Devotionals: The Valley of Vision

O GOD, Thy main plan, and the end of thy will       is to make Christ glorious and beloved         in heaven   where he is now ascended,   where one day all the elect will behold his glory   and love and glorify him for ever. Though here I love him but little,   may this be my portion at […]

O GOD OF ABRAHAM, ISAAC AND JACOB, We hope in thy Word.         There we see thee, not on a fearful throne   of judgment, But on a throne of grace   waiting to be gracious and exalted in mercy. There we hear thee saying,   not ‘Depart ye cursed’,   but ‘Look unto me and be ye saved,     for […]

GOD OF THE PASSING HOUR, Another week has gone and I have been           preserved         in my going out,         in my coming in. Thine has been the vigilance that has turned     threatened evils aside; Thine the supplies that have nourished me; Thine the comforts that have indulged me; Thine the relations and friends that have     delighted […]

O THOU MOST HIGH, Creator of the ends of the earth,     Governor of the universe,     Judge of all men,     Head of the church,     Saviour of sinners;       thy greatness is unsearchable,       thy goodness infinite,       thy compassions unfailing,       thy providence boundless,       thy mercies ever new. We bless thee for the words of salvation. How important, suitable, encouraging […]

MOST HOLY GOD, May the close of an earthly sabbath         remind me that the last of them     will one day end. Animate me with joy that in heaven praise     will never cease,   that adoration will continue for ever,   that no flesh will grow weary,       no congregations disperse,       no affections flag,       no thoughts wander,       no will […]

O LORD GOD, Thou art our Preserver, Governor, Saviour,         and coming Judge. Quieten our souls to call upon thy name; Detach us from the influence of the flesh     and the senses; Impress us with the power of faith; Promote in us spirituality of mind   that will render our services acceptable to thee,   and delightful and […]

O MAKER AND UPHOLDER OF ALL THINGS, Day and night are thine; they are also         mine from thee —   the night to rid me of the cares of the day,       to refresh my weary body,       to renew my natural strength;   the day to summon me to new activities,       to give me opportunity to glorify thee, […]

SUPREME RULER OF THE VISIBLE AND INVISIBLE WORLDS, My heart is drawn out to thee         for thy amazing grace and condescension. Thou hast kept my conversion fresh before me,   that season of my first spiritual comfort     when I passed through the Red Sea     by a way I did not expect. I rejoiced then for that […]

GLORIOUS GOD, It is the flame of my life to worship thee,     the crown and glory of my soul to adore thee,     heavenly pleasure to approach thee. Give me power by thy Spirit to help me     worship now,   that I may forget the world,     be brought into fullness of life,     be refreshed, comforted, blessed. Give […]

CREATOR, UPHOLDER AND PROPRIETOR OF ALL THINGS, We cannot escape from thy presence         and control,     nor do we desire to do so. Our privilege is to be under the agency     of thy omnipotence,   righteousness, wisdom, patience, mercy and grace; For thou art Love with more than parental affection. We admire thy goodness,   stand in awe […]

O GOD OF LOVE, I approach thee with encouragements     derived from thy character,   for I am not left to feel after thee     in the darkness of my nature,   nor to worship thee as the unknown God. I cannot find out thy perfections,   but I know thou art good,     ready to forgive, plenteous in mercy. Thou […]

O GOD, We bless thee,         our Creator, Preserver, Benefactor, Teacher,   for opening to us the volume of nature     where we may read and consider thy works. Thou hast this day spread before us the fuller pages     of revelation,   and in them we see what thou wouldest     have us do,   what thou requirest of us,   what […]

THOU GREAT AND ONLY POTENTATE, Thou hast made summer and winter,       day and night;   each of these revolutions serves our welfare   and is full of thy care and kindness. Thy bounty is seen   in the relations that train us,   the laws that defend us,   the homes that shelter us,   the food that builds us,   the […]

O LORD MY LORD, This is thy day,       the heavenly ordinance of rest,     the open door of worship,     the record of Jesus’ resurrection,     the seal of the sabbath to come,     the day when saints militant and triumphant       unite in endless song. I bless thee for the throne of grace,   that here free favour reigns;   that […]

O LORD, We commune with thee every day,         but week days are worldly days,   and secular concerns reduce heavenly impressions. We bless thee therefore for the day sacred     to our souls   when we can wait upon thee and be refreshed; We thank thee for the institutions of religion   by use of which we draw near […]

O GOD ALL-SUFFICIENT, Thou hast made and upholdest all things       by the word of thy power;   darkness is thy pavilion,   thou walkest on the wings of the wind;   all nations are nothing before thee;   one generation succeeds another,   and we hasten back to the dust;   the heavens we behold will vanish away     like the clouds […]

GOD OF ALL GOOD, I bless thee for the means of grace;     teach me to see in them thy loving purposes       and the joy and strength of my soul. Thou hast prepared for me a feast;   and though I am unworthy to sit down as guest,   I wholly rest on the merits of Jesus,   and […]

O MY SAVIOUR, Help me.     I am so slow to learn,       so prone to forget,       so weak to climb; I am in the foothills when I should be     on the heights; I am pained by my graceless heart,   my prayerless days,   my poverty of love,   my sloth in the heavenly race,   my sullied conscience,   my […]

KING OF GLORY, DIVINE MAJESTY, Every perfection adorns thy nature       and sustains thy throne; The heavens and earth are thine, The world is thine and its fullness. Thy power created the universe from nothing; Thy wisdom has managed all its multiple concerns,   presiding over nations, families, individuals. Thy goodness is boundless;   all creatures wait on […]

O MY LORD, May I arrive where means of grace cease         and I need no more to fast, pray,     weep, watch,     be tempted, attend preaching and sacrament;   where nothing defiles,   where is no grief, sorrow, sin, death,       separation, tears, pale face, languid body,       aching joints, feeble infancy, decrepit age,       peccant humours, pining sickness,       griping fears, […]

O GOD OF TRUTH, I thank thee for the holy Scriptures,     their precepts, promises, directions, light. In them may I learn more of Christ,   be enabled to retain his truth   and have grace to follow it. Help me to lift up the gates of my soul     that he may come in   and show me himself […]

LORD OF HEAVEN, Thy goodness is inexpressible and inconceivable.       In the works of creation thou art almighty,   In the dispensations of providence all-wise,   In the gospel of grace all love, And in thy Son thou hast provided for   our deliverance from the effects of sin,   the justification of our persons,   the sanctification of our natures, […]

O GOD, I know that I often do thy work         without thy power,   and sin by my dead, heartless, blind service,     my lack of inward light, love, delight,     my mind, heart, tongue moving       without thy help. I see sin in my heart in seeking the approbation     of others; This is my vileness, to make men’s […]

LORD, Teach me the nature of a sacrament         as a seal and pledge of love,   that Christ is faithful to make himself     a present reality to his own who are guests       at his table. Assure me by it   that his Word is made good to my faith,   that he by sacramental union is given to […]

GOD OF ALL SOVEREIGNTY, Thy greatness is unsearchable, Thy name most excellent, Thy glory above the heavens; Ten thousand minister to thee, Ten thousand times ten thousand stand before thee; In thy awful presence we are less than nothing. We do not approach thee because we deserve thy notice, for we are sinners; Our necessities […]