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Roger Dowis
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I Once Was Lost: The Story of John Newton and Amazing Grace Paperback – January 1, 2014

by Roger Dowis (Author)
3.9 3.9 out of 5 stars 15 ratings
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John Newton is a young man in search of life’s purpose. As a child, he first lost his mother, his uncaring father sent him to a boys’ school where the headmaster tried to break his spirit. On the verge of despair, he goes to sea on his eleventh birthday. Not much later, he watches as several friends die when their small boat flounders. Is it any wonder that John is furious at God for abandoning him? Yet, he struggles with the knowledge that it is God who has spared his life on several occasions. For what reason, he asks? He asks the same question of the young maid he falls in love with, only to find himself separated for five years when pressed into the Navy. His anger rekindled, John begins a determined journey of rebellion, asking his shipmates to name a single sin he has yet to commit. Worse still, he convinces a young midshipman to give up his faith, only to encounter him later in life, an evil and depraved man. When he is traded to a slave ship, John begins a new endeavor to build an empire in the burgeoning slave industry, only to be tricked into becoming the slave of his so-called benefactor. After two years of grinding oppression, John is literally at death’s door when a sympathetic plantation owner buys him. The crescendo of John’s despair occurs when he is headed home, fearful that his love may be married to someone else. When his ship in caught in “The Storm of the Century,” he understands that if he died, God would have no reason to offer him grace. That moment transforms John life into a great adventure. He steps through a doorway and discovers the reason for all his adversity and God's purpose for his life. Follow the author of “Amazing Grace” as he faces the suffering and blessings of life, and coming to understand the meaning of contentment. His story will change your life, as well.
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  1. Print length
    296 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publication date
    January 1, 2014
  4. Dimensions
    5.98 x 0.62 x 9.02 inches
  5. ISBN-10
    1495272664
  6. ISBN-13
    978-1495272660
  7. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Roger Dowis wrote his first short story while attending a summer session of college. "It was more or less and experiment," says Roger, "but a professor hooked me when he said it had potential.  But I only dabbled for the next few years. My priorities were work, study, and taking care of my family."
Then Guideposts Magazine printed "Cody's Courage," the story of a dying boy abandoned by his father. The piece resulted in a flood of reader's letters, and the publisher recognized it as one of the ten best stories of that decade.

"I Once Was Lost," the biography of John Newton and author of Amazing Grace, appealed to Roger because of Newton's turbulent life. Filled with anger, the young sailor fought God at every turn, even causing others to doubt their faith. He was flogged, became a slave trader and a slave of slaves, and was transformed into a legendary minister. The extreme roller coaster episodes might cause one to think of this adventure as fiction, but God saved Newton's life three times.  In the end, he found the secret to contentment and peace, even in the most difficult times. 

"That's what we all want," says Roger, "to know God's there in the details of our lives, even using our darkest hours to shape us for a greater purposes."

Roger spent twenty-six years with the Los Angeles Police Department. He served as a training officer, instructed recruits at the academy, was the officer-in-charge of Community Relations in Hollywood, a sergeant in a gang suppression unit, and worked undercover. He retired as a lieutenant watch commander. From there, he was became an investigator for the Missouri Attorney General.  He now works for In2Action, a movement helping Christian ex-offenders start over after prison.
Roger's stories are about God changing the lives of hurting people.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform (January 1, 2014)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 296 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1495272664
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1495272660
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 14.1 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.98 x 0.62 x 9.02 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    3.9 3.9 out of 5 stars 15 ratings

About the author

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Roger Dowis

Roger Dowis

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Roger Dowis grew up in Las Cruces, New Mexico. He wrote his first short story while attending Graceland University. He was hooked when a professor said, "Some parts of this really sound professional."

Then he submitted "Cody's Courage," the story of a young boy abandoned by his father and dying in a hospital. The article garnered rave attention as one of the best of that decade in Guideposts.

"I Once Was Lost," the story of John Newton and Amazing Grace, appealed to Roger because Newton had such a turbulent life. The roller coaster episodes were so extreme, that one might think it was fiction, but each event actually took place. In the end, John still had to live in a broken world, but found contentment and peace. "That's what we are all looking for," says Roger. "We want to know God is there and watching over us, even in the darkest hour."

Roger spent twenty-six years with the Los Angeles Police Department. He served as a training officer, an academy instructor, was the officer-in-charge of a Community Relations office, and worked a gang suppression unit. He retired as a lieutenant watch commander. He was also an investigator with the Office of the Missouri Attorney General. He now works for In2Action, a movement that helps Christian ex-offenders start over after release from prison.

