Twas Grace that taught my heart.

Years ago, back in the 1770’s, a man by the name of John Newton wrote these words... 

“Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,

And grace my fears relieved.”  

Ahhh! It sounds so poetic... but that word “fear”. It’s not right. Actually, it doesn’t seem to fit at all. Shouldn’t it be “‘Twas grace that taught my heart to hope”, or “‘Twas grace that taught my heart to love”? It doesn’t make sense.

Set within the song “Amazing Grace”, these words for many many years puzzled me as to their meaning, and though I had sung them many times, I was always baffled by them.

What does it mean, “Twas grace that taught my heart to fear”? It wasn’t until about  

six months ago, after having read John Newton’s biography, that suddenly it clicked. For the first time, I could set the words within the context of the life of the person who wrote them, and with that came a fresh understanding.  

I wont talk too much about the specifics, as John Newton’s life has been well documented and has been told over and over. Most people know him as the man who went from being a slave trader to becoming a leading and compelling witness against the practice, and who, along with his friend William Wilberforce championed a campaign that would eventually see the abolition of slavery in England.

For me, what struck me most within the story was Newton’s dramatic conversion and the strengths of his convictions after it. Although he was brought up and educated by his devout and loving christian mother, and obviously gifted with incredible intellect, his attitude towards the Christian faith vacillated on-and-off from short bouts of strong devotion to lengths of apathy and outright rebellion and moral abandon. Eventually, as time moved on, he wandered completely away from the faith and was numb to anything towards it all. For years, he just lived his life as he wanted to, with no sense of anything but his own life and desires. 

Then, during one sea voyage, to pass the time, Newton flicked through a few pages of that age-old book by Thomas A Kempis, “The Imitation of Christ”. Whilst reading it, he thought it all just romantic nonsense, but later on, as he documents, a question crossed his mind... “What if this is actually all true?”. Soon after these musings, the ship he was sailing on was hit hard by a massive and terrifying storm. Many times he thought he was going to die and the situation caused him to return to his faith as in desperation, he prayed and called upon the Lord. During the tempest he lost all hope and he fully believed his life on earth was soon to come to an abrupt end. But no...  somehow he made it through... and he attributed his survival, (and the survival of the other men on board) to be nothing short of a miracle, ordered by the Divine.

After the storm, Newton was a different man. The event punched a revelation to the core of his soul. A divine work had been wrought within. He had been taught the “fear of the Lord”, as he now had a deep and thorough respect for God.  And though he learned it the hard way, through an encounter that caused him “horror” or “terror”, as one might likely have in a storm, it soon became tempered to become a healthy fear which the “Good Book” says leads to wisdom. God was someone, beyond someone to be reckoned with. God was GOD. Final. All powerful. ALL POWERFUL. Who was John Newton to spurn or turn away or mock with indifference the person of God? Who was he to reduce him to some theology or to brush God aside with reason or pride or whatever. Who was he? And yet God still listened to his prayer.

In the face of this new Pandemic sweeping across the world, I am reminded of John Newton and his song “Amazing Grace”. Nature, is in God’s hands, and there is nothing that will threaten His reign or reduce His power over it. As Jeremiah says in the 18th chapter, God is like a potter who can do anything he wants with the clay he is working.  Did COVID-19 come from God? Did the storm that nearly destroyed John Newton on the high seas come from God? The church doesn’t often say that God is the creator of any catastrophe, as it wants people to see His Love, but let’s not forget that ALL creation reveals the glory of God. And it’s not just the sunsets and the serene landscapes. What about the maggots that infest the rotting carcasses, the flies and the cockroaches,, and the moths that get caught in spiders webs. The horrors within creation are too numerous and terrible to recount. Yes, creation groaning under the burden of sin, waiting to be renewed, consisting of the flower and the thorn are all under Gods almighty command.  And even though I may not like this or that, and may question this or that, who am I, as mere man, to question His power. God is God, and it is He who calls the shots. He will be the Judge at the end of creation, and though I am lost in the quagmire of my limited reason, caught in the folly of my selfishness and desires, He gracefully keeps his ears attentive to my prayer. For that reason alone, I should be so thankful. For John Newton, the revelation of God’s grace went deep as he connected what happened with him on the ocean, directly to God and Christ. And in that he saw a merciful saviour.  The depths of God’s love and longing for him became clear and tangible. He could actually trust that God would take care of him, no matter how bad the storm. His eternal hope had been won.; he saw it seared and scarred in the hands that held and drew him to himself. God’s power could have obliterated him in righteous judgment, but grace allowed him to learn first to fear, then grace, revealing Gods love for him, taught him to trust.

