It is Well

A few years ago I was visiting Josh at the Naval Academy and we were attending church at the chapel on the "yard" (campus). The one thing that stands out most in my mind from all of the services we attended there was the following story about how the Hymn "It is Well" came to be. I am not really sure what compelled me to share this but I thought I would share it anyway. It is my hope that this story is a blessing to you and causes you desire to hold fast to God's truths and promises in all the seasons of life (as it has done for me).

James Mumford unfolds the story behind the famous hymn of trust, It Is Well.

When peace, like a river, attendeth my way
When sorrows like sea billows roll
Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say
It is well, it is well with my soul

It is well (it is well)
With my soul (with my soul)
It is well, it is well with my soul

Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come
Let this blessed assurance control
That Christ hath regarded my helpless estate
And hath shed His own blood for my soul

My sin, 0 the bliss of this glorious thought
My sin, not in part but in whole
Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, 0 my soul!

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

This hymn was written by a Chicago lawyer, Horatio G. Spafford. You might think to write a worship song titled, 'It is well with my soul', you would indeed have to be a rich, successful Chicago lawyer. But the words, "When sorrows like sea billows roll ... It is well with my soul”, were not written during the happiest period of Spafford's life. On the contrary, they came from a man who had suffered almost unimaginable personal tragedy.

Horatio G. Spafford and his wife, Anna, were pretty well-known in 1860’s Chicago. And this was not just because of Horatio's legal career and business endeavors. The Spaffords were also prominent supporters and close friends of D.L. Moody, the famous preacher. In 1870, however, things started to go wrong. The Spaffords' only son was killed by scarlet fever at the age of four. A year later, it was fire rather than fever that struck. Horatio had invested heavily in real estate on the shores of Lake Michigan. In 1871, every one of these holdings was wiped out by the great Chicago Fire.

Aware of the toll that these disasters had taken on the family, Horatio decided to take his wife and four daughters on a holiday to England. And, not only did they need the rest -- DL Moody needed the help. He was traveling around Britain on one of his great evangelistic campaigns. Horatio and Anna planned to join Moody in late 1873. And so, the Spaffords traveled to New York in November, from where they were to catch the French steamer 'Ville de Havre' across the Atlantic. Yet just before they set sail, a last-minute business development forced Horatio to delay. Not wanting to ruin the family holiday, Spafford persuaded his family to go as planned. He would follow on later. With this decided, Anna and her four daughters sailed East to Europe while Spafford returned West to Chicago. Just nine days later, Spafford received a telegram from his wife in Wales. It read: "Saved alone."

On November 2nd 1873, the 'Ville de Havre' had collided with 'The Lochearn', an English vessel. It sank in only 12 minutes, claiming the lives of 226 people. Anna Spafford had stood bravely on the deck, with her daughters Annie, Maggie, Bessie and Tanetta clinging desperately to her. Her last memory had been of her baby being torn violently from her arms by the force of the waters. Anna was only saved from the fate of her daughters by a plank which floated beneath her unconscious body and propped her up. When the survivors of the wreck had been rescued, Mrs. Spafford's first reaction was one of complete despair. Then she heard a voice speak to her, "You were spared for a purpose." And she immediately recalled the words of a friend, "It's easy to be grateful and good when you have so much, but take care that you are not a fair-weather friend to God."

Upon hearing the terrible news, Horatio Spafford boarded the next ship out of New York to join his bereaved wife. Bertha Spafford (the fifth daughter of Horatio and Anna born later) explained that during her father's voyage, the captain of the ship had called him to the bridge. "A careful reckoning has been made", he said, "and I believe we are now passing the place where the de Havre was wrecked. The water is three miles deep." Horatio then returned to his cabin and penned the lyrics of his great hymn.

The words which Spafford wrote that day come from 2 Kings 4:26. They echo the response of the Shunammite woman to the sudden death of her only child. Though we are told "her soul is vexed within her", she still maintains that 'It is well." And Spafford's song reveals a man whose trust in the Lord is as unwavering as hers was.

His worship does not solely depend on how he feels. "Whatever my lot", he says, come rain or shine, pleasure or pain, success or failure, "Thou hast taught me to say / It is well, it is well with my soul".

