Amazing Grace

Chris: And now, Adventures in Odyssey.
Cody: Hi, Mr. Whitaker.
John Whittaker: Hello, Cody.
Cody: You look real busy.
John Whittaker: Oh, not as busy as you look. What are you doing with all those books?
Cody: They're for a school report.
John Whittaker: Oh, must be a big assignment. What's it about?
Cody: A famous person, but I don't know any famous people. I'm thinking I might do it on a famous musician.
John Whittaker: Yeah, that sounds good. Which musician did you have in mind?
Cody: Beats me. But I have to hurry up and decide.
John Whittaker: Oh, why?
Cody: Because the report was due today.
John Whittaker: Uh-oh.
Cody: Yeah, I kept putting it off, and then I got sick, and you know what's funny?
John Whittaker: What?
Cody: I thought my teacher was going to really get after me. But when I told her, she just gave me, you know, the look. And then she said I could have a little more time. I was shocked.
John Whittaker: Well, it sounds as though you experienced a little grace.
Cody: No, it was Mrs. Hawkins.
John Whittaker: No, no, I mean you received grace. It means undeserved mercy. You'd done something wrong, but you received pardon instead of the punishment you deserved. God shows it to us all the time.
Cody: Really?
John Whittaker: Yeah.
Cody: Well, I wish he would show it to me a little more, cuz I still can't think of who to do this report on.
John Whittaker: Well, how about something to do with grace?
Cody: You mean Mrs. Hawkins?
John Whittaker: No, no, I mean do a report about someone who once wrote about grace.
Cody: Is it somebody famous?
John Whittaker: Uh-huh. Though he's not as famous now as he once was. He'd done some pretty terrible things in his life. He tried to desert from the Navy, and he sold slaves, and well, it's quite a story.
Cody: Wow, can you tell it to me?
John Whittaker: Sure. The man's name was John Newton. He was born in England in 1725, the son of a sea captain in the British merchant fleet. By the time he was a teenager, John was an experienced sailor himself. But the love of his ship and the sea weren't the only loves he had. There was someone onshore who had his heart.
John Newton: Mary, won't you take my arm as we walk?
Mary Catlett: Yes, thank you, John.
John Newton: I cannot tell you how often I dreamed of us walking down a quiet London street together of a Sunday evening.
Mary Catlett: After all your adventures on the high seas, after seeing all those exotic Mediterranean ports.
John Newton: It wasn't London or English life that I dreamed of, Mary. It was you.
Mary Catlett: You mustn't say such things.
John Newton: Mary, you know I care for you. I have since we were scarcely more than children. I think you care for me as well. I've always hoped that we might have a future together.
Mary Catlett: As have I. But there remains a barrier between us. The Bible says be ye not unequally yoked with an unbeliever. I could never marry any man who was not a Christian.
John Newton: Oh, that again.
Mary Catlett: John, I don't mean to seem harsh and unbending. You cannot know how I've prayed that your heart would soften towards Christ.
John Newton: I don't mean to be harsh and unbending myself. My mother was a Christian woman too, very devout. But I was very little when she died. I've had no need for God or Christ since.
Mary Catlett: We're here. Come inside. Attend vespers with me. You may find a need inside these walls.
John Newton: No, I think not. We've had a lovely day together. I need to get back to my ship.
Mary Catlett: Very well. I'm not giving up on you, John Newton. And I do not believe the Lord will either.
John Newton: If you say so.
Mary Catlett: John, at least read the little Bible I gave you, would you?
John Newton: We don't have much time for reading at sea.
Mary Catlett: Please. I'll take it with me. If nothing else, it will remind me of you.
John Whittaker: At that time, church was the last place that John Newton wanted to be.
Guest (Male): We're sailors, girl. We wouldn't know how to hold a horse, even if we had one.
John Newton: Speaking of such, do you gents know where I'd be if I wasn't here passing the time with you?
John Newton: Well, I'd be in church, listening to hymns and sermons.
John Newton: Yes, the woman I love, wishes me to become a religious man.
Guest (Male): Hold off you old geezer. I'll just do this what I want.
Guest (Male): First gang.
