My Father,
When Thou art angry towards me for my wrongs I try to pacify Thee by abstaining from future sin; but teach me that I cannot satisfy Thy law, that this effort is a resting in my righteousness, that only Christ’s righteousness, ready made, already finished, is fit for that purpose; that Thy chastening for my sins is not that I should try to reform, but only that I may be more humbled, afflicted, and separated from my sin, by being reconciled, and made righteous in Christ by faith; that a sense of my sufficiency and ability in Him is one means of my being immovable; that I can never be so by resting in my own faith, but by trusting in Thee as my only support by faith; that if I cast away my faith I cast away Thee, for by faith I apprehend Thee, and as Thou art very precious, so is my faith precious to me; that I fall short of the purity Thou requires, because in thinking I am holy I do not seek holiness, or, believing I am impotent, I do no more.
Humble me for not being as holy as I should be, or as holy as I might be through Christ, for Thou art all, and to possess Thee is to possess all. But to make the creature something is to make it stand between Thee and me, so that I do not walk humbly and holily. Lord, forgive me for this.
From Valley of Vision – A Collection of Puritan Prayers
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