For Sunday August 14, 2022:

IT IS WELL . . .

James 1:2-3 (NKJV)
My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials,
knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience.

If there was ever a person who exemplified the right attitude during a time of trial, it was Horatio G. Spafford. Once a wealthy businessman, he was brought to financial ruin by the Great Chicago Fire of 1871 and shortly thereafter was crushed by the news that all four of his daughters had died while crossing the Atlantic. In light of these facts, it is astounding that he penned these words:

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

Spafford and his wife, who survived the shipwreck, went on to have two more daughters and then founded a group with a mission to serve the poor of Jerusalem.

When we experience trials of any kind, it can be tempting to get angry, demand justice, and act irrationally, crying out, “It’s not fair!” But if we can catch a glimpse of Jesus’ face as He unfairly hung on the cross, perhaps we will recall how He responded during the greatest trial of all time and will try to follow His example.

You cannot tailor-make the situations in life, but you
can tailor-make the attitudes to fit those situations.
ZIG ZIGLAR

David Jeremiah, Turning Points with God: 365 Daily Devotions (Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale, 2014)