Recommended Reading (pt. 7)

John Newton: From Disgrace to Amazing Grace by Jonathan Aitken.

Strangely, there is no summary for this book, but it's not that hard to figure out. It is a biography about the well known 18th century Christian, John Newton. The only thing that most people know about this man is that he wrote the well-known song, Amazing Grace, but this book really opened my eyes to how amazing this man's life was. It is one of the best stories of a rebellious, blasphemous sinner turned Jesus-loving, God-fearing Christian I've ever read. The life of John Newton really shows how God can save even the lowest of sinners and use them for great purposes. John Newton was a very rebellious man in his youth and spent most of his young years out at sea. In his 20's he was extensively involved in the slave trade, even commanding a ship of his own for a few years. Eventually his true Christian conversion and spiritual growth led him to become a minister. After many years of highly successful ministry he counseled and even assisted William Wilberforce in the abolition of the slave trade. The book itself is very entertaining, which sounds surprising for a biography. Hardly any of it is dry. Newton's life is an emotional and spiritual roller coaster and Jonathan Aitken does a great job of showing it. While reading, I learned some spiritual truths following the life of Newton: 1) That a Christians spiritual growth and refinement can take many years. It's especially comforting for me to hear since sometimes I'm tempted to feel like I have to be a perfect saint right now. And 2) God's timing isn't always our timing. I'm sure Newton would have wanted to be a pastor the very year he decided to do it, but he had to wait 6 frustrating years of rejection to finally get a position. The perfect timing of this lead to many events in his life that changed not only his own life, but history. I seriously recommend this book for people interested in learning about Christians that God has used in history to build his kingdom.