The Spirit's Work

O God the Holy Spirit,  

You who proceeds from the Father and the Son, 

   have mercy on me. 

When thou first hovered over chaos, order came to life,  

   beauty robed the world, fruitfulness sprang forth.  

Move, I pray, upon my messed up heart; 

Take away the sickness of out-of-control desires and hateful lusts;  

Lift the mists and darkness of unbelief; 

Brighten my soul with the pure light of truth; 

Make it fragrant as the garden of paradise,  

   rich with every good fruit, 

   beautiful with heavenly grace,  

   radiant with rays of divine light. 

Fulfill in me the glory of your divine ministries; 

Be my comforter, light, guide, sanctifier;  

Take of the things of Christ and show them to my soul;

Through you may l daily learn more of his love, 

   grace, compassion, faithfulness, beauty;

Lead me to the cross and show me his wounds, 

   the hateful nature of evil, the power of Satan;  

May l there see my sins as 

   the nails that pinned him there, 

   the cords that bound him, 

   the thorns that tore him, 

   the sword that pierced him.  

Help me to find in his death the reality and immensity of his love.  

Open for me the wondrous volumes of truth in his, ‘It is finished’.  

Increase my faith in the clear knowledge of 

   atonement achieved, payment completed, 

   satisfaction made, guilt erased, 

   my debt paid, my sins forgiven, 

   my life redeemed, my soul saved, 

   hell vanquished, heaven opened,  eternity made mine.  

O Holy Spirit, deepen in me these saving lessons. 

Write them upon my heart, that my walk would be sin-hating, sin-fleeing, and Christ-loving;  And allow no snare of Satan to beguile or deceive me.

The Spirit of Jesus

Lord Jesus Christ,

Fill me with your Spirit

    that I may be occupied with his presence.

I am blind - send him to make me see;

   dark - let him say, ‘Let there be light’!

May he give me faith to behold 

   my name engraved on your hand,

   my soul and body redeemed by your blood,

   my sinfulness covered by your life of pure obedience. 

Replenish me by his revealing grace, 

   that l may realise my unbreakable union with you;

   that I may know you have married me to yourself for ever,  

      in righteousness, love, mercy, faithfulness; 

   that l am one with you, 

      as a branch with its trunk, 

      as a building with its foundation. 

May his comforts cheer me in my sorrows,

   his strength sustain me in my trials,

   his blessings revive me in my weariness,

   his presence render me a fruitful tree of holiness,

   his might establish me in peace and joy,

   his promptings make me ceaseless in prayer,

   his enlivening kindle in me undying devotion.

Send him as the searcher of my heart,

   to show me more of my corruptions and helplessness

   that I may flee to thee,

      cling to thee

      rest on thee

   as the beginning and end of my salvation. 

May I never grieve him by my indifference and waywardness,

   grieve him by my cold welcome, 

   resist him by my hard rebellion.  

Answer my prayers, O Lord, for your great name's sake.

Spiritus Sanctus

O HOLY SPIRIT,

As the sun is full of light,
   the ocean full of water,
   Heaven full of glory, so may my heart be full of you.
Vain are all divine purposes of love
   and the redemption wrought by Jesus
   unless you work within me,
      regenerating me by your power,
      giving me eyes to see Jesus,
      showing me the realities of the unseen world.
O give me yourself without measure,
   as an unimpaired fountain,
   as inexhaustible riches.
I lament my coldness, poverty, emptiness,
   imperfect vision, apathetic service,
   prayerless prayers, praiseless praises.
Allow me not to grieve or resist you.
Come as power,
   to expel every rebel lust, to reign supreme and keep me yours;
Come as teacher,
   leading me into all truth, filling me with all understanding;
Come as love,
   that I may adore the Father, and love him as my all;
Come as joy,
   to dwell in me, move in me, animate me;
Come as light,
   illuminating the Scripture, molding me in its precepts;
Come as sanctifier,
   body, soul and spirit wholly yours;
Come as helper,
   with strength to bless and keep, directing my every step;
Come as beautifier,
   bringing order out of confusion, loveliness out of chaos.
Magnify to me your glory by being magnified in me,
   and make me to radiate thy fragrance.

A Present Salvation

Creator and Redeemer God,

Author of all existence, source of all blessedness,
I adore you for making me capable of knowing you,
   for giving me reason and conscience,
   for leading me to desire you;
I praise you for the revelation of yourself in the gospel,
   for your heart as a dwelling place of pity,
   for your thoughts of peace towards me,
   for your patience and your graciousness,
   for the vastness of your mercy.
You have moved my conscience to know how
   the guilty can be pardoned,
   the unholy sanctified,
   the poor enriched.
May I be always amongst those who not only hear but know you,
   who walk with and rejoice in you,
   who take you at your word and find life there.

