January 16, 2005

God Moves in a Mysterious Way

William Cowper, 1731-1800

      Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable His judgments. Romans 11:33.     

    The hymn God Moves in a Mysterious Way has been acclaimed as one of the finest songs ever written on the theme of God's providence. This label is made all the more amazing by the fact that the hymn text was written by an English poet who lived a lifetime of mental distress. William Cowper's emotional upsets included an 18-month stay in an insane asylum and later several attempted suicides. During his time in the asylum, Cowper began reading the Bible. At the age of 33 he had a genuine conversion experience. Yet he was periodically haunted by deep depressions, voices, and visions, and the overwhelming thought that God had forsaken him and would doom him to hell.
    But between these times of mental melancholia, William Cowper was a gifted writer. Several of his secular works achieved great literary fame. For nearly two decades he worked closely with John Newton in Olney, England, and eventually their combined talents produced the famous Olney Hymns hymnal. In this ambitious collection of 349 hymns, 67 were written by Cowper, including such favorites as O For a Closer Walk With God and There is a Fountain.
    God Moves in a Mysterious Way was originally titled Conflict: Light Shining Out of Darkness. It is thought to be Cowper's final hymn text and a reflection of God's leading throughout his own lifetime. There is even speculation that it was written following a failed attempt at suicidal drowning. One night he decided to commit suicide by drowning himself. He called a cab and told the driver to take him to the Thames Riv­er. However, thick fog came down and prevented them from finding the river (another version of the story has the driver getting lost deliberately). After driving around lost for a while, the cabby finally stopped and let Cowper out. To Cowper’s surprise, he found himself on his own doorstep: God had sent the fog to keep him from killing himself. Even in our blackest moments, God watches over us. Regardless of the original motivation for their writing, these words have since been used to bring much comfort to God's people for nearly two centuries.