John Newton: No, no, no, wait, wait. I can't. Not me. I'm a seaman on a merchant ship.
Guest (Male): Be quiet.
Guest (Male): Go behind the scenes with the official Adventures in Odyssey podcast. Hear how the writers come up with their ideas. Learn about the actors behind your favorite characters. Listen to Q and A's and more. Find the official Adventures in Odyssey podcast by visiting adventuresinodyssey.com/podcast.
John Newton: What happened? Where am I?
Guest (Male): Where am I, it says. You're in a longboat, matey. Before long, you'll be in that warship in the harbor yonder.
John Newton: Warship?
Guest (Male): You heard right.
Guest (Male): That's it. You've been pressed into the service of His Majesty's Navy.
John Newton: No, I can't be pressed. I'm a merchant seaman. My father's a merchant captain. I'm his midshipman.
Guest (Male): That's all right, boy. The Royal Navy needs midshipmen. Captain enough good midshipman nowadays.
Cody: You mean they could just knock John Newton over the head and kidnap him into the British Navy?
John Whittaker: Oh, they sure could. It was a brutal time. The press gangs were like the draft, except they didn't give you time to say goodbye to your families. John put in two long years in that warship, but he counted the hours until they'd sailed back to England.
John Newton: Blaney, Blaney. You asleep?
Guest (Male): Huh? No, Newton, I ain't. I'm just laying here waiting to have a conversation with you.
John Newton: I'm awfully tired of these hammocks.
Guest (Male): Why don't you speak to the captain? I feel sure he'll let you trade for his bunk.
John Newton: Ah, stow it, Blaney. I just mean it'll feel good to sleep in a bed again.
Guest (Male): What are you talking about, boy?
John Newton: England. We're landing in Plymouth in two days. There's a certain young lady I can't wait to see.
Guest (Male): Newton, you must be daft. I didn't even think a midshipman could be so balmy.
John Newton: What do you mean?
Guest (Male): You're a pressed seaman, lad. You think the Royal Navy is going to let you have shore leave just to watch you escape?
John Newton: What?
Guest (Male): I tell you where you're going to be, boy. You're going to be right aboard this ship while we refit, and then we're off for a lovely five-year cruise around the world.
John Newton: No, I'm not. I don't care what you say.
Guest (Male): Oh, it's not me, boy. It's the Royal Navy.
John Newton: I don't care what anyone says. You owe the Navy. I'm going ashore. Nobody's going to stop me from seeing my Mary.
Guest (Male): Captain, all hands present and accounted for, sir.
Guest (Male): Read the bill of particulars.
John Newton: Aye aye, sir. Midshipman John Newton has been found guilty of attempting to swim to shore while his ship was docked at Plymouth. It is the captain's sentence that he be broken to the rank of ordinary seaman and publicly flogged.
Guest (Male): Very well. All hands prepare to witness punishment.
John Newton: All hands prepare to witness punishment. Very well. Mr. Fordum, do your duty, please.
John Newton: Aye, sir. One. Two. Three. Four. Five.
Guest (Male): Come in.
Guest (Male): Captain, I brought seaman Newton as requested, sir.
Guest (Male): Stand at attention and report.
John Newton: Seaman Newton, reporting as ordered, sir.
Guest (Male): This is the man I was telling you about. You can see what a rebellious creature he is, just by the way he stands there glaring at us.
Guest (Male): Yes, I see.
Guest (Male): I had high hopes for the lad once, but alas, he's become incorrigible. So mutinous that he threatens the morale of the entire ship.
Guest (Male): I see.
Guest (Male): Newton, this is Captain Barbery, who commands the tradeship anchored to Leeward.
John Newton: Yes, Captain. I happen to notice when he was rowed over, sir.
Guest (Male): Captain Barbery proposes to exchange some crew members. Would you be interested, Newton, in leaving His Majesty's service?
John Newton: Yes, sir. I'd do anything to be out of the Navy. I mean that is, I have reasons for desiring to be back in England at a more reasonable period, sir.
Guest (Male): Perhaps you should tell Newton what kind of merchant you are, Captain Barbery.
