Welcome to Hope in the Morning, turning tragedies and tears into testimonies of hope. O soul, are you weary and troubled? No light in the darkness you see? There's light for a look at the Savior and light more abundant and free. Turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full in His wonderful face, and the things of earth will grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace. These poetic words were penned by Helen Lemel.
A few years after her marriage, a tragic illness resulted in the loss of her vision, and her husband, not wanting to be bound to a blind woman, left her. In her sorrow, she turned to worship, and she poured her heart out before a compassionate God. Joining us today to talk about the history of some of our favorite hymns is music pastor Kyle Harding. Thank you for joining us today, Kyle. It's a joy to be here, Emily. Thank you.
Thank you. So can you tell us a little bit about maybe what one of your favorite hymns is and if you know the backstory to it? Yes, certainly as a music pastor and one who grew up with even parents who served in music in the church, it's hard to choose some. But to narrow maybe at least one or two down that we can discuss that have some really deep backstories that help us understand even the depth of grief and tragedy out of which they were born.
One I might turn to first is a hymn entitled Day by Day. It was written by a Swedish poet. Her name was Karolina Sandelberg. And she was born in the 1800s, lived during that century. And she was born into the family of a Lutheran pastor. And God saw fit especially in her early years to have some physical frailty and disabilities that prevented her like most young children from enjoying running outside and playing when the weather was nice. So she was homebound for much of her childhood.
And we'll see later the Lord had a particular purpose for that. So you just think of this young girl being homebound in the home of a pastor, she's going to be surrounded by scripture, she's going to be surrounded by theological books, and even surrounded by poetry. And so she immersed herself in all of those things. And during her time at home, she really just dug this deep well that was filled with scripture filled with theological truth, and even filled with the beauty of poetry.
But that's not the only arena of tragedy and even discouragement that the Lord would bring into our life. When she was in her mid-20s, she was on a boat ride with her father, and her father was very dear to her, cared for her well. And they were just out on a beautiful day in Sweden, enjoying a time on the lake. And for whatever reason, the boat lurched and caused her father actually to go overboard. And she, with her own eyes, witnessed the tragic death of her father through drowning. And obviously, having gone through a situation like that, not only immediately, there would be waves of grief and waves of deep discouragement and sorrow having lost a father, especially a father that reflected the love of her Heavenly Father so well.
But if we go back, remember, she's got this wealth of scripture and theological knowledge and an understanding of poetry. And so this wound in her heart, of course, out of that wound would bleed the sorrow and this grief. But the Lord allowed the wound of her father's death to actually open up the floodgates of poetry. And so the Lord would use this tragedy of her father's death.
And the wound of it, again, would likely seep out in sorrow and grief and discouragement. But this wound of her father's death would actually be a way the Lord would take that deep well of poetry and theological understanding and scripture and use it in her life and use it through her pen, even, to write beautiful poetry that not only expressed her deep sorrow, but also how to apply the scripture that she knew to tragedies such as being homebound as a child and then witnessing the tragic death of her father. And Lena, as she was known by many, would become a prolific poet. She wrote over, I believe, 650 sacred poems that could be, and maybe some of our listeners are familiar with the name Fanny Crosby.
She would be known as the Fanny Crosby of Scandinavia because of her prolific writing. And one of the most famous poems that came from her pen that really reflects the tragedy of her father's death, but her ability through God's grace to apply truth, to understand even in one sense why God would bring her through that, was that hymn that I mentioned earlier day by day. There is fatherly language shot through that whole poem.
And she doesn't sugarcoat her trials. She understands that this hurt, this is part of life in a fallen world. It's okay to grieve.
It's okay to understand that there is sorrow in this life. And so she would pen words like this, day by day and with each passing moment, strength I find to meet my trials here. Again, she's being open and honest. And then where does she turn? Trusting in my capital F father's wise bestowment, I have no cause for worry or for fear. She lost the comfort of a earthly father who likely gave her great wisdom and great counsel.
