Rob Westbrook

Lawful blessings are the secret idols, and do most hurt;
the greatest injury is in the having,
the greatest good in the taking away.
In love divest me of blessings that I may glorify thee the more;
remove the fuel of my sin,
and may I prize the gain of a little holiness
as overbalancing all my losses.

- from The Valley of Vision, p. 20

Here’s another snippet from the book The Valley of Vision. The prayer is titled “The Mover.”

O Lord, I am astonished at the difference
between my receivings and my deservings,
between the state I am now in and my past gracelessness,
between the heaven I am bound for and the hell I merit.
Who made me to differ, but thee?
…
I know that my sufferings are the result of my sinning,
but in heaven both shall cease;
Grant me to attain this haven and be done with sailing,
and may the gales of thy mercy blow me safely into harbour.
Let thy love draw me nearer to thyself,
wean me from sin, mortify me to this world,
and make me ready for my departure hence.
Secure me by thy grace as I sail across this stormy sea.

from The Valley of Vision, edited by Arthur G. Bennett

A few weeks ago, a friend of mine introduced me to the book The Valley of Vision. The book is a collection of Puritan prayers from the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries. I’ve been deeply moved by the prayers these men of God lifted up to their Master. Instead of reading quickly through The Valley of Vision, I’ve decided to read one per day, at night, before going to sleep. This has quickly become a very meaningful practice for me.

I’ve decided that I’ll share portions of these prayers with you from time to time. Here’s a bit of the first prayer, aptly titled The Valley of Vision.

Lord, high and holy, meek and lowly,
Thou hast brought me to the valley of vision,
where I live in the depths but see thee in the heights;
hemmed in by mountains of sin I behold thy glory.

from The Valley of Vision, edited by Arthur G. Bennett

The freedom we have here in the United States to worship Jesus is one we seldom think about. We take for granted the freedom to gather almost anywhere we want to, at any time, to sing, pray, and speak about Jesus. But that freedom is one not available to many Christians around the world. They literally place their lives on the line when they worship.

Open Doors has started an initiative called “The 5 Minute Challenge,” where those of us with the freedom of worship pray for those who don’t. The challenge is to devote 5 short minutes a week to pray for those in countries without freedom of worship. Each week you receive an email focusing on one country where freedom is non-existent. By the end of the year, you will have prayed for all 50 country on Open Doors’ World Watch List.

Watch the video below for the challenge and then visit this page to sign up.

(Thanks to Ron Edmondson for the link!)

I think think this might be a prayer we all should begin praying. Go take a look at this link:

http://theresurgence.com/2011/10/11/4-ways-to-pray-the-gospel-over-your-life