As the COVID -19 virus hits its vicious waves over us, let’s not forget the wonderful truth that John Newton discovered, and sing with him in sounds that echo his joy and wonder. “It is grace that taught my heart to fear, and grace my fears relieved”.

(Side note for those who know the writer of this blog.... John Newton was in love with a girl name Polly.)

Stamps - Unique, precious and loved.

Look at this awesome stamp. Can you believe it is approximately 100 years old?

This stamp was used in the days when horses and carriages traversed the streets, and when people wrote with nib and ink. Just think... your parents had not even been born yet. 

Before computers and email, sending a letter was the only method of written communication. People put their messages in an envelope, paid for a stamp and then placed the stamp on the envelope before posting them. Their letters then went through the postal service, to be delivered to the address on the envelope. Have you ever used a stamp?

When you see an old stamp, take a moment to reflect and imagine. Who held that stamp? What message did it carry? Who created it and why was it made?

Every stamp represents a journey and a value, and people who collect AND LOVE stamps become “detectives” who try to understand the history of the stamp.

Can you see the word “Australia”? This means that the stamp was created in Australia.

Can you see the words “Postage 3d”? This is how much a person had to pay for the stamp. In those days they used Shillings and Penny’s.  “3d” means “3 Penny’s” or “Three-pence”.

Can you see the black ink-mark on the stamp? This means that the stamp has been “cancelled” and cannot be used again. It is a “used” stamp. At the post office, each paper stamp gets an inked rubber stamp pressed onto it, and the imprint often reveals something of the journey and origins of the stamp.

Some of the most valuable stamps have unique “flaws” or “imperfections” on them. This means that the stamp is unique. Stamp collectors will pay staggeringly high prices to get one of these special stamps… stamps often sell for $1000 to $100,000 or more. This is how much some people love stamps.

In reality, every stamp is unique. Each stamp has its own journey and carries its own special message. When you carry a stamp in your hands, you connect with history and you contribute to the journey of that stamp.

When you think about it, we are all like stamps. We are unique and have a journey to travel through in life... but we don't always comprehend that we are valued and precious.

When I read the Gospel story and how Jesus said, “Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends”, I am reminded of the incredible price God paid so that I could understand my value to him. 

If you’d like to know more about this, check out Luke 15:8-10 (in the Bible). A cool story how a coin is discovered and how much happiness there is when it gets found again.

Why write, when there are Crazy Cat YouTubes?

An overview of my first serious attempt at writing.

Last year I spent hours and hours, and many months writing and creating my short novella “Little Kite and the Compass Tree”. After I had done my best to write the words, I decided to make it into an audiobook, complete with music and sound FX. For me, the whole project started because I had an idea, and I wanted to convey that idea to the best of my abilities. I also felt that this was something God wanted me to do.

Crazy Cat YouTube.

Unfortunately, to convey that idea, I needed to write and craft words into meaningful language and narrative. For me this was a challenge as I have never been good at English and have had no training in writing. It was a case of “learn as you go” as I ventured into the deep pool of literature and fashioning words into ideas and images.

Crazy Cat YouTube.

Throughout the writing process I verbally read out my words, to see if they felt natural and correct and inevitably I decided to create an audiobook. I found that the recording process inspired me to keep writing, whilst hearing the words helped with editing and language. I’ve always been passionate about music and sound production, so incorporating my natural skill set into the creative process kept me motivated.  I also hoped that having it as an audiobook might make it more appealing for other people to proof listen/read my story.  I desperately wanted input and the fresh perspective of other people to guide me as I undertook the hard task of editing.

Crazy Cat YouTube.

Eventually, I finished the first full “beta-version” of the audiobook and it was a great day for me when I loaded the three hours of audio onto Soundcloud to share with people. 

I was excited as I thought people would soon be offering suggestions and comments.

I promoted it on a few social media sites and waited…

and….

Crazy Cat YouTube.

Well, I have had my audiobook on Soundcloud now for over 2 months and in that time not one person has listened to it. Zilch. No-one has listened through the entire story via the Soundcloud medium.

I have contacted many people and asked many for help, etc. etc. but I can honestly count on my fingers the people who have actually read/listened to the book through the CD-ROMs I created.

The silence has been deafening.

Crazy Cat YouTube.

