Praying for you today…August 21, 2011

All Sufficient King,
When I come into Your presence I see
The glory of Your perfection,
The throne of eternal and universal dominion,
The ten thousand times ten thousand who minister to You.
Impress my mind with the consciousness of Your greatness,
Not to drive me from You,
But to inspire me to approach You;
Not to diminish my confidence in You,
But to lead me to admire Your great condescension.
You have been mindful of me and visited me,
Taken care of me from birth,
Cared in all conditions for me,
Fed me at Your table,
Drawn the curtains of love around me,
Given me new mercies every morning.
Help me not to forget that I look for yet greater blessings –
A hope beyond the grave,
The realities of heaven,
Holiness, wisdom, strength, peace, joy;
All these You have provided for me in Christ.
I grieve to think how insensible I have been of the claims of Your authority,
And the endearments of Your love;
How little I have credited Your truth,
Trusted Your promises,
Feared Your threats,
Obeyed Your commands,
Improved my advantages,
Welcomed Your warnings,
Responded to Your grace;
But in spite of my weakness, I live.
May Your goodness always lead me to repentance,
And Your patience prove my salvation.

Thank You, Lord, for Your perfect grace that leads us into this Lord’s Day. Help and enable Your servants to hear and respond to You, speak and share Your truth in love, and see what God can do when we trust and obey in Jesus’ name. Amen.

(Prayer adapted from “Caring Love” in Valley of Vision: A Collection of Puritan Prayers and Devotions, pp. 21—211.)

This prayer email is sent on Sunday mornings to the pastors and staff of churches in Metrolina Baptist Association, and to other partners in ministry. For more information, contact Bob Lowman at bob@metrolina.org.