A PRAYER OF PREPARATION

A PRAYER OF PREPARATION

As you prepare your heart for worship, here is a prayer of one of the
Puritans from THE VALLEY OF VISION . . .

O God,
Praise waits for You, and to render it is my noblest exercise;
This is You due from all Your creatures,
for all You works display Your attributes and fulfill Your designs;
The sea, dry land, winter cold, summer heat, morning light, evening
shade are full of You,
and You give me them richly to enjoy.
You are King of kings and Lord of lords;
At Your pleasure empires rise and fall;
All Your works praise You and Your saints bless You;
Let me be numbered with Your holy ones,
resemble them in character and condition, sit with them at Jesus' feet.
May my religion be always firmly rooted in Your Word,
my understanding divinely informed,
my affections holy and heavenly,
my motives pure and simple,
and my heart never wrong with You.
Deliver me from the natural darkness of my own mind,
from the corruptions of my heart,
from the temptations to which I am exposed,
from the daily snares that attend me.
I am in constant danger while I am in this life;
Let Your watchful eye ever be upon me for my defense,
Save me from the power of my worldly and spiritual enemies
and from all painful evils to which I have exposed myself.
Until the day of life dawns above let there be unrestrained fellowship
with Jesus;
Until fruition comes, may I enjoy the earnest of my inheritance and the
firstfruits of the Spirit;
Until I finish my course with joy may I pursue it with diligence,
in every part display the resources of the Christian, and adorn the
doctrine of You my God in all things.
Amen

Powerful prayer as we together prepare our hearts to worship Him -- not
just today, but every day!