Questions filled my mind. “Why are people not interested? Is the idea really that bad? Was I wrong in thinking this was something God wanted me to do? Am I presenting the idea in the wrong way? Are people just way too busy these days? Has this been a complete waste of time? Is writing worth it?”

Crazy Cat YouTube.

One thing I have noted over the years, (and this is something that I discovered from my previous experiences in audio and music creation), is that people react instantly to visual art, because they perceive it instantly, whereas  for music and literature, people need to invest time in the work before they can perceive it. (An obvious no-brainer). Consequently, people need to be motivated enough to invest time to perceive the literary or musical work before they can respond.

This begs the question. What motivates a person to invest time in reading? 

If a person is unfamiliar with your work, what will cause them to invest their precious time with your writing…? Would a visual help?  How about a Crazy Cat YouTube?

Crazy Cat YouTube.

In today’s climate of social media, people perceive and respond to visual media in exceedingly short time spans. They watch a YouTube, have an emotional reaction and comment… all within the space of 3 minutes. People will spend hours and hours doing this over and over; watching brief media snippets of crazy cats, funny bloopers, emotionally charged moral issues etc. or similarly, reading and responding to social media comments and Memes.

Is this why no-one is interested in my audiobook? Can’t people handle longer narratives these day? Are they  too busy watching Crazy Cat YouTubes?. Am I destined to be the only one who loves my baby?

Crazy Cat YouTube.

Recently, after having a few months off from the project, I listened to the entire audiobook again. The break from the project meant that I had “fresh ears” and I was able to identify places where my writing needed improvement.  I found some mistakes and some issues with the first few chapters that need serious adjustment.  Nevertheless, I still felt that the idea had been adequately expressed and the emotions and story conveyed effectively.

Crazy Cat YouTube.

Will I go back to the drawing board and fix the problems with the script and then re-record the edits? Time is a limited resource and I’ve spent enough time on this. Financially, this is crazy. I could have spent the time doing something that payed cash money. Has the venture been worthwhile? Will I continue?

Crazy Cat YouTube.

The answer for me is a resounding “YES!  Of course I will continue”… (Although it will be a slower process as I put life demands in priority)

Why? Why continue when you don’t get money from it?

Because… I believe.

Crazy Cat YouTube.

I believe in my story. 

Crazy Cat YouTube.

I also believe that writing has helped me clarify my own thoughts and helped me grow as a person.


Crazy Cat YouTube.


I believe writing has improved my ability to read and communicate.

Crazy Cat YouTube.

I believe in the intimacy of writing, and that it communicates feelings and thoughts in ways no other media can.

Crazy Cat YouTube.

I believe in God’s beauty being expressed through his creation and through his people using creative arts and skills.

Crazy Cat YouTube.

And I believe ... there is something even more crazy than all the Crazy Cats put together. 

Would you like to know what that is?

...

... ... Listen to my audiobook and I will tell you.


Brian Maunder.

 

Run in from the Storm by Brian Maunder

I wrote and recorded this song last week. It is my first "music video". It was recorded only using my phone and a microphone. I also added piano later to the sound. I love this song and just needed to record it. I hope you like the song too.

"Little Kite and the Compass Tree" by Brian Maunder - A SYNOPSIS

The plot of this story follows exactly, the story of the picture book “Polly’s Little Kite”. 

I have always wanted to deepen the picture book allegory with the thought that it would be awesome (especially for students who have Central coherence difficulties), to have the story introduced and understood at an early age, and then, later in the learning journey, read and discovered again, seeing it from a different angle to further explore and deepen the initial understanding of its concepts.

I have LOVED writing this story. I hope you enjoy reading it.

Brian Maunder.

Synopsis of “Little Kite and the Compass Tree” by Brian Maunder 2015

Many years ago, a young boy and his father built a tree house together. It was one of the last things the son did with his dad as his father had to go to war. The young boy didn’t really know what war was and hoped his father would be home soon.

Up in the treehouse, whilst waiting for his dad, the boy can see far out into the horizon, and he notices from looking at his compass, that a church spire in the distance is exactly north from his tree. He decides to call it his “Compass Tree”.

Forty years later, the boy is now a father himself. He usually works a job that takes him away from home for long periods of time which makes him miss his family terribly. Recently though, his wife has become very sick and he has taken time off from work to look after her and their daughter Polly. Toby the dog also needs to be looked after. His wife is now in hospital.

