Music For Our Souls - Life-Changing Hymns of Isaac Watts

Where would we be without music? When God created us with the desire for song, to invent an endless array of instruments and rhythms, He knew that such a gift would speak to us in a million ways, and that sometimes we would actually need music in order to speak the deep things of our hearts. We use music to express praise, joy, sorrow, longing, hope, blessing--pretty much every emotion we can name can also be expressed with music. There many verses of Scripture which tell us the benefits of music and list occasions for singing or "making melody". Ephesians 5: 18-20 says it most clearly.

"Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ."

Oftentimes, when I'm working on writing a novel, a hymn or other piece of music will pop into my thoughts that helps me to express the heart of my story--or better said--the heart of my characters. And why not? Since music offers such vitality of spirit to our lives, wouldn't it imbue a character's life also?

In my recent release, Courting the Country Preacher - Four Stories of Faith, Hope, and Falling in Love, my hero Everett Shepherd (The Angel and the Sky Pilot) preaches a sermon to a rough and tumble logging crew in which he uses the lyrics of a beautiful hymn to express what God did for him. Overcome with humble passion for Christ's transforming power, Isaac Watt's hymn At Calvary describes Everett's own conversion story.

Isaac Watts himself, was the author of hundreds of hymns, some of which the only record is the title, but many others we still enjoy today. He was born July 17, 1674 in Southampton, Hampshire, England, the son of a schoolmaster. He was already writing verses at seven years old. At the age of sixteen, he became a student in the non-conformist academy of an independent minister, Reverend Thomas Rowe. Watts preached his first sermon when he was 24 years old, and went on to become a pastor in London in 1702.

His first published hymn, written at age twenty, is said to have been composed for religious worship. It was titled Behold the Lamb. While Watts's writings included sermons, treatises, poems, and hymns, and he developed a very large collection, it was for the writing of psalms and hymns that he is best known. His published hymns alone number more than eight hundred.

Watts died November 25, 1748. He was known by his friends as a man of great learning and piety, with generousness and largeness of heart. He was buried in a Puritan resting place at Bunhill Fields, but a monument was erected in his honor in Westminster Abbey. Many other monuments have been erected this famous Christian writer over the centuries. 

But it might be said that the best monument of all, is the monument raised in song whenever we sing or play one of his many rich hymns.

Photo: Isaac Watts, Westminster Abbey Memorial, Wikipedia Commons (14GTR)

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Read into the New Year with

Courting the Country Preacher!

Four Stories of Faith, Hope, and Falling in Love

Meet Everett and Angeline in The Angel and the Sky Pilot

Can a new preacher earn the respect of hard-living men—and still respect himself—after a trader's daughter joins the all-male congregation?

HAPPY NEW YEAR, AND HAPPY READING!

Unexpected Legacies: Horatio Spafford

By Matthew J. Elliott

Upfront, I am compelled to warn you that the story I have to share for this post is not one to be taken lightly. Aside from how purposeful the words Horatio Spafford wrote over 150 years ago, there is a story behind what led him to the words of the song ‘It is Well with My Soul’. Some stories just need to be told, and that have been told before, but hit differently once you understand where they came from and this story is one of those. 

To provide a little of background on why I selected this song. In truth, this is one song that is difficult for me to listen to. My father sang it at my mother’s memorial service in 2009 after cancer took her life much sooner than expected. While that is not a story for me to share with you in this post, knowing the story behind this song now gives me a much better understanding of the legacy ‘It is Well with My Soul’ has for us today. 

If you can imagine with me for a moment, or two…what it was like to live in the 1870s. There were no phones, computers, TVs, or even any type of vehicle we’d consider using today. It sounds like something the word would never survive today, doesn’t it? Now, let’s dig even deeper. Travel with me to Chicago, one of the nation’s biggest cities, and a bustling economy filled with opportunities to build something worth investing in. 

As we walk through the streets of this ever-growing environment, we find ourselves standing in front of a well-known district filled with thriving businesses and successful people living out their daily lives. Suddenly, everything changes! Out of nowhere, a huge, uncontrollable fire breaks out and changes everything. The once prosperous district is gone, and what’s more, the fire continues, killing hundreds of people and leaving a third of the population homeless. 

In the heart of a once vibrant metropolis, the feeling of desolation is overwhelming as the only visible sights for miles are blackened ashes and fragmented rocks. Almost everything in this society is beyond repair, leaving no choice but to start from scratch. The survivors are left in a state of complete shock. Their souls rattled to their very core, with little hope for a restoration of their former lives in any form. Many people ask themselves the same question: Does this mark the long-awaited culmination?

