"God Enjoyed"

Thou incomprehensible but prayer-hearing God,

Known, but beyond knowledge,

revealed, but unrevealed,

my wants and welfare draw me to thee,

for thou hast never said, ‘Seek ye me in vain’.

To thee I come in my difficulties, necessities, distresses;

possess me with thyself,

with a spirit of grace and supplication,

with a prayerful attitude of mind,

with access into warmth of fellowship,

so that in the ordinary concerns of life

my thoughts and desires may rise to thee,

and in habitual devotion I may find a resource that will

soothe my sorrows, sanctify my successes,

and qualify me in all ways for dealings with my fellow men.

I bless thee that thou hast made me capable

of knowing thee, the author of all being,

of resembling thee, the perfection of all excellency,

of enjoying thee, the source of all happiness.

O God, attend me in every part of my arduous and trying pilgrimage;

I need the same counsel, defence, comfort I found at my beginning.

Let my religion be more obvious to my conscience,

more perceptible to those around.

While Jesus is representing me in heaven, may I reflect him on earth,

While he pleads my cause, may I show forth his praise.

Continue the gentleness of thy goodness towards me,

And whether I wake or sleep, let thy presence go with me,

thy blessing attend me.

Thou hast led me on and I have found thy promises true,

I have been sorrowful, but thou hast been my help,

fearful, but thou hast delivered me,

despairing, but thou hast lifted me up.

Thy vows are ever upon me,

And I praise thee, O God.

-Taken from Valley of Vision

"Divine Mercies" - A prayer for the year's end!

THOU ETERNAL GOD,

Thine is surpassing greatness, unspeakable goodness,

super-abundant grace;

I can as soon count the sands of ocean's 'lip' as number Thy favours

toward me;

I know but a part, but that part exceeds all praise.

I thank Thee for personal mercies,

measure of health, preservation of body,

comfort of house and home, sufficiency of food and clothing,

continuance of mental powers,

my family, their mutual help and support,

the delights of domestic harmony and peace,

the seats now filled that might have been vacant,

my country, church, Bible, faith.

But, O, how I mourn my sin, ingratitude, vileness,

the days that add to my guilt,

the scenes that witness my offending tongue;

All things in heaven, earth, around, within, without, condemn me-

the sunwhich sees my misdeeds,

the darknss which is light to thee,

the cruel accuser who justly charges me,

the good angels who have been provoked to leave me,

Thy countenance which scans my secret sins,

Thy righteous law, Thy holy Word,

my sin-soiled conscience, my private and public life,

my neighbours, myself-

all write dark things against me.

I deny them not, frame no excuse , but confess, 'Father, I have sinned'.

Yet still I live, and fly repenting to Thy outstretched arms;

Thou wilt not cast me off, for Jesus brings me near,

Thou wilt not condemn me, for He died in my stead,

Thou wilt not mark my mountains of sin, for He leveled all,

and His beauty covers my deformities.

O my God, I bid farewell to sin by clinging to His cross,

hiding in His wounds, and sheltering in His side.

-Taken from "Valley of Vision"

The Lord's Prayer

"Pray, then in this way:" Christ when teaching His disciples how to pray was not enjoining us to some formula of words which are to be repeated word for word as though it was the only prayer which the Lord hears, rather He points out what ought to be the object of all our wishes and prayers. Contained within the prayer are six petitions. The first three are toward the glory of God, without any regards to ourselves, which are rightly placed in there proper priority. The remaining three relate to those things which are necessary for our sustenance, salvation and sanctification.

"Our Father" For those whom God has saved by His grace, through faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ, and who have repented of their sins, God gives them the right to be called children of God. This is made possible through the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ Jesus, to reconcile us to God, for without this sacrifice man cannot be reconciled to God and is at enmity with God. But in Christ there is a righteousness wherein we can receive with Jesus the inheritance of God, and are adopted as sons through Jesus Christ. (Eph. 1:5)

"In Heaven" As Christians we do have God as our Father, and what a glorious and awfully we may approach Him because of the redemptive work of Christ, and have communion with God as sons and daughters, through Jesus, by the power of the Holy Spirit. Yet our Father is in Heaven, He is enthroned far above the earth ruling and reigning with power and might, in the presence of the ceaseless worship of the holy angels and the saints that have gone before. He has no lack or need of worship, but to Him and only Him is all worship due.

"Your Kingdom come" What is the Kingdom of God? Lets me start by explaining what the Kingdome of God is not! The Kingdom of God is NOT of this world. (John 18:36) God's Kingdom is not made up of castles, knights, ramparts, or walls. The Kingdom of God is Jesus Christ. That is what John the Baptist meant when he said, "Repent, for the Kingdom of God is at hand." (Matt 3:2) The word "kingdom" means sovereignty, or royal power. Jesus is the sovereign Lord ruling, with royal power, over heaven and earth perfectly. This God came to earth to seek and save that which is lost. So when we pray, "Your Kingdom come,” we are praying for the sovereign reign of God, both in the Second Coming, and also His reigning over our lives, as our Sovereign Lord, conforming us into the image of Jesus Christ.