And she's lost that. And yet in that loss and in the whole of her father being gone, she was driven even more deeply to rest in the fatherly care of her heavenly father. She goes on, this is one of my favorite hymn lines of all time. Speaking of God himself, the protection of his child and treasure, again, he's our father, is a charge that on himself he laid.
It's unique poetry. And really what she's saying there is God has given himself the responsibility to care for his children. And because of what she knew about God, he's unchanging. He is all loving. The charge, the responsibility he gave himself, he will fulfill. And this is what the charge that on himself he laid as thy days, thy strength shall be in measure. This is the pledge or the promise to me he made. And then in the last verse, again, more fatherly language, help me Lord when toil and trouble meeting, air to take as from a father's hand. And I'm sure she's thinking there's so many good gifts that our earthly father gave her. One by one, the days, the moments fleeting until I reach the promised land. And so just, you can hear that because she lost her earthly father, she was able to actually more deeply understand the care that her heavenly father can give to her.
Yeah. I mean, I was going to say real quick, I mean, obviously that made me cry. And the reason is because I grew up without a dad and my mom sang that song to my brother and I every night. And you know, those were, those were words that I clung to as a little girl without a father. But then those were also the words that we sang around my stepdad when he took his last breath and just thinking about how the Lord used somebody so many years ago and her loss of her father to minister to people hundreds of years later that would go through similar heartaches.
And you know, what a beautiful thing that the Lord gives us talents and gifts to not only worship him with, but then to minister to other people with years later. And I love, I love the words that she writes and how poetic and as you said, how vulnerable she is in those words. And those are words that are, you know, they're meaningful to people that have a deep, wonderful relationship with their dad. And they're meaningful to people that didn't grow up with a dad, you know, because it is such a beautiful thought to think that the Lord is our father and that he loves perfectly. Even in the absence of a father, you know, whether that is through just the absence of his presence or through death. And yeah, I mean that that is a very special poem to me.
And I actually did not know the background of that of that song at all. And so that's a very near and dear song to my heart for sure. As I look at that line that you honed in on as one of your favorites, looking at it with a new sense of awe really, because what she's saying, the protection of his child and treasure is a charge that on himself he laid is a truth that I was probably in my 60s by the time I understood it. That, you know, a lot of people think, well, if I lose my father, then God's going to be my father. But when I really look back at my life and see the tapestry of what he painted, he brought fathers into my life throughout my life, all sorts of people that played that role in a particular season, including my earthly father who lived until I was in my late 60s. But the whole time he orchestrated all those people, including her father, into her life to care for her. And she's acknowledging that that like the whole time you've done this and now that this is another season, you're going to continue to do it. And she had a clear understanding of that, which to me is a treasure in and of itself to know that God is not the backup plan.
He's the main event and it's pretty awesome. I love it. You said she penned that in her 20s. Is that correct? Honestly, I'm not exactly sure when she may have written this particular poem. But again, the tragic death of her father was in her mid 20s. And I don't believe she began writing prolifically until after that event. Okay.
Yeah. I was also wanting to mention that Kyle actually was one of the people that recorded all of the hymns that you can find in Hope in the Morning, including Day by Day. There was a small group of us that recorded all of these so that you can listen to them at HopeintheMorning.org completely free.
That way you can listen to this deep theology. You can pour your heart out alongside these poetic authors that spoke such beautiful truths about God that were born out of suffering and worship. So when we come back, we're going to discuss another hymn and how it can give you hope in your morning. Hope in the Morning is a listener sponsored program that encourages the weary, equips those who walk beside them, and evangelizes the lost.
If you want to partner with this ministry, visit HopeintheMorning.org. And may you be filled with hope as you continue this episode of Hope in the Morning. 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. These beautiful words were born out of tragedy. And today Kyle is here with us to share the backstory of how this hymn came to be. Yeah, another one of my personal favorites, but I think many people probably know this hymn even possibly more than the hymn we discussed earlier day by day. The hymn, it is well with my soul. It's become one of the most famous Christian hymns, especially in the 20th century and beyond. And again, it was birthed out of great sorrow and tragedy. And again, we shouldn't be surprised by this because the inspired songbook that God gives us, the Psalms, so many of the Psalms, which were songs to be sung by Israel, were birthed out of grief and tragedy.
