Monday, February 23, 2009

My malady, my monster, my foe, my viper

(A Puritan Prayer)

Blessed Lord Jesus,
Before Your cross I kneel and see . . .
the heinousness of my sin,
my iniquity that caused You to be made a curse,
the evil that excites the severity of divine wrath.

Show me the enormity of my guilt by . . .
Your crown of thorns,
Your pierced hands and feet,
Your bruised body,
Your dying cries.

Infinite must be the evil and guilt--
which demands such a price! Sin is . . .
my malady, my monster, my foe, my viper,
born in my birth,
alive in my life,
strong in my character,
dominating my faculties,
following me as a shadow,
intermingling with my every thought,
the chain which holds my soul captive.

Sinner that I am, why should . . .
the sun give me light,
the air supply breath,
the earth bear my tread,
its fruits nourish me,
its creatures serve my needs?

Yet Your compassion yearns over me,
Your heart hastens to my rescue,
Your love endured my curse,
Your mercy bore my deserved stripes.

Let me walk humbly . . .
in the lowest depths of humiliation,
bathed in Your blood,
tender of conscience,
triumphing gloriously,
as an heir of salvation.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

"...as an heir of salvation."

I like that a lot!

What does an heir do to inherit the estate?

Absolutely nothing. He has it by the will of the Father.

Dawg said...

Right on Steve!

Jon said...

Let me walk humbly...

That's often the most difficult thing to do. I've been focusing on Matt 16:24 this last week:

24Then Jesus told his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, let him(A) deny himself and(B) take up his cross and follow me.

I've noticed that all the things I want to fix seem to be fix by this verse, and all the things I want to promote in my life are promoted by this verse. Throughout the day I'm constantly reminding myself "Deny Yourself."