11/02/2024
Today I painted these 2 paintings at church during worship on the theme: Amazing grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me…
The whole week I have been experiencing this overwhelming gratefulness to be able to receive God’s grace…when I look back in time, I just see grace upon grace in my life that He has shown me… many times I felt stranded but He came through and patched me up.
When I read about the writer of this amazing song it was confirmation that I should paint this today. I am sharing the story of John Newton below for those interested.
John Newton was a man that despicably sold other human beings in the slave trade. As he states in the hymn, he was a wretch, but God found him. He was saved by God's amazing grace, and it is that grace that sets God's people free when, at the prodding of the Holy Spirit, we freely accept it for
Newton grew up with both his mother and father, however, his mother died while his father was away at sea. Newton’s father remarried and the couple had another child. Following in his father’s footsteps, Newton began his life’s career by searching throughout the African coast for slaves to capture and eventually to sell for profit. On one journey, Newton and his crew encountered a storm that swept some of his men overboard and left others with the likelihood of drowning. With both hands fastened onto the wheel of the boat, Newton cried out to God saying, “Lord, have mercy on us.” After eleven hours of steering, the remainder of the crew found safety with the calming of the storm. From then on, Newton dated March 21 as a day set aside for a time of humiliation, prayer, and praise.
Upon arriving safely home, Newton did not venture out to seek more slaves, instead he began to learn Hebrew and Greek. He occasionally accepted requests to speak about his conversion in front of various congregations. Newton was eventually ordained and began to lead his own church. God changed him from a man who was an advocate for the slave trade to a man actively working towards abolishing it. Newton's literary work against the slave trade encouraged abolitionist William Wilberforce to continue his legal fight against slavery in England.
In later years, Newton began to lose his memory. Although his thoughts were limited, Newton said he could remember two things, “That I am a great sinner, and that Christ is a great Savior.” With this conviction of newly found life that he found only in Christ, Newton passed from his earthly life in 1807, at the age of 82.
