One of my favorite hymns is “It Is Well With My Soul”. 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.”
While I was reading Isaiah 60:17b-22, I found myself drawn to the strange description of life without the sun and moon. Nothing seems more predictable than the rhythm of daytime and nighttime. The sun comes up, the sun goes down. No surprises there. Nothing to rattle my nerves or cause a seismic shift in my plans. I like the uninterrupted pattern. I know what to expect. But that is not what well-being (peace/shalom) looks like. Peace is not found in the rhythm of predictable regularity, but the gift of God’s presence. Well-being is fully experienced when the Lord is our everlasting light–when we revolve around God with our eyes fixed upon God.
Life is life–full of joys and sorrows, frustrations and fulfillment, uncertainties and hope, struggle and rest, demanding obligations and refreshing surprises. Even so, it is well with my soul. God is the source of my well-being.
40 Days Without Violence 