Guest (Male): I'm in the slave trade. We're taking my ship to Africa to pick up a new load of slaves. Then we sail back across the Atlantic to trade them to the Americas. We don't get anywhere close to England for quite some time.
John Newton: Nonetheless, I assure you, Captain Barbery, that I shall do my best in your service.
John Newton: Only take me off this ship. I beg you, sir.
Guest (Male): Very well.
John Newton: Thank you, sir. You won't regret it.
Guest (Male): Done. Only I warn you, Barbery, you may have a bit of trouble with this lad.
Guest (Male): Oh, I think young Newton will prove cooperative, captain. In my business, we have methods that surpass even the British navies.
John Whittaker: Sadly, John Newton learned the tasks of the slave trade very well. Cruelty and greed had hardened his heart.
Cody: So what happened to him? I haven't heard anything that makes him worth doing a report about.
John Whittaker: Well, just hold on. His story isn't over. Even while Newton got caught up in the greed of the lucrative slave trade, there was someone back in England who still cared deeply about him.
Mary Catlett: Father in heaven, please protect John out upon the sea. Make him feel the emptiness of his life without you. Give him a hunger for your word, Lord, and help him find the faith to believe. Do what you must to grab hold of his attention and devotion, Lord.
John Whittaker: By 1748, at the age of only 23, John Newton became captain of his own slave ship. He'd risen from slave to slave trader. But down deep inside, success he'd achieved wasn't enough. Doubts and questions nagged at him like the waves that slapped at the bow of his ship.
Guest (Male): Who goes there?
John Newton: At ease, Mr. Spivey.
Guest (Male): Oh, Captain Newton.
Guest (Male): Well, bless you, sir. I didn't expect you on deck at this hour. It's a good 3:00 still daylight.
John Newton: Well, sometimes I wake up and can't fall back to sleep again.
Guest (Male): Can't say as I have that problem, captain. I'd be fast asleep below if the helmsman of the watch had not fallen ill.
John Newton: I'll go below then. I'll take the helm until the morning watch.
Guest (Male): Oh, sir, I wasn't trying to suggest
John Newton: No, it's all right, Mr. Spivey. I am quite sure I shan't be able to get back to sleep myself anyway.
Guest (Male): The cargo making noise, sir? I can see to that.
John Newton: No. No, the fault is only within myself. I often wake up in the middle of the night and Tell me, Mr. Spivey, do you ever do you ever think about your family and friends back in England?
Guest (Male): Occasionally, sir. But the rum ration usually takes care of that.
John Newton: Hm. Well, the rum doesn't help me much.
Guest (Male): You must be drinking the water down stuff.
John Newton: I can get you some
Guest (Male): No, no, no, no. Don't bother. I'm all right. Get you below, Mr. Spivey.
John Newton: Sleep.
Guest (Male): Aye, captain. Thank you, sir. Good night.
John Newton: Good night, Mr. Spivey. What is this restlessness within me? I feel so so barren, so lost. What is it?
John Whittaker: Slowly, as time went by, Mary's prayers were answered. John felt the emptiness more and more. His fears gnawed at him day and night. Deep questions weighed on his mind. He began to search for answers.
Guest (Male): Captain, the wind's rising. Captain, the wind's rising a bit. Should we add more sails to take advantage?
John Newton: No, Mr. Spivey. Let's see how she does for the present.
Guest (Male): Very well, sir. But with permission, I'll keep the men on alert. The whole crew stands ready to rig more sail at a moment's notice.
John Newton: Anxious to land in England, are they? Well, so am I. It's been many a year.
Guest (Male): You'll be able to go in for some amusements a bit more substantial than your reading, sir.
John Newton: Than my reading?
Guest (Male): Oh, yes. It's the talk of the whole crew. Now in your spare moments, you always have your nose stuck in a book.
John Newton: Yeah, well, that's how I've educated myself, reading whatever happens to come in hand.
Guest (Male): I read much regard for book learning myself. No need for it. But I respect them them do just as well. I didn't notice that you were reading as you paced the deck, sir, before you took the helm.
John Newton: Oh, well, it was something I picked up in Brazil. It's hard to find anything in English. You have to make do with whatever you find.
Guest (Male): You seem quite intent upon it, sir.