As a way of building a relationship with his daughter, the father spends all day with her, helping her to make a kite. Polly sews and paints the fabric. Dad builds the bamboo cross. They put it all together and write prayers onto special bows, which they attach to the kite’s tail.

Polly names it “Little Kite”

They put Little Kite on the table to allow the paint and glue to dry overnight. Polly goes to sleep.

During the night Little Kite gets angry with Dad because he doesn’t like the way he is made. He wiggles and pushes a ball of string off the table. It lands on the floor, trailing its sting over the sharp corner edge of the table.

In the morning Dad and Polly take Little Kite out to fly. Suddenly the string breaks and Little Kite flies away. At first, as he flies over houses and trees, Little Kite enjoys being all by himself on this new adventure. He really didn’t need to be bound to a string after all. But soon the weather changes and he finds himself facing wild seas and a ferocious storm. His fabric starts ripping and tearing apart in the winds.

Meanwhile, as the storm rages outside, Polly and Dad are in their cosy home wondering how Little Kite is going. Dad drifts off to sleep in front of the fire and has a dream about Little Kite and his own father fighting in a war. The dream rekindles a hope that died years ago. After all this time, he is still waiting for his dad to come home. ”Where are you dad?” he whispers.

Many days and nights pass. Little Kite is missing. Polly and Dad have tried everything to find Little Kite but all their efforts fail. They think he may be lost forever.

On their way to see Mum at the hospital, a rare sunny winter’s day inspire Polly and Dad to go through the “Old Ruins”. Dad grew up in this area as a boy, however it was bombed and destroyed during the war. Whilst there, Polly notices something unusual, like a nest at the top of a tree in the distance. As they approach, Dad realises with amazement that Little Kite has landed in his Compass tree.

Dad climbs the Compass Tree just like he did when he was a boy. He is overwhelmed and thrilled to find his old tree house still there, and discovers a miracle . . . a message, hidden inside a bullet within the tree, a remnant of the war, left to him by his father.

They take Little Kite to the hospital and tell Mum all about their wonderful discovery. Mum marvels at Little Kite and the Compass Tree. She looks at the note, and a few mysterious words on it cause her to wonder if there even more to the Fathers message than they first thought?

The strange words lead them on a wonderful journey as they follow clue after clue, each one revealing an aspect of the fathers love and devotion to his son. Eventually, they discover an object, hidden under a tile in the church, a summary of the entire journey.

Amazed by their discovery, they take Little Kite back home and give him a good clean. Dad notices the prayers on the bows have faded away, as if all the prayers have been safely delivered. Only two words remain, which seemingly answer all their prayers.

They mend Little Kite using the cross and blue material from mums sewing bag.  After putting him all together, he looks a bit different but he is like new again. Polly goes to bed.

In the morning, Polly wakes early and checks on Little Kite. She gasps in astonishment. All the blue material they sewed on him yesterday has disappeared, and he looks exactly like the way he was originally made. Was this all a dream?

She goes to ask her dad about it and finds him deep in thought, looking out the window at the church steeple. In his hands are a compass and a bullet shell, and a letter written to him from his father.

 

x

Aussie Beautiful. A song by Brian Maunder - how it was written and produced.

“You’re so beautiful.
So beautiful. Bop Bop Beautiful yeah yeah.
And when the morning star becomes the twinkle in your eyes.
And my heart rejoices in the grace that gives us life”

I sang the words, as I strummed the guitar and experimented with different chords and melodies.  It was a strange song to be working on as it didn’t really fit the profile of what I typically write about.

I usually write personal gospel songs so I can sing them when I go busking, but a friend had notified me via Facebook that Cosi was looking for songs, written by South Aussies for his show “South Aussie with Cosi”.

I was in the middle of writing a song about how the most precious and beautiful things in my life are the relationships right in front of me; it was actually about my wife. The song had a “positive” feel to it, so I thought I’d throw in a few Australia type lyrics to see what would happen. The changes seemed to create a great song about my “relationship” with Australia and I loved singing it. With all the negativity in the world, it was great to remember how awesome it is to live here in Australia.

I told my friend via Facebook that I thought I had a good song, but I couldn’t send it to Cosi as it needed to be “professionally produced”.  I knew her hubby was a sound engineer, and we’ve known each other for years (as far back as early Life-FM days), but I didn’t want to bother him.  He already did audio engineering as a job and who wants to work on the weekends?… for free? We are both busy family guys, so I didn’t ask.


Needless to say, my friend said that her hubby would love to produce it for me, and so the process of recording and production began.