"Your will be done" When we talk about the will of God there are some things we must understand. God’s will is already happening in a sense, in every aspect of life. He ordains everything that has been, is, or shall be. Every birth, every death, every calm, every storm, every perfect moment, and every tragedy, everything is being divinely orchestrated by God, for the purposes of His Glory and the Christian’s present and ultimate good. Now if God’s will is being done in everything, than what is it we are praying for? It is true, God allows everything to happen, that happens, though some of which is not according to His perfect will. So we pray that all creatures obey Him, without opposition or reluctance, as is done in Heaven.

"On earth as it is in Heaven" This has been subject to twisting by faith healers and prosperity preachers, who say, "well in heaven there is no sickness or poverty, therefore we shouldn't be sick or poor, and if you are you don't have enough faith.” Heaven is a place, an actual place, where God reigns with power and might, receiving glory and honor and praise that is due Him. God's Kingdom and will is done on this earth primarily when we preach the gospel, and His Kingdom is populated when souls get saved, and when every aspect of our lives is transformed by the power of the Holy Spirit, and conformed to the image of Jesus Christ, to the glory of God.

"Give us this day our daily bread" In the time this was written almost everyone worked very hard to put food on the table and clothes on their backs. These people were not working to buy a second donkey to ride around to show up the neighbors, or to buy the latest style of turban. They labored just to survive. Men were looked up to and honored for providing the necessities for his family. It is not so today in our culture. Men are frowned upon for not having a large TV or the newest SUV. So what is being said here? When we pray, we ought to pray for what we need to live, not what our wandering lustful hearts desire.

"And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors." This is a cry and a plea for mercy. The word for "forgive" in the Greek literally means "to send away", or "leave alone". This is the same word Jesus used on the cross when He cried out "Forgive them for they know not what they do" (Luke 23:34) In the same way we are crying out to God, not that He forgive someone else but to forgive us for our debts against Him. (Debts: sins, moral fault.) The debt we owe is astronomical. Our debts consist of, our lying, thieving, dishonoring, coveting, pride, blasphemy, perverse and murderous thoughts, idolatry. It also includes our failures to love God as we ought, honor Him as we ought, glorify Him as we ought, thank Him as we ought, worship Him as we ought, seek Him as we ought, and know Him as we ought. So many and so gross are our debts against an infinitely, holy, perfect, righteous and good God, that all the worth of all the earth with its gold and jewels, and all the worth of all the worship of every created thing could not satisfy the debt we owe. Our sins being against an infinitely holy God require a sacrifice of infinite worth, Jesus Christ, the Righteous, paid the sum of an infinite debt, as He hung on that cross suffering the wrath of God in our place, and rose again for our justification. Now as believers, justification is a one time act, in which we are made right before God. So as believers this prayer is not for justification, for that is already accomplished, but it is a confession and repentance of sin that remains in the believer, looking always to the cross and seeing our forgiveness and reconciliation in Christ Jesus. "If we confess our sins He is faithful and just o forgive us our sins and cleans us from all unrighteousness." (1 John 1:9)

"As we also have forgiven our debtors" In the same way we have been forgiven by God, we ought also to forgive. This does not mean, "God forgive us because we forgive others," rather, "God forgive us, and because You have so graciously forgiven us, we will in like manner forgive others.”

"And do not lead us into temptation" Now we know from the epistle of James 1:13 that God cannot be tempted with evil nor can He tempt anyone. So what does this verse mean when it says, "do not lead us into temptation?” In Scripture the word "temptation" can be used in two different ways. For example in James 1:2 is says "Count it all joy my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of you faith produces steadfastness..." The Greek word for "trials" comes from the same word "tempted" used later in verse 13 "Let no on say when he is tempted...." In verse two "trials" referrers to hardships, persecution, and affliction in our lives from the world, through which our faith grows and produces steadfastness. On the other hand in verse 13, the word tempt is used more in terms of as a desire to sin, a lust for that which is evil. For we see in verses 14 and 15 that temptation entices our own lust, lust births sin, and sin brings forth death. It is from this kind of temptation that we are praying for God to lead us away. For our sinful flesh, though regenerated by the Holy Spirit is still enticed by the things of the world. The plea is, "God leas me far from, not just sin, but even just the temptation to sin. It can only happen by Him leading. Fleeing temptation is impossible apart from the grace of God.