O keep me always longing
   for a present salvation in Holy Spirit comforts and rejoicings
   for spiritual graces and blessings,
   for help to value my duties as well as my privileges.
May I cherish simplicity and godly sincerity of character.
Help me to be in reality before you
      as in appearance I am before men,
   to be religious before I profess religion,
   to leave the world before I enter the church,
   to set my affections on things above,
   to shun forbidden follies and vanities,
   to be a dispenser of as well as a partaker of grace,
   to be prepared to bear evil as well as to do good.
O God, make me worthy of this calling,
   that the name of Jesus may be glorified in me
      and I in him.

God Enjoyed

O incomprehensible but prayer-hearing God,

Known, but beyond knowledge,
   revealed, but unrevealed,
   my wants and welfare draw me to you
   for you have never said, "Seek me in vain".
To you I come in my difficulties, necessities, distresses;
   possess me with yourself,
      with a spirit of grace and supplication,
      with a prayerful attitude of mind,
      with access into warmth of fellowship,
   so that in the ordinary things of life
      my thoughts and desires may rise to you,
   and in constantly looking to you I may find a resource
      that will soothe my sorrows,
      sanctify my successes,
      and equip me in all ways for dealings
      with my fellow men.
I bless you that you have made me capable
   of knowing you, the author of all being,
   of resembling you, the perfection of all excellency,
   of enjoying you, the source of all happiness.
O God, be with me in every part of my taxing and trying life journey;
   I need the same counsel, defense and comfort
      I found at my beginning with you.
Let my walk with you be more at the forefront of my mind,
   more observable to those around me.
While Jesus is representing me in heaven,
   may I reflect him on earth,
While he pleads my cause, may I show forth his praise.

Please continue the gentleness of your goodness towards me,
And whether I wake or sleep, let your presence go with me,
   and your blessing attend me.
You have led me on and I have found your promises true,
I have been sorrowful, but you have been my help,
   fearful, but you have delivered me,
   despairing, but you have lifted me up.
Your guarantees are ever upon me,
   And I praise you, O God.

Divine Mercies

O Eternal God,

Yours is surpassing greatness, unspeakable goodness, super-abundant grace;
I can more easily count the sands on the ocean's shore
   than number your favors towards me;
I know only a part, but that part exceeds all praise.
I thank you for personal mercies,
   a measure of health, preservation of body,
   comforts of house and home, sufficiency of food and clothing,
   continuance of mental wellness,
   my family, their mutual help and support
      the delights of domestic harmony and peace,
      the seats now filled that might have been vacant,
   my country, church, Bible, faith.
But, O, how I mourn my sin, ingratitude, vileness,
   the days that add to my guilt,
   the scenes that witness my offending tongue;
All things in heaven, earth, around, within, without, condemn me -
   the sun which sees my misdeeds,
   the darkness which is light to you,
   the cruel accuser who justly charges me,
   the good angels who have been provoked to leave me,
   your face which scans my secret sins,
   your righteous law, your holy Word,
   my sin-soiled conscience, my private and public life,
   my neighbors, myself -
      all write dark things against me.
I deny them not, offer no excuse, but confess,
   "Father, I have sinned";
Yet still I live, and fly repenting to your outstretched arms;
   you will not cast me off, for Jesus brings me near,
   you will not condemn me, for he died in my place,
   you will not mark my mountains of sin, for he leveled all,
   and his beauty covers my deformities.
O my God, I bid farewell to sin by clinging to his cross,
   hiding in his woulds, and sheltering in his side.

The Divine Will

O Lord,

I hang on you; I see, believe, live,
   when your will, not mine, is done;
I can plead nothing in myself
   in regard of any worthiness and grace,
   in regard of your providence and promises,
   but only your good pleasure.
If your mercy makes me poor and vile, blessed be you!
Prayers arising from my needs are preparations for future mercies;
Help me to honor you by believing before I feel,
   for great is the sin if I make feeling a cause of faith.

Show me what sins hide you from me
   and eclipse your love;
Help me to humble myself for past evils,
   to be resolved to walk with more care,
For if do not walk in holiness before you,
   how can I be assured of my salvation?

It is the meek and humble who are shown your covenant,
   know your will, are pardoned and healed,
   who by faith depend and rest upon grace,
   who are sanctified and enlivened,
   who evidence your love.
Help me to pray in faith and so find you will,
   by leaning hard on your rich free mercy,
   by believing you will give what you have promised;
Strengthen me to pray with the conviction
   that whatever I receive is your gift,
   so that I may pray until prayer be granted;
Teach me to believe that all degrees of mercy arise
   from several degrees of prayer,
   that when begins it is imperfect and must grow,
   as dry ground opens wider and wider
      until rain comes.

So shall I wait for your will, pray for it to be done,
   and by your grace become fully obedient.