I started with the usual song “rough take”, and recorded it as if I were on the street busking (It would later be erased). Damian (the sound producer) then added a solid drum track, and from that I was able to record the other instruments and vocals. I borrowed a bass guitar from church, and also used an ancient keyboard that the church had actually given me ages ago.

It was difficult for me to record, as my wife and I are in the process of building a home so we are renting and living out of boxes. Everything is everywhere. The place where we are renting is also on a main road so it’s virtually impossible to get a nice quiet place to record.

I had to use my small walk-in wardrobe to record, as it’s the only place in the house with a quiet “dead” sound. It’s a tight squeeze to fit all the gear in there, but I managed to record the acoustic guitar and vocals; and even managed to record trumpet in there too (thanks Mike). Where there’s a will there’s a way.

After all the audio was recorded at my house, I sent it to Damo so he could refine it and work his magic. He added other instruments and sound samples as needed and transformed the sound.  After the first mix, we had great positive feedback and people loved the song, but there was some criticism with a few of the initial words; they were too deep and reflective, they needed to be more concrete and obvious.

Receiving critique is not an easy thing (for me anyway). I mean, who has the right to judge my song? But I took a deep breath and tried to listen with an open mind to what my Mum and Auntie and Damo’s wife had to say. I went back to the drawing board to write new lyrics, which meant I then had to re-record and sing the vocals all over again. It was a lot of messing around and hard work but I’m so glad I listened to them. Thanks guys.

“You’re so beautiful.
So beautiful. Aussie Beautiful yeah yeah.
And when the morning sun paints the sky in golden light
The kookaburras laugh and watch the kangaroos take flight


It took ages to produce the song, as both of us were sick at various times, and family life and challenges made it difficult, but we kept going and it is finally finished. My first properly produced song which I still love to sing, even after hearing it a thousand times.

During the recording process, one of the other things I enjoyed creating was the cover design for the song. I tried various designs, starting off with an image of my kids playing on a Hills Hoist. Then I tried Vegemite on toast and even snags/bangas on a barbeque. I eventually settled on the image of burnt toast, shaped into an outline of a map of Australia, on a plate with bark and leaves as a dinner setting, making the word “Oi”. I reckon it turned out pretty cool.


Cosi still hasn’t verified if he will be using it in his show, however I have plans to write written (sheet) music so that school choirs or brass bands can play it if they want to. I’m just grateful that I could write this song, and feel blessed that I am free to sing my songs in the street with joy and without fear.


I hope you like the song too.

Thanks and God bless

Bri.

The song is available in iTunes and CDBaby. 

My Journey into Busking - Part 3 - the value of a coin.

Searching through the scraps of paper, half eaten sandwiches and dirty food containers, the man located what he was looking for. He picked out the glass bottle worth 10 cents from among the filth and placed it in his little canvas bag that was draped over the handle of a two wheeled trolley. 

The man’s clothes were tattered and torn and his wrinkled hands were black from the dirt and grime of street life. He was a patient man who had accepted his humble position. He was not proud, but neither was he arrogant and bitter. He had developed a skill in seeing what was valuable amidst the common and unwanted things of everyday life and this had changed him on the inside and strengthened his self-worth. He knew he was just like that discarded bottle, and someone special had eyes just for him.

He lifted a few scraps of rubbish to reach further into the bin. As he did, his ears picked up the sound of someone singing. He listened for a while as he retrieved another bottle. The voice was not trained in performance and was not eagerly vying for approval or attention. The buskers words floated upon a scratchy melody as his guitar strummed. “When darkness closes in, I shelter under your wing; you love me and heal me from sin”.  As he listened, something within him stirred. Somehow he wanted to be a part of the busker’s expression. Somehow it echoed what was happening in his heart and life and he wanted to be a part of that song. He opened his old cloth purse, took out 50 cents, then walked over and placed it into the busker’s guitar case.

The busker stopped mid-song amazed and stunned by what had just occurred. Something special and meaningful had happened before his very eyes. He understood that to get this 50 cent coin, that wonderful man dressed in rags had to journey from rubbish bin to rubbish bin, amidst glaring eyes and a harsh environment, to a recycle depot and back. This money would help pay for his next meal. “Thankyou my friend”, the busker whispered in appreciation. “Thankyou”. The man dressed in rags, lifted his hand knowing his offering had been gratefully accepted and in that instant, both the busker, and the man in rags were richer than anyone else in the city.