"But deliver us from evil." This half of the sentence is more pointing to the grace of God in a cry for rescue. Firstly we prayed for His leading away from temptation, but now it’s a cry for deliverance from evil, or the evil one. As Christians we do battle against evil spiritual forces of darkness. This prayer is about humbling ourselves and looking to God for our deliverance. We are not looking to our own merits, our praying, or even our faith. These are tools used in the battle against evil, but first and foremost we must humble ourselves before a Might God, who is might to save. Then we must turn to the Truth of God, the Righteousness of God, the Gospel of God, the Faith of God, the Salvation of God, and the Word of God. All of which are gracious gifts given by God to deliver us from evil. The strength is not in us but in the Lord Almighty.

"For Yours is the Kingdom and the Power and The Glory forever! Amen!

A Prayer For The Broken Hearted

A Prayer For The Broken Hearted

Words by Chelsey Scott (based on a prayer from “The Valley Of Vision”) Music by Chelsey Scott © 2006 Petit Bateau Music (ASCAP)

"No day in my life has past, that hasn't proved me guilty

Prayers are uttered too fast, from a heart that’s cold and empty.

Chorus: Oh Blessed Jesus, May we find a covert in thy wounds

Though our sins, they rise to meet us, how they fall next to the merits of you

All in me calls for this, it calls for my rejection

This heavy unrighteousness, oh is there no protection?

My best services are rags, my best deeds are filthy;

Grant me hear thy shoring voice, that in thy wounds is pardon

Grant me see thy willing choice to make my hard heart softened

Keep the broken-hearted sure, clinging to thy cross, our cure;"

Folk I hope this has been a blessing to you as it has to me. May we always look to Christ and the cross, and not on our righteousness which is but filthy rags. This song is from Indelible Grace Music, if you would like to listen to this and other great music please visit www.igracemusic.com or purchase their music in the itunes store. God bless.

Confession of sin

Almight Lord, we have been willing to listen to sin's deceptive talk.

We have walked in the counsel of its arrogance.

We treat with contempt Your gifts of kindness, thinking ourselves to be entitled to what we have.

We believe we are righteous whithout You, when our righteousness is from You.

We make ourselves judges, when we ourselves are under judement.

We glory in our successes, when our very breath comes from You.

We have turned away from forgiveness and mercy to grudges and bitterness.

We justify our wrongs, excuse our lack of goodness and smile at sin's presence.

Strengthen our hearts in Christ. Invigorate us to do Your will, that we might honor the precious name of Jesus, our Lord. Amen!

Puritan Prayer - Confession and Petition

Holy Lord, I have sinned times without number, and been guilty of pride and unbelief, of failure to find Thy mind in Thy Word, of neglect to seek Thee in my daily life. My transgressions and short-comings present me with a list of accusations, but I bless Thee that they will not stand against me, for all have been laid on Christ. Go on to subdue my corruptions, and grant me grace to live above them. Let not the passions of the flesh nor lustings of the mind bring my spirit into subjection, but do Thou rule over me in liberty and power.

I thank Thee that many of my prayers have been refused. I have asked amiss and do not have, I have prayed from lusts and been rejected, I have longed for Egypt and been given a wilderness. Go on with Thy patient work, answering 'no' to my wrongful prayers, and fitting me to accept it. Purge me from every false desire, every base aspiration, everything contrary to Thy rule. I thank Thee for Thy wisdom and Thy love, for all the acts of discipline to which I am subject, for sometimes putting me into the furnace to refine my gold and remove my dross.

No trial is so hard to bear as a sense of sin. If Thou shouldst give me choice to live in pleasure and keep my sins, or to have them burnt away with trial, give me sanctified affliction. Deliver me from every evil habit, every accretion of former sins, everything that dims the brightness of Thy grace in me, everything that prevents me taking delight in Thee. Then I shall bless Thee, God of jeshurun, for helping me to be upright.

Puritan Prayer - Sin!

Merciful Lord,
Pardon all my sins of this day, week, year, all the sins of my life, sins of early, middle, and advanced years, of omission and commission, of morose, peevish and angry tempers, of lip, life and walk, of hard-heartness, unbelief, presumption, pride, of unfaithfulness to the souls of men, of want of bold decision in the cause of Christ, of deficiency in outspoken zeal for His glory, of bringing dishonor upon Thy great name, of deception, injustice, untruthfulness, in my dealings with others, of impurity in thought, word and deed, of covetousness, which is idolatry, of substance unduly hoarded, improvidently squandered, not consecrated to the glory of Thee, the Great Giver; sins in private and in the family, in study and recreation, in the busy haunts of men, in the study of Thy Word and in the neglect of it, in prayer irreverently offered and coldly withheld, in time misspent, in yielding to Satan’s wiles in opening my heart to his temptations, in being unwatchful when I know him nigh, in quenching the Holy Spirit; sins against light and knowledge, against conscience and restraints of Thy Spirit, against the law of eternal love.

Pardon all my sins, known and unknown, felt and unfelt, confessed and not confessed, remembered or forgotten. Good Lord, hear; and hearing, forgive.

From Valley of Vision -a Collection of Puritan Prayers