Puritan prayers

Posted by Frank on 26 July 2020 Devotional 2

For those who like written prayers, based on the Scriptures, here are a few from “The Valley of Vision,” a book of Puritan prayers, by Arthur Bennett (1975). There’s a daily post at https://banneroftruth.org/us/, available in the lower right-hand corner under “Devotional: Valley of Vision Daily Devotional: Read Today’s Devotional.”

O HOLY SPIRIT,

As the sun is full of light,
the ocean full of water,
Heaven full of glory, so may my heart be
full of thee.
Vain are all divine purposes of love
and the redemption wrought by Jesus
except thou work within,
regenerating by thy power,
giving me eyes to see Jesus,
showing me the realities of the unseen world.
Give me thyself without measure,
as an unimpaired fountain,
as inexhaustible riches.
I bewail my coldness, poverty, emptiness,
imperfect vision, languid service,
prayerless prayers, praiseless praises.
Suffer me not to grieve or resist thee.
Come as power,
to expel every rebel lust, to reign supreme
and keep me thine;
Come as teacher,
leading me into all truth, filling me with
all understanding;
Come as love,
that I may adore the Father, and love him
as my all;
Come as joy,
to dwell in me, move in me, animate me;
Come as light,
illuminating the Scripture, moulding me
in its laws;
Come as sanctifier,
body, soul and spirit wholly thine;
Come as helper,
with strength to bless and keep, directing my
every step;
Come as beautifier,
bringing order out of confusion, loveliness
out of chaos.
Magnify to me thy glory by being magnified in me,
and make me redolent of thy fragrance.

O LORD GOD,

I pray not so much for graces as for
the Spirit himself,
because I feel his absence,
and act by my own spirit in everything.
Give me not weak desires but the power of
his presence,
for this is the surest way to have all his graces,
and when I have the seal I have the impression
also;
He can heal, help, quicken, humble suddenly
and easily,
can work grace and life effectually,
and being eternal he can give grace eternally.
Save me from great hindrances,
from being content with a little measure
of the Spirit,
from thinking thou wilt not give me more.
When I feel my lack of him, light up life and faith,
for when I lose thee I am either in the dark
and cannot see thee,
or Satan and my natural abilities content me
with a little light,
so that I seek no further for the Spirit of life.
Teach me then what to do.
Should I merely humble myself and not stir up
my heart?
Should I meditate and use all means to bring
him near,
not being contented by one means,
but trust him to give me a blessing by the use
of all,
depending only upon, and waiting always for,
thy light, by use of means?
Is it a duty or an error to pray
and look for the fullness of the Spirit in me?
Am I mistaken in feeling I am empty of the Spirit
because I do not sense his presence within,
when all the time I am most empty
and could be more full by faith in Christ?
Was the fullness of the Spirit in the apostles
chiefly a power,
giving the subsistence outside themselves
in Christ,
in whom was their life and joy?
Teach me to find and know fullness of the Spirit
only in Jesus.

O THOU MOST HIGH,

Creator of the ends of the earth,
Governor of the universe,
Judge of all men,
Head of the church,
Saviour of sinners;
thy greatness is unsearchable,
thy goodness infinite,
thy compassions unfailing,
thy providence boundless,
thy mercies ever new.
We bless thee for the words of salvation.
How important, suitable, encouraging
are the doctrines, promises, and invitations
of the gospel of peace!
We are lost: but in it thou hast presented to us
a full, free and eternal salvation;
weak: but here we learn that help is found in
One that is mighty,
poor: but in him we discover unsearchable riches,
blind: but we find he has treasures of wisdom
and knowledge.
We thank thee for thy unspeakable gift.
Thy Son is our only refuge, foundation, hope,
confidence;
We depend upon his death,
rest in his righteousness,
desire to bear his image;
May his glory fill our minds,
his love reign in our affections,
his cross inflame us with ardour.
Let us as Christians fill our various situations
in life,
escape the snares to which they expose us,
discharge the duties that arise from our
circumstances,
enjoy with moderation their advantages,
improve with diligence their usefulness,
And may every place and company we are in
be benefited by us.