Hiding Place: An 8-Day Devotional By Tori KellySample

SOUL’S ANTHEM (IT IS WELL) 

Suffering is guaranteed in this life. The devil is always throwing fiery darts at us. Right now in this moment he’s trying to attack my family, my health, my relationships, and my peace. He’ll do anything to take my eyes off of Jesus. He wants to take everything away from me, and most importantly, he wants to take my faith. 

Our faith is not grounded in our circumstances. Neither can our joy in Christ be. Recently, my grandfather passed away in the time I felt I needed him most. I felt like I had lost my best friend. It was so painful to go through and I cried so much until my eyes had nothing left. But through every tear, God was with me in those hard moments. I could still be in a dark and lonely place, and even be mourning, but my joy could not be stolen because it is secured in Jesus. No matter what happens, no matter what arrows are thrown my way, no matter how dark it gets, I know I will be okay. It’s not always easy to believe but I know that when I remind myself that God is in control, I find rest and am able to sing, “it is well with my soul.” 

Most importantly, I can always sing “it is well” because God spoiled the movie for us and we get to know how this story ends. “It is well with my soul” because there is a place called heaven where death will be no more, every tear will be wiped away, and any tears shed in this life will be redeemed (he has bottled each one). 

Maybe your suffering is different than losing a grandfather. Maybe it’s worse. Maybe it’s as bad as the writer of “It is Well” who lost his entire family the day he penned this hymn. Even still, God says all of it is not even worthy to be compared to the glory to come to us. Like an adult reflecting on his experience in kindergarten, so believers in heaven will remember their suffering in this life, saying, “oh yeah... I think I remember vaguely...” 

Learn more about my album, Hiding Place.