December 26, 2022
Amazing Grace
Precious one, Amazing Grace is a universal message of hope and redemption by all who listen to or sing. The hymn has gone on to become one of the most powerful songs in the world and a favorite hymn to many. Amazing Grace lyrics are anointed and relatable when we look at our own lives, we can’t help but know it was God’s amazing grace that saved you and me. This classic song was written by John Newton in Donegal, Ireland after being caught in a ferocious storm at sea and landing safely. His arrival in Donegal played an influential role in changing his life, marking the start of his return to Christianity. The hymn opens with the powerful lyrics ‘Amazing grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me.’ Newton drew on his own life working in the slave trade and his near-death experience on this boat, where he believed God saved him and prompted him onto a Christian believer path.
‘I once was lost but now I am found; was blind but now I see.’ The weather conditions were so severe that Newton cried out to God asking for Him to have mercy on the ship. Newton considered himself an atheist up until that point, it was his last-ditch effort to somehow survive. The ship safely reached Ireland which marked the beginning of Newton’s spiritual conversion. He didn’t instantly change his ways, he returned to the slave trade once more, becoming the captain of several slave ships. It’s hard to believe a song so beautiful and meaningful was written by a person who was part of such atrocious acts, but something happened that would change the course of Newton’s life forever. Later he became an Anglican Priest, a vocation that would enable him to write many hymns. Amazing Grace wasn’t written until 25 years later in 1779, Newton stated his time in Donegal was a key moment that inspired the song. The song might not exist today if it wasn’t for the violent storm that led him to Irish shores.
The World’s Most Famous Hymn:
Amazing grace, How sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me.
I once was lost, but now I am found,
Was blind, but now I see.
‘Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
And grace my fears relieved.
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed.
Through many dangers, toils and snares
I have already come,
‘Tis grace has brought me safe thus far
And grace will lead me home.
The Lord has promised good to me
His word my hope secures;
He will my shield and portion be,
As long as life endures.
Yea, when this flesh and heart shall fail,
And mortal life shall cease
I shall possess within the veil,
A life of joy and peace.
When we’ve been there ten thousand years
Bright shining as the sun,
We’ve no less days to sing God’s praise
Than when we’ve first begun.
Stop today and think about God’s amazing grace toward you. Thank Him for forgiving you of your sins and remembering them no more. Because you and I can truly say, ‘I once was lost but now I am found, was blind but now I see!
