Need a last minute Christmas idea? Well, you may not be able to get it by Christmas, but an excellent gift at any time of the year is the collection of Puritan prayers entitled, "The Valley of Vision." Honest, heartfelt, and humbling (alliteration purely accidental!), these prayers are at once an encouragement and a help for prayer.
It is a good day to me when thou givest me
a glimpse of myself;
Sin is my greatest evil,
but though art my greatest good.
Most prayers are in the old King James English (I guess folks used to pray that way, and some still do), but it is easily modifiable!
O God of my Delight,
Thy throne of grace
is the pleasure ground of my soul.
Here I obtain mercy in time of need,
here see the smile of thy reconciled face,
here joy pleads the name of Jesus,
here I sharpen the sword of the Spirit,
annoint the shield of faith,
put on the helmet of salvation,
gather manna from thy Word,
am strengthened for each conflict,
nerved for the upward race,
empowered to conquer every foe;
Help me to come to Christ
as the fountain head of descending blessings,
as a wide open flood-gate of mercy....
Impress on my mind the shortness of time,
the work to be engaged in,
the account to be rendered,
the nearness of eternity,
the fearful sin of despising thy Spirit.
May I never forget that
they eye always sees,
thy ear always hears,
they recording hand always writes.
May I never give thee rest until Christ is
the pulse of my heart
the spokesman of my lips,
the lamp of my feet.
Of course, if you are like me, your prayers are much more 'earthy' (and this is where the inspired book of Psalms is helpful), but these prayers are good and they are like wise, spiritually mature friends coming alongside you and praying with you. Many times when I read these prayers, I am amazed at how they give voice to my heart's desires, and how they say the things I want to say in words that I often have a hard time finding.
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