Well, Friend

Let's talk about legacy. What do you want to be remembered for?

When I was a teenager I wanted to be the greatest classical pianist in the world. I dedicated my life to this goal. But halfway through college as a music major, I was burning out. The question I kept asking myself was "What will be written on my head stone?" What if the inscription was "She was a great pianist"? I couldn't think of anything more sad than that. I wanted to make a eternal difference, not just entertain people.

The question of legacy is one I want to talk about briefly as we look at Horatio Spafford and his incredible song "It is Well with my Soul."

It Wasn't Well with my Soul

We lost our first born son Jeremiah in preterm labor on December 21,2020. We didn't know grief existed until that moment when we met him and said goodbye all in the same day. Two years later, we lost our twin boys, Marshall and Coulter, due the same day we lost Jeremiah. At that point it was not well with my soul anymore.

After we lost our twins my husband and I ran away for about a month. We didn't care where we went, we just wanted to leave and never come back. We found ourselves at the Oregon Coast, watching the waves and desperately searching for a reason to survive. Our sorrow felt deeper than the deepest sea. One of the things we did was study the hymn lyrics written by orphaned parent Horatio G Spafford, who wrote the hymn "It is Well" on the ship over the place where his four daughters drowned in a ship accident. We wanted to know how he could lose four children at once and still say it was well with his soul. In our study we found two verses that most people don't know exist; powerful verses. Verses I didn't have the capacity to understand in that moment but have now become my life song. The secret to Spafford's peace after devastating loss is revealed within those beautiful verses.
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For the past month or so I have been working on bringing these verses back to life in an "It is Well" rewrite. I rewrote the chorus melody, and included a bridge and a verse that showcase Spafford's lost lyrics. The bridge especially means the world to me. For this lyric video, my husband agreed to sing with me because it holds such a special place in his heart as well; it was spoken in hushed tones at our boy's double funeral at their grave site, before I could say it was well with my soul honestly. Thankfully I can say it now. We're not perfect singers, but we wanted to sing it for us; so here it is.

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Spafford's Legacy and Ours

I mentioned that Spafford lost his four daughters at sea, but these are not the only children that Spafford had and lost. He also lost two sons, one before his daughters drowned and one after. Out of the eight children Horatio had, he lost six of them.

That's right. If you do the math, he had two daughters that actually survived him. They were the last two children that he and his wife had. It's funny though, we don't really hear about them that much. You probably didn't even know they existed! I sure didn't!

This is because Spafford's larger-than-life legacy was not his children, as precious as they were to him. His legacy was the worship that came out of his tragic losses.

There is an obscure verse in the Bible that I have been pondering over that seems to encapsulate Spafford's story, and it gives encouragement to me with mine. Isaiah 56:4-5 says:

A monument and a name...better than sons and daughters! What can be better than sons and daughters? I think Horatio's story illustrates what this could look like beautifully. His hymn "It is Well with my Soul" continues to give hope to millions of suffering believers to this day, over 150 years after it was written on that ship deck over the place where his daughters drowned. It certainly gave my husband and I the hope in Christ we were looking for after repeated infant loss.

What about you? Maybe you're struggling with infertility, child loss or singleness. I used to grieve over the fact that my house was so quiet I could hear the refrigerator hum. I still miss by boys at random times, like when I go to Costco and see the double-seater carts. But in those times of sadness or isolation, I remember the promises of God; that as long as I "choose the things that please" God and hold fast to God's covenant of salvation, God can build a monument for my lost sons that will not be cut off, and leave me a legacy even more precious than my beloved children.

Play It is Well (For me Be it Christ)!

If you would like to play this arrangement of "It is Well" for your church or own personal devotion, they are free in my Youtube Video description box. You can also get it for free below along with an offer to bundle and save with my most popular piece, "The Old Rugged Cross Reimagined". (To get the sheet music below, click the green "Get it Now!" button and follow the prompts to chose a donation amount. If you want the Old Rugged Cross bundle, follow the prompts to the check out. Click on the offer for the 25% discount for "The Old Rugged Cross (Russian Lullaby)" when it comes up. Then check your email for the digital downloads.) Let me know if you have any questions, concerns or comments by emailing me! I love to hear from you. Also a pre-thank you for any donations given; all donations go toward making this music ministry better for you!

$0.00 It Is Well (For me Be it Christ) Bring fresh hope to a timeless hymn with this unique arrangement of “It Is Well With My Soul.” Featuring some of Horatio... Read more Get it now!

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The song is slightly long for specials, so I made a shorter version of this that doesn't compromise the arc of the song or Spafford's powerful verses. You can also bundle and save with this option by selecting the discounted music for "The Old Rugged Cross (Russian lullaby)" in the checkout.

$5.00 It Is Well (Shorter Version) Introduce your church to the forgotten verses from Spafford's original masterpiece "It is Well with my Soul". This... Read more Get it now!

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I am also selling them on platforms like Sheet Music Plus and Sheet Music direct. If you buy one from those sites, make sure to leave a review! That helps me out a lot.

Until Tuesday at ten,

Amanda Joy Smith

Songs from the Valley Composer and Publisher

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