But the Psalmists always, even in the depths of their despair, would turn and they would remember there's this turning point where they would turn to God, the source of all comfort. And so the hymn, it is well with my soul, was written by Horatio Spafford. He was a Chicagoan in the 1800s. He was a lawyer and a successful businessman. He had a wonderful family. He was married to Anna and they had five children. And I'm sure being a successful businessman in an American city in the 1800s, this is just going to be our life as normal.
We're just going to see our children raised and out of the home. But the Lord had other plans for Horatio and his family. In the year 1871, they experienced the first of many tragedies. They lost their one and only son. So they had five children, four girls and a son. And they lost their son in early 1871 to pneumonia.
And historians may think the city of Chicago, the year 1871, that was the year of the Great Fire. And Horatio, having his home and his business in the city, especially his business, was devastated by the fire. So they just came off the loss of their son. And now the source of his provision for his family was completely swept away by the fire.
God in His grace allowed him to rebuild the business and to become profitable again. But coming off of two tragedies so close together, Horatio and really just a desire to love his family, decided to send his...to really go on a family vacation. They're going to go across the Atlantic.
They're going to go to Europe. And God in His providence had a business emergency come up right before they're supposed to go. So Horatio said, Anna, you and the four girls, why don't you get on the boat, the ship, you guys go, I'll just meet you over there once I resolve this business situation. And so off they went. And four days into their journey, they were on a ship called the Villa du Harve, which is actually just a little sidebar.
That name of that ship is always going to be remembered. Because when hymns are written, they're poetry, there's lyrics, and then there's music. And oftentimes, especially in...not in modern hymnody, but earlier hymns, those were two separate things. Someone would find the poem and write a tune to sing. And those tunes were given names in addition to the poems. And the tune that sung to it as well is entitled Villa du Harve, the name of this ship.
And we'll understand why that's really important. So they're off, they're crossing the Atlantic in four days. That ship collided with an iron vessel that just completely decimated the ship that Anna and the four girls were on. History records that about 12, it took only 12 minutes for that ship to go down. And of course, there were rowboats and emergency boats out looking for survivors.
And the rowboat came upon Anna clinging to wreckage of the ship. And she was pulled aboard to safety, but there was no trace of the four girls. And so about nine days later, the ship that rescued her dropped her off at a port in Wales, and she sent a really a chilling telegram back to Horatio.
Again, we were not in the days of instant news. He was probably unaware of what might have happened. And this telegram came from Anna, from Wales back to Chicago, with these words, saved alone, what shall I do? And so he receives this and obviously, as a husband should, and a dad should just immediately gets on a ship. And he makes his way over to Europe to be with Anna and to comfort her. And so he boards a ship. And the sea captain was aware of the tragedy aware that Spafford was on the ship. And they were making the same exact passage that Anna and his four daughters did just weeks prior.
And the captain was aware of where this tragic accident happened. And he called Spafford to himself and said Horatio, we're about to go over what was essentially now the watery grave of his four daughters, and struck with sorrow, but also this peace that God promises that passes all understanding when we cast our anxieties on him. He then went to his cabin and then began penning these words. And again, understanding where these words came from, especially the first section of this hymn just has such deep meaning. When peace like a river attends my way, or when sorrows like sea billows roll, and he's on the sea billows that literally, in God's providence took the lives of his four daughters, whatever my lot thou has taught me to say, that it is well, it is well with my soul. That's such a beautiful testament of trust in the Lord.
