I Heard an Old, Old Story

It is Well With My Soul: Finding Peace in Our Brokenness

Good Morning Church! If you would, please open your Bibles to 2 Corinthians 1:3-11

This is going to be a difficult sermon… I just want to put that out there from the beginning so that there is no confusion… The reason I say that this is going to be difficult is because it is a raw and honest conversation about struggle and hurt. It’s about the emotional and spiritual reality that everyone will face in life… pain, sorrow, and heartache are inevitable… But Christian, I’m here today to let you know that it is okay to not be okay, and show you how that truth can lead to healing, a deeper faith with the almighty, and a stronger relationship between you and the Father.

By the end of this sermon I pray that we, as believers, will begin to embrace our struggles as part of our Christian journey. That we begin to understand and acknowledge the fact that feeling overwhelmed or broken is a common aspect of life, rooted in the reality of living in a fallen world, and that these experiences should direct us towards God's grace and community support, rather than isolation. The Church was meant to be a hospital for the sick and wounded, not a sanctuary for the redeemed… and as such you shouldn’t have to feel like you have to put on a mask of perfection when you come to church… This church should be a place where everyone feels safe to share their pain and suffering.… where they feel safe enough to ask the difficult questions, even if that means questioning God Himself… and it should be a place where they feel safe enough to ask for support in the darkest times of their lives… Brothers and Sisters… When the church stops being a hospital for the hurt and the wounded… it becomes a social club for the righteous

One thing that I have loved about this sermon series is the research into how some hymns were written and how they came to be songs that have lived on for generations. The sermon this week came to life after hearing one of my favorite old hymns and actually diving into the lyrics and the story behind them. Written in 1873 by Horatio Spafford, It is well with my soul, was penned by a man in deep remorse as he reflected on a lifetime of pain and anguish. Horatio was on a ship bound for Europe to meet with his wife after she and their 4 daughter were involved in a maritime accident where the boat they were traveling on collided with another and all 4 of his daughters were lost at sea, his wife survived. Several years before the maritime accident, Horatio and his wife lost their son to pneumonia and in 1871 they lost most of their business in the Great Chicago Fire… The trip to Europe was supposed to be a family vacation where they would see Dwight L Moody preach...This man, while in the midst of what may be the deepest sorrow any of us could ever imagine, still regarded His salvation and His Savior as greater than any earthly loss, or any earthly turmoil he would face.

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.

Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come, Let this blest assurance control, That Christ hath regarded my helpless estate, And hath shed His own blood for my soul. It is well with my soul, It is well, it is well with my soul.

To say that life can be difficult is the understatement of the century… We are exposed to natural disasters, terrorist attacks, school shootings, and we as believers in Christ are starting to get a sense of what other Christians across the globe have been experiencing as persecution ramps up against us even here in the US.

By a show of hands, who here remembers when Kennedy was assassinated? What about the Olympics Munch Massacre in 1972? How about the Car bomb in front of the Lebanese US Embassy that killed 63 people and injured well over 100 in 1983? What about 9/11/2001? Now lets switch gears a little… what about Hurricane Katrina in 2005? or the Joplin Tornado in 2011? There are so many stories of major, life-changing catastrophies in the world today and during the aftermath of every major catastrophic event, I have always heard comments from the secular world asking me how I could believe in God when these things are allowed to happen… I mean honestly, how could a loving and caring God allow wars, or famines, or plagues, or floods, or cancer to happen?

My answer… Even in the face of monumental personal or global tragedies... my faith in God… My love for Him… My trust in His grace and provision… cannot be shaken out of my existence in the moment that tragedy strikes… My beliefs in who God is and what he has done, for not only me, but for all of His people, are realities that have developed over a lifetime of revelation… But even knowing all of this… in the middle of the pain I still cry out to my Father in protest and lament...

As humans, we struggle to come up with an explanation for the pain that we are experiencing.… and often we fall short… and when we don’t know what to do or how to deal with loss, especially on a large scale… what do we do?? We lament and we protest! We scream out in anger to God and we tell Him that we can’t understand why this bad thing happened… and sometimes we demand to know why he didn’t do anything to prevent it!!