Customer reviews

3.9 out of 5 stars
3.9 out of 5
15 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Chuck Crews
5.0 out of 5 stars Thank you Roger for educating and entertaining me.
Reviewed in the United States on June 30, 2013
Verified Purchase
Just finished Roger's enlightening book. The story was compelling and brought new understanding to my limited knowledge of the history of slave trading. When I consider my own short comings it is comforting to know that "an old slave trader" can find redemption and a purpose for his life at an advanced age.
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Kindle Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent read!
Reviewed in the United States on December 30, 2014
Verified Purchase
Wonderful account of John Newton's life. It encourages the reader in the grace of God and His greater plan in all circumstances.
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Nan
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United States on September 7, 2016
Verified Purchase
Very heart warming
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Michelle Lofton
3.0 out of 5 stars A Well-Thought Out Chronology of John Newton's Life, but too many grammatical and editing errors
Reviewed in the United States on February 24, 2014
I Once Was Lost, is a biography of John Newton, writer of the most-sung hymn world-wide, “Amazing Grace.” The book chronicles Newton’s challenging life, and his spiritual journey from non-believer to that of a man of God. The story is poignant and thought-provoking, challenging the reader along the way to search inward for their own truth.
As a young boy, Newton witnesses the drowning deaths of his friends, and his own close brush with death. At a young age, he begins to wonder why God chose to spare his life. It is a question he will ask himself many times throughout his life. As John Newton struggles to figure out who he is and what he place is in the world, he takes a journey during which he turns his back on God. It takes another near-death event for John Newton to begin to reflect and to search deep within to figure out in what it is he truly believes. Newton, in love with his childhood sweetheart, Polly, is determined to make something of himself so that he proves worthy of marriage. However, he struggles with his dark past which includes a deserter from the British Navy, malcontent while serving aboard a warship.
Before reading this book, I knew that John Newton was a sailor and sea captain. I did not know that he had been a slave trader. There is a chapter in the book where Newton describes the cruelties suffered by the slaves aboard slave ships. The description is horrendous, but I am glad that Roger Dowis does not gloss over it. He presents it as the horrible act that it is. There is also a scene in which Polly and John discuss the pros and cons of slave trade. Again, Dowis does a remarkable job of presenting both sides with sensitivity.
I found the story compelling, however the Kindle version of the book does have formatting issues, and there are so many grammatical and editing mistakes which take away from the flow of the book. For example, the Table of Contents spans three pages with the title of the chapter on one line, the chapter number below that, and the page on which the chapter begins on a line beneath the chapter number. There are other issues where there is only one word per line in some of the chapters.
A few of the Grammatical and Editing Errors in Chapter One include:
Page 16- John hung up the last of his closes.

Page 17- There are some choppy, incomplete sentences/thoughts throughout the novel. One such example is,
“Students sat in alphabetical order, wore the same uniform, and sat stiffly with hands folded on top of their, most of which badly in need of refinishing.”
Page 21- “(Mr.) Bell’s heals sounded against the wooden floor...”
This is just from the first chapter. There are similar errors throughout the entire book. It is a shame, because the errors distract from a well-thought out chronology of John Newton’s life.
One person found this helpful
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Francine
5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing journey to a belief in God
Reviewed in the United States on November 7, 2013
I Once Was Lost-The Life of John Newton and Amazing Grace is an interesting look at how John Newton came to write the well-known and well-loved hymn Amazing Grace. It starts with a young nine-year old John as he attends a severely strict boarding school in Essex, England in the year 1734. Not much of a Christian for most of his younger life, John has far more than his fair share of trials that eventually leads him to find strength through God and write many religious poems and hymns, the greatest being Amazing Grace.
The thing I liked most about this book is that it is written in story form which brought John Newton's story to life. Instead of dry facts, the author manages to make Newton's journey both entertaining and interesting. The book is never preachy and even if you aren't particularly religious it still makes for an excellent read. Obviously it can't be completely factual as it is impossible to know every conversation and thought Newton had but I'd much rather read this format and be entertained as I take in the information. This is an excellent and enjoyable book.
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Chief Dowis
5.0 out of 5 stars Kept my. Interest
Reviewed in the United States on August 25, 2015
I mesmerizing book about the life of John Newton and his life and trials. An Excellent and easy to read book that I would recommend to anyone who loves the hymn in the many ways that it is played to an audience.
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atomskeater
4.0 out of 5 stars I Once Was Lost review
Reviewed in the United States on November 21, 2013
A biography of the author of Amazing Grace certainly isn't what I expected to have on my reading list this year, but I've tried a lot of new books in various genres and covering a wide variety of subjects so I thought "why not?"

Biography seems to be stretching it a bit, thought, as while this story probably does follow the course of John Newton's life it is written like a fictional story. This kept it interesting, however, and I ended up liking the book more than I thought I would.

Over the course of the book John is struck by the usual turbulence for growing up, as well as moral conundrums presented by things like the slave trade. At the end of the book we come to have an understanding of how he came to compose one of the most iconic pieces of music. The prose is effective in painting a picture. Some people have different accents or speak in imperfect English, which helps add variety to the cast.

Did I feel like I learned something new? Definitely. The subject of the book might be a little obscure, and I'm not sure how much of the book is biography and how much is invention. Still, this was a lovely coming-of-age story with some good themes and morals mixed in.
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Stephanie Hanneken
5.0 out of 5 stars Very well written
Reviewed in the United States on February 4, 2014
I enjoyed how each chapter started out with Bible scripture and that scripture was explained in each chapter. It was well written, easy to read and didn't want it to end! Thank you Roger. Can't hardly wait for your next book!
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