John Newton: Well, if you must know, Mr. Spivey, it was the imitation of Christ by Thomas a Kempis.
Guest (Male): Make you daft, captain.
John Newton: Well, I'm glad you find my taste in books so amusing first, mate.
Guest (Male): I break down, captain. I I I I don't mean to offend, but after all, you have a reputation as the most blasphemous man on the seven seas. Next you'll be telling me you're reading the Bible, sir. I don't mean to offend, sir.
John Newton: Well, there were people in my past who were quite religious, Mr. Spivey. Sometimes I read such things, trying to find out what made them tick. That's all. I'm not waiting for the hand of the Almighty to appear.
Guest (Male): Oh, eye below. Eye on deck.
John Newton: Yes, lookout. What is it?
Guest (Male): Storm cloud ahead, captain.
John Newton: Where about?
Guest (Male): Dead ahead, sir. 10° to starboard.
John Newton: Can you see it, Spivey?
Guest (Male): Yes, sir. On the horizon. All men to stations. Aye, captain. All men to stations.
John Newton: You, seaman.
Guest (Male): Yes, sir.
John Newton: Get forward and run up the bow stay sail. If we lose the jib, I won't have anything left to steer by.
Guest (Male): Aye aye.
Guest (Male): Push up, can't take much more of this, captain. If the waves get any bigger, we'll go down for sure.
John Newton: Hang on the ropes, men. You'll be swept overboard. Where's the first mate?
Guest (Male): Here I am, sir.
John Newton: How's the hold?
Guest (Male): We're taking on a lot of water, sir. All the foot and a half of the bilge
John Newton: Then get a move on. Man the pumps, and send the other men to throwing the cargo overboard. We need to lighten the ship.
Guest (Male): Yes, sir.
John Newton: If you're out there, God hear me. Oh, God, have mercy on us.
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John Whittaker: John Newton had tied himself to the wheel of his ship to keep from being swept overboard in the hurricane. There he remained for more than a day and a night, steering desperately through the huge waves. Finally, the storm passed.
Guest (Male): Captain, there's a leak in the hold. Water's coming in slow but sure. We're going to have to man the pumps 24 hours a day, all the way to England.
John Newton: Very well. Set a first watch to pumping, and let the rest of the men get some sleep.
Guest (Male): Aye aye, sir. Sir, on behalf of the men, I'd like to express our gratitude for your skill at the wheel. Not many mariners could have kept this ship afloat.
John Newton: You saved our lives, sir.
Guest (Male): I didn't do it alone first, mate.
Guest (Male): Beg your pardon, sir?
John Newton: There were a hundred times in that storm when we should have capsized. It's as if we were held upright by an invisible hand.
Guest (Male): That's a bit mysterious. Perhaps we'd all better do some of your Bible reading, sir.
John Newton: Get on about your duties.
Guest (Male): Yes, sir. Beg your pardon, sir.
John Newton: Must it always take a great storm to make us see the obvious? God in heaven, I know it is true. We could not have survived that storm without your intervention. Please forgive this this wretched sinner for being so slow to believe. For you are a great God with a mighty hand of power.
John Whittaker: As soon as the ship docked in England, John made his way to the London home of the Catlett family.
Mary Catlett: John, I prayed for you every day, but I'd almost lost hope that we would see one another ever again.
John Newton: It is a gift of grace, dear Mary, that led me back home.
Mary Catlett: It is almost it's a dream.
John Newton: A dream that was almost prevented after the hurricane. Before we made England, we almost sank again off the coast of Ireland.
Mary Catlett: But God was protecting you.
John Newton: That he was. I know that now. But if we had gone to the bottom of the Irish coast, I would have gone as a forgiven man. When I learned that God could protect us in a hurricane, I was ready to believe that he could raise a man from the dead. I prayed, Mary. I put my faith in Jesus Christ that he had died for my sins.
Mary Catlett: Dearest John, if only it had not been so difficult for you.
John Newton: It's my own fault. I can only ask you to forgive me for being a for being a stubborn fool for so many years.
Mary Catlett: There's no need to ask. The only feeling in my heart is gratitude.