Is it wrong to do this??? Is it something that believers shouldn’t do… or is it just some unwritten man made rule that we are supposed to follow just because... like “real men don’t cry”… or that you're not supposed to wear white after labor day??? So many times I have heard people in church… believers in Christ say that even in the hard times, we shouldn’t question God and then say things like

“It’s all part of God’s curse on Earth”

“It’s God’s judgement”

“it’s meant for a warning”

It’s ultimately for our own good”

or even “God is sovereign, so that must make it all okay in the end!”

But what does the Bible say about it… If you are able will you please stand with me as we give God glory and honor as we read from His Word

Christian Standard Bible Chapter 1

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort. 4 He comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any kind of affliction, through the comfort we ourselves receive from God. 5 For just as the sufferings of Christ overflow to us, so also through Christ our comfort overflows. 6 If we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation. If we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings that we suffer. 7 And our hope for you is firm, because we know that as you share in the sufferings, so you will also share in the comfort.

8 We don’t want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, of our affliction that took place in Asia. We were completely overwhelmed—beyond our strength—so that we even despaired of life itself. 9 Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death, so that we would not trust in ourselves but in God who raises the dead. 10 He has delivered us from such a terrible death, and he will deliver us. We have put our hope in him that he will deliver us again 11 while you join in helping us by your prayers. Then many will give thanks on our behalf for the gift that came to us through the prayers of many.

Let us pray… Heavenly Father, we are honored to be in your presence this morning as we study your Word. Father help us to understand you more as we process what it means to suffer and show us how to follow you even in the hard times… Lord, Help us to understand that it is indeed okay to not be okay… and teach us to lean on you when we can no longer carry ourselves in our darkest times. Father I humbly ask that you would remove me from the pulpit so that your voice and your message is what is spoken today! We love you Lord and we ask all of this in the might name of Jesus… Amen

You may be seated.

In the Bible there are so many instances lament, protest, anger, and baffled questions… It may actually surprise to to know that it is all aimed at God and that it all came from those who loved Him and trusted Him the most… not from His enemies

The book of Job is basically a whole book of protest, but even through his outrageously bold complaints to and about the Creator God, God declares Job as being more right than his friends who tried to explain why Job was suffering...

In Job 19:2–11 Job responds to Bildad, one of his friends who is trying to counsel him with this remark...

Job 19:2–11 CSB

How long will you torment me and crush me with words? You have humiliated me ten times now, and you mistreat me without shame. Even if it is true that I have sinned, my mistake concerns only me. If you really want to appear superior to me and would use my disgrace as evidence against me, then understand that it is God who has wronged me and caught me in his net. I cry out, “Violence!” but get no response; I call for help, but there is no justice. He has blocked my way so that I cannot pass through; he has veiled my paths with darkness. He has stripped me of my honor and removed the crown from my head. He tears me down on every side so that I am ruined. He uproots my hope like a tree. His anger burns against me, and he regards me as one of his enemies.

Jeremiah in his lament not only wishes that he had never been born,

Jeremiah 15:10 CSB

Woe is me, my mother, that you gave birth to me, a man who incites dispute and conflict in all the land. I did not lend or borrow, yet everyone curses me.

but accuses God of cheating Him...

Jeremiah 15:18 ESV

Why is my pain unceasing, my wound incurable, refusing to be healed? Will you be to me like a deceitful brook, like waters that fail?

And just in case those two cases weren’t enough...There is a whole book in the Bible called Lamentations that is a powerfully painful book that was written in the aftermath of God’s judgement on Jerusalem as the people cried out against the Lord… and, I don’t know if you are aware of this or not, but did you know that there are more psalms of lament than there are of joy and thanksgiving???

The writers of the Bible wrote as they cried out in pain and protest because of their knowledge of God and who He is… Their lament was borne out of the substantial contrast between what they know and what they have lived and seen.… It is precisely because of their relationship with God and knowing Him for who He is that they are so angry and upset… They know that God is loving toward all that he has made

Psalm 145:9 CSB

The Lord is good to everyone; his compassion rests on all he has made.

but if that is true, then why does He allow things to happen that seem to indicate otherwise???