You know, I know you and I both have children, and you have children as well, Robbie, and what a tragedy to lose all of your children. And yet he praised God in his sorrow. And I think that's one of the things that is so incredible about hymns is that not only are many of them born out of sorrow, but there's such rich theology to be had in them too. It's something that not a lot of current songs have. And you know, I know as a music pastor, you know, you're in charge of picking the music. What level of attention do you find yourself giving to the lyrics in the songs that you choose for the church that you're the pastor over? Well, if you go to the passages in the New Testament especially that talk about musical worship in the church, Colossians 3, 16 and 17, Ephesians 5, 18 and 19, Paul there in those letters to the churches teaches us that music is a teaching tool. We're to teach and admonish one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs. And so if the purpose for music in the church obviously is for the glory of God, that's the vertical aspect, but the horizontal aspect as we sing words in the context of gathered churches, we are teaching and admonishing one another, good or bad. So if you select lyrics that are unclear at best, at worst unbiblical, you're teaching your people and you're putting in their hearts, in their minds, we all know the power of music. It helps us remember things. Sometimes helps us remember things we wish we could forget, but it puts things into our hearts and minds that are easily recalled. And so as a music pastor or anybody that has any influence in selecting songs for the church has to be very careful to say, when we sing this song, what are we teaching one another?
What are we embedding in our hearts? And one of the beauties of the Psalms and then examples of songs like this as well is you should have an idea of understanding that our people, when they gather, we have no idea, sometimes we do, sometimes we don't, of what's going on in their lives. But the reality is at least one person is grieving, one person is doubting, one person is discouraged, probably the majority of our people. And so we also need to be careful as we select songs that we put songs in the mouths and in the hearts of our people that allow them to do what these hymns do. Be real about life in a fallen world. It's full of trials. It's full of sorrows. But then what do we do with that? We can, the psalmist allow us to complain to God.
Life is hard, but there's always a turning point. There's always a but God. Maybe we're overwhelmed with our sin like Psalm 130. And he says, if Lord, you would mark iniquities who could stand.
And then there's the, just the little English word, but. But with you, God, there's forgiveness of sin. And Psalm 103, we're prone to forget. And that's why he says, bless the Lord on my soul and don't forget all of his benefits. And he needs to be reminded.
He's a sinner, but God takes that sin and casts it as far as the East from the West. And then like Sandel Berg in her hymn day by day, he turns his attention to the truth that as a father pities his children. That's exactly how our heavenly father takes care of us. And so our people, yes, need to, Psalm 150 moments, praise the Lord, let everything that has breath in me. Praise the Lord.
We need to be reminded of his greatness and his power. We also need to give them words that allow them to express life in this world is hard, but I'm not alone. Yeah.
Yeah. I recently was reading a book. I think it was called Psalms of Lament and it's actually, it's a woman who lost her son and she, she writes poetry that comes off very much like the Psalms, but she talks about how the Psalms do just what you were saying, how it's like a point out of ourselves, the Lord of saying like, this is my problem.
And it's all this, you know, wow. Like I'm just going through this and this and this and this. And then it's a shift as we remember who God is and who we can place our burdens on. And there's a shift that you see in the Psalms even of from worry to worship. And that's, you know, that's what I've tried to do with the poetry in here of really trying to be honest with the griefs that we face, but then turn it to who do we serve and who's over all of our grief. And, you know, I would just, I would really encourage the listeners that if you're in a season of just needing to pour your heart out to the Lord, which really, when are we not in a season like that? There's so many rich hymns in Hope in the Morning and they're actually printed, which I love. You know, we have all of the printed music in here so that if you are a music pastor, you can actually read through that.
Or if you're a musician, you can read through that. But then you can also go to Hopeinthemorning.org and listen to them and just meditate on the goodness of God and how He is above all of our circumstances and that even in our heaviest moments, our deepest, darkest moments of despair that we can turn it to worship because we serve a good and loving God. May you be blessed today in your morning and may you find hope in the power of hymns today.
Hope in the Morning is a nonprofit ministry that seeks to encourage the hurting, equip those who walk beside them, and evangelize the lost with the hope of Jesus Christ. To partner with our ministry or to make a donation in your loved one's honor, please visit Hopeinthemorning.org. Your donation helps keep these stories of hope on the air and helps tangibly meet the needs of the hurting. Have you ever walked through the deep suffering of a friend and been at a loss for what to say? How can you comfort someone when they've just lost a loved one or been diagnosed with cancer? Join us on Hope in the Morning to hear testimonies of people who've gone through life's hardest trials and share what you can do to serve others in similar circumstances. To learn more, visit us at Hopeinthemorning.org.