John Newton: Then then I must ask you something else. Mary, Mary, you know that I love you. I'd like your permission to ask your father for your hand in marriage.
Mary Catlett: John, you have my love and my consent, and I do not think my father would give you any difficulty. My parents know that if they wish to see me married, I shall not have anyone else.
John Newton: Oh, Mary.
Cody: So John Newton gave up selling slaves, and they lived happily ever after, right?
John Whittaker: Uh, wrong. John was a new Christian and didn't fully understand how wrong slavery was. He made three more voyages as a slave trader.
Cody: I can't believe that.
John Whittaker: Well, in later years, neither could he. But Newton had a lot to learn about the Bible, the ways of God, and the value of every individual life, no matter what the skin color. The Lord worked on his conscience, and he finally quit. He took a job as the tide surveyor in the port city of Liverpool, and that enabled him and Mary Catlett to marry.
Cody: So when did he write about grace and become famous?
John Whittaker: Okay, I'm getting to that. When they were first married, John studied the Bible in his spare time, learning to read it in the original Hebrew and Greek. He and Mary became very active in Christian outreach, and they opened their home to traveling preachers and evangelists. Their influence led him to enter the ministry. He was named rector of the Anglican Church in a little village called Only. In the course of his ministry, Newton discovered that he had a talent for writing. He was especially gifted in writing letters to encourage Christians who were in difficult circumstances. Soon, he turned his attention to writing poems and songs.
John Newton: Mary, do you have a moment?
Mary Catlett: Certainly, dear.
John Newton: I want you to hear this. It's the words to a new hymn I've been working on. Do you mind?
Mary Catlett: Of course not. Read.
John Newton: Amazing grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me. I once was lost, but now I'm found. Was blind, but now I see.
Cody: Wait a minute. I know that song. It's amazing grace. We sing it in church.
John Newton: That's right. John Newton wrote it. Through many dangers, toils and snares, I have already come. It is grace that brought me safe thus far, and grace will lead me home. The Lord has promised good to
Cody: That's great. I get to do my report about a musician after all. Then what happened to John Newton?
John Whittaker: Well, later he was called to pastor a well-known church in London. His story influenced a lot of powerful Christian politicians, such as William Wilberforce, who eventually helped to pass the laws that eliminated the international slave trade.
Cody: So Mr. Newton helped to end slavery?
John Whittaker: No, very much so.
Cody: Wow.
John Whittaker: It took over 30 years of hard work, but Newton's influence helped to make it happen. He died in 1807 at the age of 82, having preached the gospel of Jesus Christ for almost six decades. Not only did he impact his generation, but generations to come with a hymn that has strengthened and comforted millions of people.
Cody: This is a great story for my report.
John Whittaker: Oh, I thought it might be.
Cody: Thanks, Mr. Whitaker. Now all I need to do is write it down. I'll call it Amazing Grace.
John Whittaker: That's a good idea, Cody. Amazing Grace.
Chris: The tombstone of John Newton reads John Newton, once an infidel and libertine, a servant of slavers in Africa, was by the rich mercy of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, preserved, restored, pardoned and appointed to preach the faith he had long labored to destroy. These words were written by John Newton himself shortly before he died and are a fitting testimonial to his life. His story is inspiring to us now, not only because it gave us one of the world's best-loved hymns, but because of its example of the unwavering love of God. No matter what we've done in our lives, our faith in Jesus Christ can cleanse and restore us to God. So if you think God can't possibly love you because of something you've done, then remember the words of 1 Peter 2:24. And Christ himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. For by his wounds you were healed. Thank you for joining us for this special adventure. If you have a personal story you'd like to tell about the love of God in your life, why don't you send it to me? Our address is Adventures in Odyssey, Colorado Springs, Colorado 80995. Or in Canada, write to Box 9800, Vancouver, BC V6B 4G3. And when you write, ask about how you can get your own copy of today's episode. It's called Amazing Grace. Adventures in Odyssey is a presentation of Focus on the Family. Amazing Grace was written by Doug McIntosh and directed by Paul McCusker. Our production engineer was Mark Drury with music by John Campbell. And I'm Chris, hoping you'll join us again next time for more Adventures in Odyssey.