You have all probably heard of John Newton, the famous British preacher and the
author of many of our traditional hymns, including that timeless classic,
"Amazing Grace". What a man of God he must have been!
You be surprised, however, to learn that John Newton wasn't exactly a saint when
he was young. He considered himself an atheist, and he promoted his views
without hesitation. His hobby was to make fun of God and His Word, and every
breath he took was filled with blasphemous curses. He took great pride in being
known as "the Great Blasphemer". His pastimes included drinking and frequenting
prostitutes. No employer liked him, and no one could see any potential in him.
Or no human, that is!
Later in his life, John would realize that even in the darkest days of his
existence, God was pursuing him, trying to reach out to him to bring meaning to
his life. He reported numerous times in his past when he had been mysteriously
saved from fatal accidents and circumstances. Once, while in a drunken stupor,
John was ready to jump off the deck of his ship in the middle of an unknown
ocean. It was after midnight, and as he stood at the rail, ready to jump, a
sailor came up on deck and saved him. John attributed this to luck however, and
he was unmoved by it.
Sometime later, while serving as a quarter deck on a naval British ship, the HMS
Harwick, he deserted ship. He was caught, and when he was brought back, he was
put in irons for two days and fed on stale bread and water. Throughout this
entire confinement period, he cursed and fumed with hatred. He was then brought
up on deck to be flogged. The captain had planned to use the cat-o-nine-tails a
dozen times on him; however John's heart hardened, and with each thud, he hissed
and cursed at the assembled sea men with renewed vigor. Angered, the captain
ordered the floggings to continue. It was only when his curses became weaker and
weaker and he eventually slipped into unconsciousness, that the beating stopped.
John received over one hundred floggings that day. His recovery was long, and
when he was again fit to return to duty, he found himself stripped of his rank
(which had only been obtained through the help of his dad). Despite all of his
suffering and the shame he had endured, never once did he call out to God.
Instead, his heart became even more hardened.
One bad decision led to another, and John eventually found himself on board the
Guinea Snow Pegasus. It didn't take long for him to earn a bad reputation
amongst his new captain and crew. There happened to be a businessman aboard the
Snow Pegasus, a certain Mr. Claw who had made a fortune selling slaves. Driven
by the dream of great riches, John began trying to persuade Mr. Claw to employ
him.
Mr. Claw already knew how unreliable John was, but he hired him anyway. How
disappointed John was when he learned that he would receive no pay, and since
there had been no legal document of hire drawn up, there was nothing he could do
about it. To make things worse, Mr. Claw didn't trust him at all. Because of
this distrust, whenever he was away, he would chain John to a boat with less
than a pint of rice for nourishment. John's life was worse than that of a slave.
Despite the way he was treated however, he continued to rebel against God and
society.
John was eventually released from Mr. Claw's "employment", and he found himself
working for a Mr. Williams. To his surprise, Mr. Williams actually entrusted to
him the management of one of his factories. Though he treated John decently
however, giving him everything that would be expected, John continued to
disregard any reverence for his Maker.
John's dad eventually managed to have one of his friends locate his son and
bring him back to England. While on his way home, his ship faced a terrible
storm. A raging gale churned the sea, creating mountainous waves that savagely
tossed the vessel around like a toy. The wind succeeded in tearing timbers from
the hull, and the boat began to list in the water. The sailors were kept busy
trying to bail out seawater with buckets and pumps, all the while trying to keep
from being washed overboard by the waves themselves. Somehow the ship survived
the next few days, but with no respite from the storm in site, everyone was
convinced that they would perish.
Meanwhile, John was filled with dread. Every time the ship descended into a
billow, he trembled at the thought of what would happen to him if he died. God
seemed suddenly real to him. He knew that his life had been such that if God
truly DID exist, he would surely end up in hell. One day the exhausted captain
offered him the helm. While attempting to keep the tossing ship under some kind
of control, he had the opportunity to reflect upon his past, and long-submersed
scriptures from childhood emerged from his subconscious. One in particular
grabbed his attention: Prov 1:24-33
"But since you rejected me when I called and no one gave heed when I stretched
out my hand, since you ignored all my advice and would not accept my rebuke, I
in turn will laugh at your disaster; I will mock when calamity overtakes you -
when calamity overtakes you like a storm, when disaster sweeps over you like a
whirlwind, when distress and trouble overwhelm you.
"Then they will call to me but I will not answer; they will look for me but will
not find me. Since they hated knowledge and did not choose to fear the LORD,
since they would not accept my advice and spurned my rebuke, they will eat the
fruit of their ways and be filled with the fruit of their schemes. For the
waywardness of the simple will kill them, and the complacency of fools will
destroy them; but whoever listens to me will live in safety and be at ease,
without fear of harm." NIV
John was overcome with the sense that he was the worst sinner who had ever
lived. He felt a certain affinity with the tattered remains of the ship's sails.
He realized that his life was also in shreds, and he was struggling to hang on
in the same way the mangled sails dangled from the broken masts. Hell became a
reality, and he was filled with remorse.
The storm did finally relent, and when it did, John concluded that God was
having mercy on him. A tiny gleam of hope emerged in his heart: Maybe there was
hope for such a wicked man! The captain didn't expect to ever reach land
however, and John became convinced that he was Jonah and God was punishing
everyone because of him. In anguish, he began uttering pleas and prayers, and
although his attempts were feeble, God heard him. The ship didn't sink, and the
passengers and crew managed to escape sure death. After several days of
uncertain sailing, they finally reached the coast of Ireland.
God had mercy on John, and as a result, his life changed radically. No more
swear words or sacrilegious remarks were heard from his mouth, and although for
the upcoming months he would still delight in the company of harlots, he
eventually became convinced through the nudging of God's Holy Spirit that this,
too, was wrong. He completely put away his past life and began anew, with the
Holy Spirit as his guide. He became a powerful minister, proclaiming God's love
to anyone he encountered.
You are all familiar with the words of one of his most famous hymns. These words
were written from his heart, for they were based on his own past experiences:
"Amazing grace, how sweet the sound, That saved a wretch like me. I once was
lost but now am found, Was blind, but now I see."
My friend, God loves you! You may consider yourself a hard-core atheist, just
like John, but there are events in your life you cannot explain. God is pursuing
you. Every opportunity He has, He tries to reach out to you. Because He loves
you, He will never try to force you to accept Him into your life. You can decide
to run away from Him, however, the time will come when running away will be
impossible. You will come to an impasse in your life. You will be confronted by
death. May it never be too late for you to realize the depth of God's love!
Salvation can only be obtained by accepting Jesus' offer. He died for you, so
that you will not have to face eternal death. He rose up from the dead,
conquering death and offering life to all those who would believe Him. Accept
His offer before it is too late. The storms of life may never quiet down, but
you have a Friend who is willing to stand by you no matter what!
"For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our
weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we
are-yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with
confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time
of need." (Heb 4:15-16 NIV)
Rob Chaffart
The Illustrator: This daily newsletter is dedicated to encouraging
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problems. It contains a daily inspirational story, a Bible verse and encouraging
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