Christian… it was not an accident that there are so many verses of lament and anguish in the divinely inspired Word of God..… These are words that god has given us so that we know it’s okay to not be okay

Now for some good news… All of the negative things we experience.. the pain, the sorrow, the heartache, the loss… in the midst of the trial, we are already in the process of moving toward sanctification… the process of being conformed into the image of Christ.

So in all of the trials and struggles that we are bound to face in this life… what exactly do we have to look forward to as we are conformed to the image of Christ. Here are 4 things that I believe are revealed to us in our times of lament.

1. There is Grace in Our Weakness

2 Corinthians 12:7-10 shows us that our human weakness reveals our need for God’s grace in our lives.

2 Corinthians 12:7–10 CSB

especially because of the extraordinary revelations. Therefore, so that I would not exalt myself, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to torment me so that I would not exalt myself. Concerning this, I pleaded with the Lord three times that it would leave me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is perfected in weakness.” Therefore, I will most gladly boast all the more about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may reside in me. So I take pleasure in weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and in difficulties, for the sake of Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

What Paul described as a thorn in his flesh was something that tormented him throughout his life of service. Though the Bible never tells us what the thorn in his flesh was, it is a symbol of human imperfection.

In his early life, Saul was a proud man… as many of us are… He was proud of the knowledge that he had about God from the scriptures and the laws and he followed them to the letter… or so he thought. He was proud of everything that He did right up to the moment that Jesus revealed himself to him on the roadway.

That pride was still present after Saul had been forgiven and Redeemed. As Paul served Christ, it was his pride that resisted this weakness… this thorn in his side. What Paul failed to realize was that weakness strips us of our our pride… it strips us of our self reliance and makes us search for and reach out to the One who is strong.

As Paul prays for God to remove this thorn… this weakness from his life, God denied his request…

Has there ever been a time in your life where you have prayed fervently for something, and God said no? For me… It was for my Grandpa to be cured from his cancer… I prayed and prayed for a miracle to happen and much like Paul, I didn’t get what I asked for… In fact, much like Paul, I received something far greater, the grace to endure… Isaiah 40:29 says

Isaiah 40:29 CSB

He gives strength to the faint and strengthens the powerless.

What Paul learned in that moment was that God uses our imperfections as opportunities to display His grace. Though he pleads for its removal, Paul’s weakness became a platform for God’s strength as God shifted the focus of Paul’s perspective toward reliance on the grace of the Almighty.

What this passage reveals is a countercultural truth: embracing our struggles invites God's power into our lives and encourages us to find strength in dependence on Him. We, as believers must stop viewing weakness as a disqualification because weakness is the doorway to deeper grace and connection with our Father.

2. God's Presence is Deepest Felt in Our Brokenness

Psalm 34:17-18

Believers and non-believers alike often associate God’s presence with mountaintop moments… Afterall wouldn’t you feel closer to god after a major life victory, or when you are being thoroughly blessed, or during a major life breakthrough??? I hate to spoil it for you, but Scripture tells us the opposite… It’s one of life's paradoxes… God often draws closest in the valley… in the middle of your pain… and in the broken places.

Psalm 34:17-18 says that

Psalm 34:17–18 CSB

The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears, and rescues them from all their troubles. The Lord is near the brokenhearted; he saves those crushed in spirit.

God is near the brokenhearted… He doesn’t run from you in your moment of pain, He runs toward you...

I remember the first time Xander was riding his bike without training wheels and he took off down the sidewalk in front of our house. I ran behind him a few steps and then stopped and continued to cheer him on… right up to the moment that he crashed! When he crashed, I didn’t run away from him like a criminal from a crime scene… I ran to him…

Matthew 7:9-11 says this about our Heavenly Father

Matthew 7:9–11 CSB

Who among you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask him.

I want to point something out real quick about the Xander story… Xander had to move away from me and crash before I ran to him...

We get into the dark and lonely places by our own decision to do things the way we want to do them and when we find ourselves at the bottom of the pit, that’s when we look up and cry out for help. It is in that moment when we turn toward the Father that we find ourselves in His presence…

It is in the dark and lonely places where brokenness becomes a place for transformation. In Genesis 32:24-30 we read a story about Jacob as he is on his way back to his homeland. He sends his family ahead in different groups, in an attempt to please his brother Esau, and while he waits, Jacob ends up wrestling with God by the river all night.

