On New Year’s Eve 1999, the eyes of the world were on Sydney and 2 billion people from around the world watched as the city to soon host the Olympic Games, welcomed the new millennium January 1, 2000. Sydney celebrated before any of the other great cities of the world and during the ‘Y2K’ computer bug fear. Sydney put on a display of fireworks never seen before. The world marvelled as Sydney Harbour was engulfed in spectacular fireworks.  Ending in a crescendo, as the smoke cleared, through the haze, the distinctive illuminated copper-plate lettering style of the word Eternity appeared, in 18-metre-high letters on the Sydney Harbour Bridge. The Sydney crowd cheered in delight as the rest of the world looked on bewildered.

For those who did not understand the significance of those millennium celebrations … Terry Lees relates the story of Mr. Eternity – the Sydney Legend, the most famous graffiti artist in Australia’s history.

Silver Linings can inspire you towards the achievement of your dreams, to grow, expand, and meet the challenges of your daily life.

Listen to the episode below, or continue on to read the transcript.

Episode Transcript:

On New Year’s Eve 1999, the eyes of the world were on Sydney and 2 billion people from around the world watched as the city to soon host the Olympic Games, welcomed the new millennium January 1, 2000. Sydney celebrated before any of the other great cities of the world and during the ‘Y2K’ computer bug fear. Sydney put on a display of fireworks never seen before. The world marvelled as Sydney Harbour was engulfed in spectacular fireworks.  Ending in a crescendo, as the smoke cleared, through the haze, the distinctive illuminated copper-plate lettering style of the word Eternity appeared, in 18-metre-high letters on the Sydney Harbour Bridge. The Sydney crowd cheered in delight as the rest of the world looked on bewildered.

For those who did not understand the significance of those millennium celebrations … this is the story of Mr. Eternity – the Sydney Legend.

For twenty-five years, from 1930 to 1956, Sydneysiders woke each day to a visit by a phantom, who was to become the most famous graffiti artist in Australia’s history. From inner Sydney to Parramatta, on the footpaths, train station platforms and walkways was that one-word Eternity, etched with yellow crayon in fine copperplate lettering style. Newspapers and letters to the editor debated who was behind the mysterious appearance of the word Eternity each morning. Yet, the author remained a phantom for 25 years. The people of Sydney came to accept it. Street sweepers and cleaners would leave the original works untouched.

It is estimated that this sermon in a word was written on Sydney streets some 500,000 times, causing some to tag the author as one of Australian’s most prolific writers. Eventually in 1956 the mystery was solved, when the minister of a city Church, witnessed the church cleaner writing Eternity on the footpath. “Are you Mr. Eternity?” the minister asked and the cleaner replied, “Guilty, your honour.”  The cleaner’s name was Arthur Malcolm Stace.

Arthur was born on 9 February 1885 at Redfern, fifth child of alcoholic parents, growing up in the then slums of Balmain, without parental support and having to survive by his wits. Forced into stealing, he was made a ward of the state at age 12. He received only limited education and by age 15 was in jail. Both his parents and five siblings died as drunkards and derelicts. Arthur slid into a life of alcoholism until the advent of WW1, when he enlisted in the Australian Army and served in France. He was wounded, partially blinded in one eye. Discharged medically unfit he returned home, but soon returned to petty crime and alcoholism, surviving on charity.

In August 1930, while at a Church soup kitchen, Arthur was touched by the kindness of Christians, converted, gave up alcohol and found regular employment. In 1932 he heard a sermon that impacted amazingly on his life. The Pastor said,” I wish I could shout ‘Eternity’ through the streets of Sydney,” and the word resonated with Stace who said of the moment he left the Church: “Suddenly I began crying and I felt a powerful call to write “ETERNITY”. I had a piece of chalk in my pocket and I bent down there and wrote it.”

 For the next 35 years, Arthur Stace would rise at 4:00am, pray, breakfast, then set out for the suburb he selected, arriving there before dawn, always dressed smartly in a grey felt hat, tie and a double-breasted navy-blue suit.  Every hundred metres he would stop and write on the footpath with yellow crayon in large, elegant copperplate, the one simple word Eternity. His one-word message could weather three to six months; one lasted twelve. He then headed back home at 10am. After lunch he volunteered doing good works at missions, helping homeless men, visiting hostels, the mental hospital and Leprosy Hospital. On Saturday nights he preached to the homeless outside Sydney Town Hall.

Arthur Malcolm Stace died aged 83 on 30 July 1967. More than fifty years after his death, Mr. Eternity’s ‘one-word sermon’ is an integral part of the soulful fabric of Sydney and Australians took him and his story to their hearts.  It was Arthur’s complete ordinariness that made him so extraordinary. His was a struggle against seemingly insurmountable odds. His life and legacy show how ordinary folk, fully committed and dedicated to their cause, can achieve extra-ordinary outcomes.

The Bible tells us that God often uses ordinary people to accomplish extraordinary things. For example, God chose an ordinary old man named Moses to lead the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt. God chose an ordinary shepherd boy named David to become the king of Israel. God chose a young peasant girl named Mary to give birth to and become the mother of Jesus – the Son of God.

Remember the Apostles were uneducated and had no formal theological training before they met Jesus. They walked with Jesus for three years, watching him perform miracles and hearing him teach them personally and as he taught others. Do you think that this Jesus who called ordinary people to follow him is concerned about titles after one’s name?

God chose those ordinary people then, just as he chooses ordinary people like you and me today, to do his extraordinarily great work in and for the world. Or to say it another way, God chooses to do his work in the world through ordinary people like them, and like us.

In his First Letter to the Corinthians, the Apostle Paul, said: Consider, brothers and sisters, how you were called; not many of you are wise by human standards, not many influential, not many from noble families. No, God chose those who by human standards are fools to shame the wise; he chose those who by human standards are weak to shame the strong, those who by human standards are common and contemptible — indeed those who count for nothing — to reduce to nothing all those that do count for something, so that no human being might feel boastful before God.

Do you seriously think God can’t, or won’t use YOU? Think again and look for the Silver Lining.

This is Terry Lees           

[Music: Eternity – Misty Edwards]