Tolerably Well

Psalm 23    (NRSV)

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.
    He makes me lie down in green pastures;
he leads me beside still waters;
    he restores my soul.
He leads me in right paths
    for his name’s sake.

Even though I walk through the darkest valley,
    I fear no evil;
for you are with me;
    your rod and your staff—
    they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me
    in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with oil;
    my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
    all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord
    my whole life long.

One of the things that I have heard from my friends who don't live in the United States is that we have a rather unique custom --- OK we have many unique customs --- but this is one that I frequently hear about.

Let me ask you: When you meet somebody --- how do you greet them?

We often great each other by saying: "Good Morning, How Are You?" and we answer "fine" or "I am good" and move along --- because the truth of the matter is --- we really are not asking how you are doing --- and we don't really want an answer.

Because if you give us truthful answer --- we might be stuck in a conversation that we really are not interested in.

I mentioned in our weekly email that I had the privilege to attend the funeral of Frank Gossett's father.  It was held in a beautiful church on the west side of town and the service featured amazing music from the church choir and a number of pastors and others sharing about Frank's dads life.

When his pastor finally got up to give the witness he based his message on the 23rd Psalm and a phrase that Frank's dad would often use.

When asked how he was doing he would say: TOLERABLY WELL

I don't know about you, but I was fascinated by that phrase.

Some scripture speak so deeply to our souls that we memorize them so that they are always right there in our hearts and minds.

Without a doubt, Psalm 23 is one of those.

         For some of you, it is best when read in the King James Version

Psalm 23  (KJV)

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.

He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

That certainly is the version that is imprinted on my soul.

Someone once said that:

"The psalm itself is green pasture; the psalm itself is still water; the psalm itself restores my soul."

What I love about the 23rd Psalm is how personal it is.

Did you notice that there are no references to "we" or "us" or "they," but only "my" and "me" and "I" and "You."

Tradition says that David wrote this Psalm following the betrayal and death of his son Absalom.

And I can't tell you how many times this Psalm has been requested by a family when they are experiencing a loss.

Obviously, part of what speaks to us is David's pathos and vulnerablity --- but also I think it is the simple beauty of the Psalm.

         And within this simple Psalm are all aspects of life.

                  green pastures and still waters

                  dark valleys, enemies and adversities

But we also are able to sense David's personal experience with God.

         David is not writing as a poet in writing in some garret

                  He is writing as someone who has been there

That is what I love about this Psalm

David writes not about OUR shepherd --- or even Your shepherd--- he writes about HIS Shepherd

"The Lord is my Shepherd. He makes me lie down . . . He leads me . . . He restores my soul."

He goes on:

"I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me . . . You anoint my head with oil."

And he ends:

"Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever."

David understood pain

Absalom, his son, had tried to overthrow his father, David --- and actually was successful for a time.

         But in the end, Absalom was killed in the battle of Ephraim's Wood.

When David heard of his death he cries out:

“Oh, my son Absalom! Oh, my son! My son Absalom! If only I had died instead of you! Oh, Absalom, my son! My son!”      2 Samuel 18:33  (CEB)

His kingdom was in jeopardy

         His beloved son was dead

And yet David sang this song of trust

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

Horatio Spafford, was a prominent Chicago attorney and devout Christian.  His buisness was thriving and he owned several properties thoughout the city.  He and his beloved wife had four beautiful daughters and one son.

         Horatio felt blessed

Just as Horatio seemed "to make it" their son died in a tragic accident.  And then, the Great Chicago Fire destroyed virtually every property that he owned.

In 1873, Horatio decided to treat his wife and daughters to a much-needed escape from the turmoil.

He sent them on a boat trip to Europe, with plans to join them shortly after wrapping up some business in Chicago.

Just a few days later, he received a dreadful telegram from his wife, “Saved alone…”

It bore the excruciating news that family’s ship had collided with another ship and all four of his daughters had perished.

Horatio was on his way to meet his heartbroken wife, passing over the same sea that had just claimed the lives of his remaining children. It was then that he put his pen to paper and wrote these words:

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.

We sang this beautiful song Friday as we gathered to remember Dr. Jim Cumming's life.

These are some powerful words that often comfort us in times of pain --- much like those of Psalm 23

But it wasn't until I came across this story that I began to rethink it.

Zack Hunt shares his story:

When my wife and I suffered our first miscarriage, circumstances dictated that I would find myself driving alone that night through western Massachusetts back to Connecticut.

I sat in absolute silence for the first leg of the trip, unable to do anything other than keep the steering wheel straight and my foot on the gas pedal.

The silence hurt, but the prospect of listening to other people’s happiness on the radio hurt even more.

I sat in that painful silence for a long time, thinking about what could have been, what should have been, tears rolling down my cheeks as I fought the urged to scream profanities at God.

Then something strange happened.

Or at least it was strange to me because it was not the sort of thing I had ever found myself doing before.

I felt somehow compelled to sing and without consciously willing myself to do so, the words seemed to force themselves across my lips, words I had not sang or even thought about for many years.

He goes on:

How he could pen the words “It is well with my soul” after such an unimaginable tragedy baffles the mind. If I put pen to paper in such a moment I’m sure I would be far more likely to curse God than write a song praising God for “blest assurance” and “peace like a river.” In trying to understand how Spafford could possibly write such beautiful, hopeful words in the aftermath of such a painful, hopeless experience, I’ve long chalked it up to him simply being a better Christian than I, a man with far stronger faith in God than I can even begin to comprehend.

But as I find myself singing Spafford’s hymn once more as I mourn the death of a friend taken from her family far, far too soon, I’m beginning to wonder if perhaps I’ve misunderstood Spafford all these years.

I’m beginning to wonder if perhaps Spafford wasn’t so much penning words of praise in the midst of tragedy as he was trying to convince himself everything was going to be ok.

Instead of hearing “it is well” as joyful words, I’m beginning to wonder if perhaps Spafford was taking on the mantle of the Psalmist and the writer of Lamentations and countless other biblical writers – even Jesus himself – who have bared the naked anguish of their soul to God in times when it felt like God had abandoned them.

Perhaps instead of hearing “it is well” as a way of putting a smile on a difficult situation, we should hear Spafford trying to convince himself that despite all evidence to the contrary, everything is going to be ok.

Perhaps instead of singing “It is well” as an act of praise, Spafford sang it as an act of protest against the hopelessness that surrounded him and the pain that threatened to overcome his soul.

Or maybe that’s just how I find myself singing it today.

I long for peace like a river and blest assurance would be great right about now but truth be told, they feel like a hopeless mirage.

And yet I still find myself singing those words.

I think that is the same message that Frank's dad was saying when he would proclaim that he was Tolerably Well.

He wasn't saying everything was fine --- but he was saying that in the midst of the hardships --- the pain --- the tragedies --- that all would be well.

And until then he was Tolerably Well

We all know what pain and hurt is like

         We can let it destroy us --- consume us --- if we are not careful

Or we can stand with the Psalmist, with Horatio Spafford and Frank's dad and remind the world that even when things aren't right we remain Tolerably Well because:

Psalm 23  (KJV)

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.

He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.