Genesis 32:25–28 CSB

When the man saw that he could not defeat him, he struck Jacob’s hip socket as they wrestled and dislocated his hip. Then he said to Jacob, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.” But Jacob said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” “What is your name?” the man asked. “Jacob,” he replied. “Your name will no longer be Jacob,” he said. “It will be Israel because you have struggled with God and with men and have prevailed.”

Jacob ended up being broken at Peniel. He limped as a result of God touching his hip, but he also carried a new name and a blessing as a result of his meeting with the Lord...

The pain from our past can leave lasting scars… thorns in our side that we beg to have removed, but God, in His infinite wisdom, often leaves the scar as a reminder for us to focus on Him… to lean on Him… to seek Him in everything that we do… and we end up changed as a result.

God's nearness to the crushed in spirit offers a profound hope, reminding us that admitting our struggles can lead to the embrace of divine comfort and healing, fostering genuine relationships with God those who we share our testimony with.

3. Rest Comes in Christ's Invitation

Christ understood that trails, pain, and Heartache are exhausting… That’s why he offers us rest in Matthew 11:28-30.

Matthew 11:28–30 CSB

“Come to me, all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, because I am lowly and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

As I was researching this sermon, I came across a story that reminds me a lot of myself… So I changed the name of the main character to Adam...making this a first person story… It went like this...

“How are you this morning?” Jesus asked.

“I’m fine, thank you,” I replied. “Is there anything I can do for you today?”

“Yes, there is,” Jesus said. “I have a wagon with three stones in it, and I need someone to pull it up the hill for me. Are you willing?”

“Of course; I’d love to do something for you! Those stones don’t look very heavy, and the wagon is in great shape. Where would you like me to take it?”

Jesus gave me specific instructions, sketching a map in the dust at the side of the road. Cross the forest to get to the village; cross the village to get to the path; stay on the path until you reach the top.

So I set off cheerfully. The wagon pulled a bit behind me, but the burden was an easy one. I began to whistle as I walked briskly through the forest. The sun peeked through the trees and warmed my back. What a joy to be able to help the Lord, I thought, enjoying the beautiful day.

As I entered the village, I saw a man selling colored stones, slightly bigger than the ones Jesus gave him, and much more glamorous in my humble opinion. I’ll bet Jesus would want a few of these, too, I thought. I found that only two of their size would fit in the wagon alongside the rocks Jesus gave me, so I purchased a couple and went on my way, proud of my own ambition to do even more than what Jesus had asked of me.

As I neared the end of the village—with the path in sight—I saw a signpost that read, “Freshly tumbled stones, two miles east! Rounder, smoother, and more polished than any you’ve ever seen!” Sure, it was off the path Jesus directed me to take, but I could easily fit two more stones in my knapsack, maybe more—and Jesus would be so proud of me for carrying more than he asked! I could already picture the impressed look on Jesus’s face: “My, my, you’re even stronger than I realized!” Jesus would say.

As I went along, I collected more and more rocks—some from nearby towns, others from fellow travelers, still others from paths Jesus never asked me to go. I even purchased a new wagon—heavier, yes, but it gave me more space to fit my new rocks, and the tires looked to be more durable than the ones on Jesus’s wagon. Jesus doesn’t know how steep these hills can be, I thought.

With every mile I traveled, my load grew fuller and fuller, heavier and heavier. The wagon felt huge and awkward as it lumbered and swayed over the ruts in the road. No longer was I singing praises. Instead, resentment began to build inside, especially during the steeper parts of the journey. How could Jesus expect me to carry such a heavy load? I complained.

Frustrated, I began to entertain thoughts of giving up and letting the wagon roll backward. About that time Jesus came to my side and asked me what was wrong.

“You gave me a job that is too hard for me,” I sobbed.

Jesus walked over to the wagon. “What is all this that you’re carrying?” he asked with a tone of purer compassion than I had ever heard. One by one, Jesus unloaded the wagon, placing stones of various sizes and colors on his own back, until only the three stones he had given me were left in the wagon.