Nor does his worship centre on himself He focuses on what God has already done (0 the bliss of this glorious thought / My sin ... is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more) and what God will do in the future ("Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight / The trump shall resound and the Lord shall descend").

In fact, Spafford's worship brings us back to the bottom line: at the end of the day, come hell or high-water, it is "this blessed assurance" that holds us fast.

Source: (http://www.insideworship.com/resources/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2220&Itemid=9)

With Thanksgiving

Lately Josh and I have had many of our upcoming adventures heavy on our minds- moving, finishing school, starting a new job, being able to take time off for the holidays, and the list goes on. Some days it is very easy to see how blessed we are and other days we find ourselves selfishly grumbling and thankless.

This morning in my quiet time, I really was able to "turn back to praise" every blessing God has provided us recently and in the past- it was certainly not on my own strength that I was able to do this.

The passage I read (Deuteronomy 26) was so appropriate considering the situation Josh and I have found ourselves in (finding it so easy to grumble and point out where things are not as we'd like them rather than focusing on the land of milk and honey that God has provided for us).

Verses 8 -10 remind us of where we came from: "So the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, with great terror and with miraculous signs and wonders. He brought us to this place and gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey; and now I bring the first fruits of the soil that you, O Lord, have given me."

Verses 17-19 remind us of who we are in Him: "You have declared this day that the Lord is your God and that you will walk in his ways, that you will keep his decrees, commands and laws, and that you will obey him. And the Lord has declared this day that you are his people, his treasured possession as he promised and that you are to keep his commands. He has declared that he will set you in praise, fame, and honor high above all the nations he has made and that you will be a people holy to the Lord your God, as he promised."

Me- a treasured possession? Much like the Israelites, I often forget God's covenant promises to me and all that he has done and will do in the future. His promises and provisions are certainly something to turn back to praise!

1 Peter 2:9, "But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light."

Although we do not deserve these wonderful eternal blessings, join us in declaring his praises and "enjoying him by glorifying him forever" during this Thanksgiving season and all the year long.

Brazil and Chile 2001

In 2001 I went on a short term missions trip to Brazil (Sao Paolo) and Chile (Santiago). In 2002 I went on another trip to the Amazon in Brazil. Many of you supported me in prayer, through words of encouragement, and financial gifts. Each trip was unique and it was clear God was able to use the trips for his glory then and even now.

Some of you may have received an email from me less than 6 months ago describing something that happened as a result of my trip to Brazil in 2001.
(See emails below)

"Hello All,

Will you pass this along to anyone who supported me in prayer and financially during my missions trips (if you have their emails) - I thought it might be an encouragement and a testament to God's sovereignty and mighty power to work through us even when we undermine how great of a God we serve.

Several years ago, as many of you know, I went on two consecutive missions trips to Brazil. I learned so much and felt that we were able to be vessels for God those weeks. Frequently I thought that I might have gotten more out of the trips than the people we witnessed to. After arriving home from my missions trips, I frequently struggled with the idea that we went to the people of Brazil for a brief time, very quickly told them about a Jesus we knew well about, and then left them without many resources to be discipled. I felt like I had done a hit and run and that if I were ever to do missions again, I would want to spend more time investing in relationships and discipleship. At times, I felt that I had done them a disservice. I knew that these thoughts were not true and that God sent us there for a very specific reason and that he would determine the rest. However, I was very humbled this afternoon and taken by surprise.

I received a facebook message from a man named Filipe Niel in Brazil. But you have to remember, I wasn't really thinking about my missions trips when I received this friend request and message, so I was imagining that this was some random man who liked my picture and wanted to be my friend- haha- some pride I have. I initially ignored his friend request and then felt bad, so I confirmed him as a friend and was able to see his message. The message was as follows:

"I am sorry to disturb you. But I am trying to find someone whom I was friend of. Her name was Whitney and she gave me a Bible in Brazil which had a phone number from the family Gropp, it was almost 10 years a go. I am just wondering if it was you. Have you ever been in Brazil? Word of life? well sorry again, and thank you for taking the time to read this.

Filipe Niel"

I couldn't believe my eyes! So many years later someone remembering the Bible I gave to them and wanting to talk with me. It turns out, Filipe graduated from seminary in 2006 and is now a senior pastor at a church (Igreja Batista de Caldas) in Brazil. I remember hesitating to give him my Bible because, well, it was mine and his English wasn't very good so he couldn't possibly read it! It is truly amazing the ways in which God works- whether through young people, proud people, selfish people, or any other kind.

