Grace and peace, church family.

As I write this, our noon Midweek Prayer Service has just come to an end.

I was deeply moved by the many who gathered in Robb Chapel as we lifted our hands and prayers for those impacted by the devastating Hill Country floods that occurred on July 4. Truly, it was a holy moment. In a world quick to scroll past pain, I’m so thankful to be part of a church that pauses, leans in and believes in the power of prayer.

As we prayed, my mind went to two very specific places.

First, the story behind one of the most enduring hymns of the church, It Is Well With My Soul. Horatio Spafford, the man who wrote it, knew suffering. After losing his young son and much of his business in the Great Chicago Fire, he endured even greater tragedy when his four daughters drowned in a shipwreck crossing the Atlantic. Only his wife would survive.

During his voyage to meet up with his wife, it is said that the captain of the ship let Horatio know that they were crossing the spot where the shipwreck had occurred, and it was there, at that spot, that he penned the words,

Those aren’t the words of someone untouched by hardship. They’re the declaration of someone who knew that even in deep sorrow, God is present, and even during great pain and lament, peace is possible.

That truth reminded me of another moment, this one in Mark’s Gospel.

After feeding the 5,000, Jesus sent His disciples across the lake while He went up on a mountainside to pray. As night fell and a storm rolled in, Mark told us something beautiful and often overlooked:

He saw the disciples straining at the oars, because the wind was against them. – Mark 6:48

Jesus saw them – from the mountain, in the dark, in the storm. And here’s what I love: He didn’t stay where He was. He walked out to them on the water, climbed into the boat and stood with them until the winds died down.

This afternoon, in my Bible during that prayer service, I wrote three simple reminders next to that story:

Whether you’re walking through floodwaters – literal or emotional – take heart. You are not unseen. You are not alone.

The same Jesus who saw His disciples in the storm ... sees you. The same Savior who came to them … comes to you. And the same Lord who stood with them in their struggle … stands with you now.

Therein lies our comfort and the hope and good news of the Gospel.

– Mark