Friday, March 28, 2014

The Great God

I have been reading/ praying through a book of Puritan prayers, called Valley of Vision. Here is one that really hit me. I have highlighted several lines in particular that meant a lot to me.


The Great God

O Fountain of All Good

Destroy in me every lofty thought,
     Break pride to pieces and scatter it to the winds,
Annihilate each clinging shred of self-righteousness,
Implant in me true lowliness of spirit,
Abase me to self-loathing and self-abhorrence,
Open in me a found of penitential tears,
Break me, then bind me up;
Thus will my heart be a prepared dwelling 
     for my God;
     Then can the Father take up his abode in me,
     Then can the blessed Jesus come with healing in his touch,
     Then can the Holy Spirit descend in sanctifying grace;
O Holy Trinity, three Persons and one God,
     inhabit me, a temple consecrated to thy glory.
When though are present, evil cannot abide;
In they fellowship is fullness of joy,
Beneath thy smile is peace of conscience,
By the side no fears disturb,
     no apprehension banish rest of mind,
With thee my heart shall bloom with fragrance;
Make me meet, through repentance,
     for thine indwelling.
Nothing exceeds thy power,
Nothing is too great for thee to do,
Nothing too good for thee to give.
     Infinite is thy might, boundless thy love,
     limitless thy grace, glorious they saving name.
Let angels sing for
     sinners repenting,
     prodigals restored,
     backsliders reclaimed,
     Satan’s captives released,
     blind eyes opened,
     broken hearts bound up,
     the despondent cheered,
     the self-righteous stripped,
     the formalist driven from a refuge of lies,
     the ignorant enlightened,
     and saints built up in their holy faith.
I ask great things of a great God.