophic loss—that gives it such a gut-punch quality.
The Overlooked Complexity of the Spafford Legacy
The story doesn't actually end with a happy, peaceful hymn. The Spaffords’ lives stayed complicated. They had more children, but they also lost a son to scarlet fever. Eventually, their grief and their shifting theological views led them to leave their church in Chicago.
They moved to Jerusalem.
They founded a group called the "American Colony," a communal society dedicated to helping people regardless of their religious background. They looked after the poor and sick during the final years of the Ottoman Empire. If you go to Jerusalem today, the American Colony Hotel is a vestige of that legacy.
This matters because it proves that It Is Well With My Soul wasn't just a momentary emotional outburst. It was a philosophy of action. Spafford didn't just write a poem and retire; he spent the rest of his life leaning into the "well with my soul" part by serving people who were also suffering.
Common Misconceptions About the Lyrics
People often misinterpret what "well" means in this context. It’s not "well" as in "I'm happy" or "everything is fine."
In the original context, the word "well" (or shalom in the Hebrew tradition Spafford studied) implies a wholeness or a soundness. It's the idea that even when the external world is in pieces, the internal core remains integrated.
- It’s not about suppression. You don't write "sorrows like sea billows roll" if you’re trying to pretend you aren't hurting.
- It’s not just a funeral song. While it’s played at almost every memorial service, it was written as a song of endurance.
- The "Satan should buffet" line. This refers to the trials and psychological warfare that often follow a tragedy—the guilt, the "what ifs," and the "why me."
Why the Song Still Ranks as a Cultural Phenomenon
Why do we still care? Why does a 150-year-old hymn keep appearing in pop culture, movies, and Spotify playlists?
Because our current culture is obsessed with "toxic positivity"—the idea that you have to be okay all the time. Spafford’s lyrics are the antidote to that. They acknowledge that life is often a series of "buffetings" and "sorrows," yet they suggest there is a frequency of peace that exists underneath the noise.
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Modern psychological studies on resilience often point to "meaning-making" as the key to surviving trauma. Viktor Frankl, the psychiatrist and Holocaust survivor, talked about this extensively in Man’s Search for Meaning. Horatio Spafford was doing meaning-making in real-time. He took a telegram that said "Saved alone" and turned it into a declaration of spiritual survival.
Practical Ways to Apply the "Spafford Mindset"
If you’re currently in a season where "sea billows roll," looking at this hymn through a historical lens can actually be practical.
Acknowledge the Billows
Don't try to "silver lining" your way out of a crisis. If things are bad, say they are bad. Spafford didn't hide from the captain when the ship reached the wreck site; he went to the bridge and looked.
Separate Your Circumstance from Your Identity
The core of the song is the separation between "it" (the soul) and "them" (the circumstances). Learning to differentiate between what is happening to you and who you are is a massive step in mental health.
Find Your "Ville du Havre"
What is the thing you are naming your "song" after? For Spafford, naming the tune after the ship that killed his daughters was a way of reclaiming the narrative. He took the name of his greatest sorrow and turned it into the name of his greatest hope.
Move Toward Service
Follow the Spafford trajectory. After the loss and the song, they moved to a place of service. Sometimes the only way to keep it "well with your soul" is to help someone else whose soul is currently in turmoil.
The Enduring Reality
"It Is Well With My Soul" remains a masterclass in emotional honesty. It doesn't ask you to feel better. It doesn't promise that the daughters will come back or that the Chicago real estate will be refunded. It simply provides a template for standing upright when the ground is moving.
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If you want to dive deeper into the history, the Library of Congress holds several documents related to the Spafford family and the American Colony. Reading the actual letters written by Anna Spafford gives an even more raw perspective on the grief that fueled these famous lines.
To truly honor the spirit of the song, don't just sing it. Use it as a reminder that your current "sea billow" is not the end of the story. It’s just the setting for the next chapter.
Next Steps for Reflection:
- Audit your "internal noise": Identify one thing currently "buffeting" your peace and label it as external to your soul.
- Read the original telegram: Search for the "Saved Alone" telegram image online to connect with the visceral reality of the story.
- Listen to varied versions: Compare the traditional choral arrangements with modern interpretations (like those by Audrey Assad or Maverick City Music) to see how the emotional resonance changes across genres.