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Wednesday, 17 January 2007 06:55 |
| | Janese Johnson |
"Amazing grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me..."
ÇƒÓ John Newton, "Amazing Grace"
ï
The song that has touched so many lives came from a man who lived a pretty wretched life until grace came into his life and changed him for the remainder of his days.
He came to believe that if amazing grace came into his sorry life, than surely grace could touch the lives of all beings. Grace is considered to be a blessing or gift in our life that is not earned or deserved. It is a blessing that comes as a surprise when it is least expected.
In
1748, John Newton did not believe much in a higher power or even that
Divine Grace existed. He was raised by a seaman and learned quite young
the ways of the sea. When he was 11, he went to sea with his father.
After his father retired, he was left in service on a man-of-war ship.
Newton fled
that, only to be captured and sent to a slave ship as a servant where
he was beaten daily. His first experience of grace came when an old
friend of his fatherës took John in to help man his ship. John then
rose to the rank of captain of his own ship, where he did become the
wretched being that he later claimed himself to be.
He considered
himself a wretched being because he was a captain on one of the slave
ships that transported 6 million slaves to the Americas in the 18th
century. He did not treat the slaves as humans, but merely as
merchandise for which he would get paid dearly. It wasnët until one
fateful day that his life would change forever and bring him to a place
of true compassion for all mankind.
On May 10, 1748,
John experienced a storm unlike any he had ever experienced before. He
believed that his crew would all die that evening and there was nothing
he could do but pray.
Up until this
point, he had not believed in God, but he decided he had nothing to
lose ÇƒÓ if there was truly a God, then it wouldnët hurt to pray right
then asking for help. John also believed that if God did not exist,
then what loss would it be to pray on his last night alive?
Through the
tumultuous evening that John Newton believed to be his last day on
earth, he reflected deeply on his life. What he realized was that he
had lived a life that was not much of anything and it was a life to be
ashamed of.
He thought hard
and deeply about everything and when they were saved from that
tumultuous storm, he surely knew that it was Godës grace that was the
reason.
He believed that since God saved a wretch like him, then surely he wanted to live a life to be proud of.
He wrote the
song ǃÚAmazing Graceë on this fateful night to remember the grace that
came into his life that night. And spent the rest of his life working
to make a difference.
John Newton
continued to run his slave ship for many years after. He did try to
treat all people differently, and worked diligently with the goal of
leaving this demeaning trade behind. He was finally able to rise above
his inhumane job as captain to a slave ship when he became minister to
serve the Archbishop in his later years.
Exactly what is
amazing grace that John Newton writes about in his song? Can this
happen in our life too? Or perhaps the real question is how many times
has grace affected our life?
Everyone can
tell of a story of two in their life when they have received some
amazing grace. Perhaps our story is not as dramatic and intense as John
Newtonës, but we all have experienced a feeling of walking through a
storm of life, when suddenly it felt as if the sun came out to shine in
on our life, even if only for a moment. Similar to John Newton, perhaps
this is a good time to reflect on our life. Have we truly lived the
life that we can feel proud of? If not, then a change in our heart can
certainly lead us to new directions. If we have indeed lived a life to
feel proud of, then a trust that this too shall pass will help us
through the storm.
After all, if
John Newton can experience such grace in his life to bring him to an
about face in his heart and life, so too, can each and every one of us.
ï
Janese Johnson
has been doing intuitive counseling nationally for more than 20 years.
She may be contacted at janesej-at-buncombe.main.nc.us.
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