The road ahead leads us to a man named Horatio Spafford. He is a well-known lawyer, who invested his entire fortune into Chicago real estate. Much of which was no longer there. Recognizing this, he looks up at his wife and their four daughters. His mind becomes filled with fear and worry. Considering this, the family makes plans to journey to England for some time to recover and heal from the monumental loss they all had just endured. 

When the time comes to journey upon the sea to the old country, Horatio is unable to join his family because of other matters with the estate. He stays behind to tie up a few things and plans to join his family soon. As they depart, imagine his family waving to him from the ship as it leaves port and begins a journey it will never recover from. Along the way, their ship unexpectedly collides with another ship, resulting in the death of over 200 people, including his four daughters, at sea. 

Upon being rescued, Anna, his wife, sends a single note to tell her husband of what had transpired, “Saved and Alone, what should I do?” This note hits on so many levels, but Horatio immediately departs. Eventually, he finds his way to the exact spot where his daughters were lost. While the captain takes a break from the journey to remember those who have passed, Horatio stands in quiet contemplation. The significance of certain words are imprinted on his heart.

When peace like a river, attendeth my way,

When sorrows like sea billows roll—

Whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to know

It is well, it is well with my soul.

In the midst of this unprecedented storm, Horatio is given a gift. A promise that regardless of what he has faced, there is hope and it can be well with his soul. As the journey continued, he eventually reunited with his beloved, and things found a new routine once more. Nothing will ever be the same again, but there is something he can place his hope in. There is something he and his wife can hold on to. 

There is a profound depth to the story that extends beyond what has been mentioned in this post. In truth, immense tragedy marks Horatio and Anna’s path. While the rest of his story speaks to the unexpected legacy they have left behind, it is not my place to continue sharing their pain. Feel free to look it up, though, because it adds to their legacy’s value. It is a powerful story to discover as well. 

This article focuses on the message that was left behind. Horatio’s legacy, built through the words he wrote in the hymn we now call “It is Well with My Soul,” is meaningful to us all. The storms of life will always be there, doing everything they can to keep us from finding purpose in the pain and value of the trials we face. It is never easy to survive those storms.

Say what you will about the unexpected legacy of Horatio Spafford, but the proof is there. It is up to you to determine what you do with it. History has many stories that capture experiences like this, and each one has a lesson for us to learn from.  

  

~ Biography ~

Matthew James Elliott (M.J. Elliott) is a passionate writer who loves to encourage and inspire others. He has served in various ministry roles for over 15 years, which has given him a unique perspective on people and Biblical History. Matthew holds a degree in Biblical Studies from Oklahoma Wesleyan University, with a focus on Pastoral Care, Christian Education, and Worship.

Matthew is happily married to Traci, and they have three children named Leyla, Caleb, and Hannah, who bring them immense joy and inspiration. As a writer, Matthew's goal is to share love, equip others, and edify them for the greater good. He loves connecting any amount of scripture to his stories and uses his knowledge of Biblical History to do so often.

You can find Matthew's works on Amazon, Goodreads, Facebook, and His Website. He has written Devotionals, An Episodic Series, Novellas, and even Commentaries for The Gospel Daily.

~ Highlighted Release ~

A Kindle Vella Story in progress, Read the first 10 episodes FREE!

One Man. His Continued Journey. Working to Build the Early Church. 

John Mark is haunted by his past, and there is one person he has never been able to reconcile with. Join him on his continuing missionary journey as he leaves Cyprus to search for Saul, now known as Paul, before the epic ending of his Missionary Journey in Cyprus. Who will he meet along the way and what lessons will he learn? Will this journey help him find the answers he seeks?

Who Wrote "Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing?"

Robert Robinson, the author of "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing" and "Mighty God, While Angels Bless Thee" was a complicated fellow, if my research is any indication. He was born in Swaffham, in Norfolk, England in 1735. By one account, his parents’ marriage was unhappy, and he was not raised in a religious environment. In another account, his mother is referred to as “a godly woman and far above her circumstances.” This may refer to her spiritual outlook since, they were impoverished, especially after his father died, somewhere between the time Robert was five and in his early teens. 

Robert’s mother had been brought up in a wealthy family. Her father, who was angry with her for marrying beneath her class, left his grandson an inheritance of today’s equivalent of $100, which was considered an insult. She realized Robert was quite intelligent and prone to being bookish. She worked hard, taking in boarders, and seamstress’ work, to pay for his education until she could no longer afford it.

Then a friend of the family told them about his brother in London, who was a barber. The barber was willing to take Robert on as an apprentice and indentured servant. Robert was still more interested in reading than fixing hair, but he continued his apprenticeship. Unfortunately, he made friends with a rowdy and dissolute bunch.

One time he and his friends plied an old Gypsy woman with alcohol to make her drunk and then laughed at her when she made her predictions. But when she looked at Robert and told him he would live to see his children and grandchildren, it made him think about where his life was headed.

