What a crazy 2 weeks y’all! Sorry for the delay in sending out a blog! But we are here now so lets do this!
It is well, It is well, with my soul….
One of my favorite hymns of all time has always been “It Is Well With My Soul” by Horatio Spafford. And the story behind how he wrote this song is incredible. So Spafford lived in America with his family and they decided to go to Europe on vacation. Spafford sent his family to travel before him because he had some work to finish here in America before he could join them. Tragically that ship went down and his family (except his wife) did not survive. On his way over to Europe the captain calls him up to the bridge and says this is where your family passed. Then he goes and writes this beautiful hymn. In a time of utter sadness this man had a peace about him. In a time where he had nothing left God gave him a peace that is hard to comprehend.
So now to this last 2 weeks. My team here on the farm has been getting real close and growing in our relationships with each other and with God. But not all things are easy. Unfortunately one of my team members, Mitch, had to go home for personal reasons. And that has been really sad because we had a little family. So after this and just how isolated we have been on the Farm our team leaders decided to take a little 3 day get-away to Jaco. Jaco is where the rest of our squad is this month in Costa Rica. Its a big tourist beach town, so a little time away we know would do good for us and reenergize us! We crush the rest of that week in ministry and after our time at the school with the kids on Saturday we head off to Jaco.
We get into Jaco at around 10:30 and I get a random text from my sisters best friend. I do not think anything of it and send her my mother’s phone number. I go to bed ready for these next 3 days and just a time to get ready for what is next to come. I was planning on sleeping in and just enjoying some extra sleep! For some reason though I woke up at exactly 6:30. Man, I was sooooooo annoyed but it worked out. 5 minuets later my mother texted me and gave me some not great news. My little sister Lauren last night had a seizure at her friends house. This came as a shock because she has never had one before and to say I was worried is an understatement. So got up called my mom and just talked some stuff out. At the E.R. they did not find anything and set my sister up with a neurologist and while writing this the last I heard the earliest appointment is in June. (so please pray for that) Well the rest of that day and almost all of the next Lauren was on my heart and my mind. I continued asking God why did this happen and why when I could not even be there to help?
On the second day for sunset some of us decided to go on a hike to an abandoned building where we could see the sunset. The building and the sunset where beautiful to say the least. Afterwards we decided to sit there in the twilight and just to talk. This led to talking about worship and our favorite songs. For me It Is Well With My Soul has always been up there. Then in that empty place we sang and worshiped our Creator. When “It Is Well” came on I just felt an overwhelming peace come over me. I know Lauren will be fine and God has her. God is good and so sovereign. We might not know what we need but in His perfect timing He is there for us and gives us what we need. In that abandoned place in Costa Rica in the setting sun He gave me exactly what I needed. Peace.
God bless and tell someone you love them!
Daniel J. Ford
Love you. Continuing to pray for you. You are right: it is well with my soul is our heart’s cry, even when circumstances do not look like we think they should. That’s why His word says, that we walk by faith not by sight.