“Through many dangers, toils and snares, I have already come,” wrote John Newton in one of our favorite hymns, Amazing Grace. Is that your story? Have we been through dangers, toils and snares on our journey of discipleship?
Paul could have written those words honestly in the first century. As he preached the “whole counsel” of God on his way to Jerusalem, people warned him not to go. So why did he? Paul went up to Jerusalem because the Holy Spirit compelled him. He knew the risk was great so he asked the church in Rome to pray for him. But Paul’s greatest goal in life was not to stay safe but to fulfill his calling to make disciples of all nations.
This gives me pause. What is my purpose in life, if not to make disciples of Jesus. This work is not as welcome in our world as it was fifty years ago in the United States. But it is still our work. God is still with us. So if at some point we face challenges on our journey home, we can also sing the rest of the verse, “’Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far, and grace will lead me home.”
Vance Havner told about preaching in tent meetings in North Carolina when he was a young preacher. Without a flashlight, he wasn’t sure how he would get home in the darkness. One of the men dipped a branch in pitch and set it on fire as a torch. Unsure of it, Vance asked, “What if the flame goes out on the dark road?” The farmer said, “It will get you all the way home.” So it is with God’s grace. The same grace that enables us to make disciples in difficult times is the grace that will lead us home.