“I know you were trying to help,” Jesus said gently. “But when you are weighed down with all these cares, you will not have the strength to do what I have asked of you.”

As silly as the story seems, all of us have taken up a burden that Jesus never asked us to carry… often with notable motives, but has had to lay them back down because the burden was simply too much.

Jesus invites us to come to Him with our struggles, offering rest to our souls. And unlike any other quote...unquote deity, Jesus understands human struggles… He know first hand what its like to walk in our shoes, because He did walk in our shoes. Jesus calls us to acknowledge our burdens, come to Him… and promises us rest. Now, here’s the kicker… He wants us to come as we are… No where in scripture can you find the phrase “pick your self up, dust yourself off, go and clean yourself up, then follow Jesus… and there’s not a verse that tells you to climb your own way out of the pit that your in, then you can follow Jesus… Come to Christ just as you are and he will embrace you and your imperfections and he will give you peace and restoration

Now, reflecting back just a minute or two… I said that Jesus understands our struggles because he came to earth and He walked in our shoes… He has an intimate knowledge of our needs, wants, desires, hurts, and struggles because he walked in our shoes. And as He walked in our shoes he often felt the need to withdraw to spend time in communion with the Father. and that leads to point 4.

4. Peace is Found in Prayer

The world looks for peace in possessions, power, or people but none of these ever last… Possessions fade away, power is temporary, and people… well people change or like possessions… they fade away too… But true peace remains!! True peace is not the absence of problems, but being in the presence of God Almighty…

we experience his presence through prayer. When we pray, we hand over the weight of our worries and anxieties to the God who is bigger than all of our problems.

Jesus withdrew to pray as a regular spiritual practice to maintain a close connection with God

Mark 1:35 CSB

Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he got up, went out, and made his way to a deserted place; and there he was praying.

Jesus withdrew to pray after ministering to the sick, to find strength for His ministry, to seek guidance for important decisions, in preparation for sermons, after hearing about the loss of John the Baptist, before and after the feeding of the 5000, and in the Garden of Gethsemane the night before his crucifixion.

Jesus withdrew when he needed to feel the peace and the presence of the Father.

In the book of Philippians 4:6-7 Paul urges believers to bring their anxieties and concerns to God in prayer, which is a practical expression of acknowledging our imperfections.

Philippians 4:6–7 CSB

Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

Peace comes through open communication with God and communication comes through prayer. Church… Prayer is not merely some ritual… it is a vulnerable dialogue that transforms anxiety into peace and opens hearts to up to the surpassing understanding and unwavering support of God the Father!!!

If you want to know the key to trading worry for worship… make prayer your first response… not your last resort!

As the praise team comes forward for our closing hymn,

I just want you to know that Brokenness is not a sign of defeat, it is a set up for an encounter with the Almighty! In Scripture, Christ exemplifies humanity's acknowledgment of pain and suffering, particularly through His own trials and ultimate sacrifice. His interactions with the outcasts and broken display God's heart for those who struggle. He embodies the understanding that brokenness can lead to profound transformation and hope, reinforcing that He is a source of light in our darkest moments and showcasing that He is a Redeemer who specializes in restoring the broken.

Listen to me here… God is not looking for perfection but authenticity. Admitting our struggles is an act of faith and it demonstrates trust in God's restorative power rather than self-reliance. Learn to lean on Lord in everything that you do… He’s the only one who will never let you down!

Let us pray.

Heavenly Father, We thank you for this day… We thank you for the opportunity to freely come together when so many others around the world cannot. Father give us the courage to take off our masks of perfection and show our brothers and sisters that it truly is okay to not be okay. Father remind us daily that there are so many people out there that are hurting and need you and give us the strength to lead them to you… Help us to be the hospital for the hurting that you created us to be… And Father, regardless of what trials we face in our lives, give us the strength and courage to declare without hesitation… that it is well… it is well with my soul… Amen

The altar is open to you to use as you see fit… If there is anyone here that knows about Jesus, but doesn’t personally know Him as your Lord and Savior… I would love to talk to you about Him and introduce you to the saving grace that leads to eternal life.