Proverbs 19:21 says, "Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails."

I want to thank you all for your support financially and in prayer during those trips that I took. I'm sure we can all look at missions trips that are going on, people serving in the ministry, or various other things going on in churches that we might not agree with, but this simple message has reminded me that we are all broken vessels and God will use the things we do for selfish gain or with proud hearts for good always and in his time.

I hope this message brings you the encouragement it brought me that we serve a God who is strong when we are weak, capable of the seemingly impossible, and mighty to save.

In Christ,

Whitney Gropp"
and a followup response to this one:
A second response from Filipe:

"I can't believe I've finally found you. I am doing great, right now I am planting a church in mid-west Brazil. I went to live in US in 2006, and I tried to find you through the clues I had in the NIV you gave me, but I couldn't. I am glad to have found you, and I want to say that the Bible you gave me was always a huge encouragement for me to study and learn the English language. What are you doing? Add me as a friend in this Facebook. In Christ,
Filipe"

Since receiving these e-mails Filipe and I keep in touch from time to time and he sends prayer letters with prayer requests for his church plant. I received a letter from him today and it made me curious to see if I could find any pictures of him in my albums from my trips (when he contacted me all of my stuff was packed in boxes prior to our wedding). Sure enough, I found a picture of him and it was a fun trip down memory lane. See below for pictures of my trips :)


Filipe on the far right- those three guys used to call me Penelope because of my pink scarf (some T.V. show in Brazil had a character named Penelope who always wore pink)

Our group and some campers

A 70-year-old man with Down Syndrome and I in a more rural village (1 day boat trip to get there). I remember giving him hand sanitizer in his hand and he licked it! (who knows why I did that)

Andes Mountains in Chile (from the plane- although we did do a day hike in these mountains :))

Trip to the Amazon in 2002 on a house boat- we slept in hammocks....and got sick 3 days later as many of you may recall. I'll spare you the details :)


The houseboat.

A lesson in faithfulness

Hebrews 11: 1, "Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see."

Genesis 12: 1, "The LORD had said to Abram, 'Leave your country, your people and your father's household and go to the land I will show you."

Today I was reminded of my faithlessness to trust God's provision for our future and present circumstances and I was encouraged by His words to us.

It seems so easy and convenient these days to plan ahead for everything- and boy does that make me happy, as I gain much satisfaction from "certain" and "sure" plans. From websites that advertise rental homes in an area that we can't easily visit to recruiters that promise a plethora of jobs in an area I haven't even visited.

As many of you know, Josh and I will be relocating to Pensacola, FL in December. And, well, I think I might know more about Pensacola than I do the city we presently live in! I have researched veterinarians (for Edgar, of course), rental home availability/prices, area hospitals and other potential places to work, and the list goes on.

And while it would be so wonderful to know where we are going to live when we arrive to Pensacola, to have a job secured, to know where we might shop and take Edgar to the vet, I have left little room in our adventure for faith and trust in a holy, righteous, and sovereign God.

Why is it so easy to slip into this trap of trusting in our own plans? Proverbs 19:21 tells me, "Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails."

I am not advocating for passivity, ignorance, or anything of the kind, however, I/we could use a lesson in trust and faith in situations such as these and I thought I would share how you can be praying for us in the coming months.

-Please pray that we would spend more time meditating on God's promises, knowing that his plans are always in our best interest (Hebrews 11:39-40 says, "These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised. God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.")
-Pray for me as I attempt to achieve a balance between planning ahead and doing my "homework" (relating to my job search) and being willing to "pick up and go".

I never thought I'd say this, but Josh and I have decided not to sign a lease ahead of time or visit Pensacola (unless I am offered an interview opportunity). Therefore, we will be arriving in a place that we do not know and leaning on God as we begin this journey.

It is an exciting time for us, as well as an uncertain time in many respects, however, one thing is certain, and that is the knowledge of a faithful and sovereign God.

Our journey in the military has only just begun, but we can already see the Lord's masterful and unique plan for our life in the military as we learn to trust in him to be our Jehovah Jireh.