At a later time, they went to the church of the great evangelist, George Whitefield, to “mock the preacher and pity his hearers.” Instead, Robert Robinson came away with a fear of God which dogged him day and night. Yet, it wasn’t until three years later, at age twenty, that he made his peace with God. He wrote in Latin in one of his books that he’d “found full and free forgiveness through the precious blood of Jesus Christ.” This took place on December 10, 1755. You can see why he wrote in "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing" two years later:

Jesus sought me when a stranger,
Wandering from the fold of God;
He, to rescue me from danger,
Bought me with his precious blood.

George Whitefield preaching, 1857 engraving,
{PD}

He’d received the living water Christ had to give, our fountain of every blessings, of grace, mercy, and more.

After his conversion, Robinson became a Calvinistic Methodist. He returned home to his uncle’s farm in Suffolk after he finished his indentured servitude and went into the ministry around the age of twenty-two, learning the preaching style of George Whitefield, Wesley, and other Methodist ministers.

While he was there, he also met and married Ellen Payne. They had twelve children.

He also decided to embrace the idea of adult rather than infant baptism. Once he was baptized by immersion, he became a Baptist preacher. He was invited to preach to the Baptist church at Cambridge in 1759 and took up his call there, first temporarily, but then permanently. He didn’t feel worthy to be the pastor at first, but for the next 30 years it was his place of ministry.

The following words in Robinson’s hymn have tugged at my heart. Perhaps he thought of his old nature as he wandered in his sin before he committed his life to Christ when he wrote these words:

Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it.
Prone to leave the God I love.

There is a question still debated as to whether Robert Robinson did wander from his faith, due to his acquaintance with Joseph Priestley, a scientist and Unitarian, (one who denies the doctrine of the Trinity). Robinson apparently spoke at a Unitarian church at one point near the end of his life, but in his writings did not deny the deity of Christ, as far as I could ascertain.

There’s also a widely told, but unverifiable story that supposedly happened toward the end of his life. I found this version at Christianity.com: ‘One day as he was riding in a stagecoach a lady asked him what he thought of the hymn she was humming. He responded, "Madam, I am the poor unhappy man who wrote that hymn many years ago, and I would give a thousand worlds, if I had them, to enjoy the feelings I had then."’

St. Andrew's Street Baptist Church, Cambridge on the site
of the Baptist Church at Cambridge, from RichTea, 2007, {PD}

However, keep in mind that in 1787, his seventeen-year-old daughter, Julie, died and he never recovered from the grief. He died in 1790, a broken man, physically and mentally. His sermons weren’t making sense, and he was considered insane. He was physically worn out, his friends had deserted him, and financial troubles made him a likely candidate for debtor’s prison. The end of his 54 years on this earth were fraught with difficulties. Perhaps he returned to think of the words of the last verse of his song, which is seldom sung:

O that Day when freed from sinning,
I shall see thy lovely Face;
Clothed then in blood-washed Linnen [sic]
How I’ll sing thy sovereign grace;
Come, my Lord, no longer tarry,
Take my ransom’d Soul away;
Send thine Angels now to carry
Me to realms of endless Day.

"Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing" is usually set to the American folk tune "Nettleton." It remains a favorite and has been recorded by many artists over the years, still relevant to today's Christian.

Kathleen Rouser is the multi-published author of the 2017 Bookvana Award winner, Rumors and Promises, her first novel about the people of fictional Stone Creek, Michigan, and its sequel, Secrets and Wishes. She is a longtime member in good standing of American Christian Fiction Writers. Kathleen wanted to be a writer before she could even read. She longs to create characters who resonate with readers and realize the need for a transforming Savior in their everyday lives. She lives in Michigan with her hero and husband of thirty-some years, and continues on the elusive quest to brew the perfect cup of coffee to enjoy while she is writing. Connect with Kathleen on her website at kathleenrouser.com, on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/kathleenerouser/, and on Twitter @KathleenRouser.

Secrets and Wishes
Stone Creek, Michigan, April, 1901 — Maggie Galloway and Thomas Harper clash after their sons collide in a fistfight. Both widowed, they’re each doing their best as single-parents. Outgoing Maggie has dreams for a home of her own and a business to provide for her son as she searches for God’s path for her life as a widow. Reserved Thomas struggles to establish his new pharmacy and take care of his four rambunctious children, while wondering how a loving God could take his beloved wife.

When a charlatan comes to town, and tragedy soon follows. Maggie and Thomas discover the miracle potions he hawks aren’t so harmless when an epidemic hits Stone Creek. Thomas and Maggie realize they must work together to save lives.

Maggie finds herself caught up in battles within and without—the battle to help the townsfolk in the midst of illness and chicanery, and the battle to know which man—Thomas or Giles, a former beau—deserves to win her heart.