The Mediator
EVERLASTING CREATOR-FATHER,
I have destroyed myself,
my nature is defiled,
the powers of my soul are degraded;
I am vile, miserable, strengthless,
but my hope is in thee.
If ever I am saved it will be by goodness
undeserved and astonishing,
not by mercy alone but by abundant mercy,
not be grace but by exceeding riches of grace,
And such thou hast revealed,
promised, exemplified in thoughts of peace,
not of evil.
Thou hast devised means
to rescue me from sin’s perdition,
to restore me to happiness, honour, safety.
I bless thee for the appointment of a Mediator.
I rejoice that he failed not,
nor was discouraged,
but accomplished the work
thou gavest him to do;
and said on the cross, ‘It is finished.’
I exult in the thought that thy justice is satisfied,
thy truth established,
thy law magnified,
and a foundation is laid for my hope.
I look to a present and
personal interest in Christ and say,
Surely he has borne my griefs,
carried my sorrows,
won my peace,
healed my soul.
Justified by his blood I am saved by his life,
Glorying in his cross I bow to his sceptre,
Having his Spirit I possess his mind.
Lord, grant that my religion
may not be occasional and partial,
but universal, influential, effective,
and may I always continue in thy words
as well as thy works,
so that I may reach my end in peace.
—Valley of Vision
The Puritan Prayers found in Valley of Vision offer us an invaluable trove of petitions and supplications we can make our own. Take time today to embody this model prayer of confession, owning your shortcomings and want of holiness, professing your confidence in God’s redemptive love, revealed in Jesus Christ, and rest assured in the justification you have freely received by grace through faith! Pray then, as this prayer closes, with a petition for God’s abiding grace, and for perseverance and strength to meet each new day. Add your “yea and amen” to every line of this faith-filled prayer as if it is your very own heart’s cry. As it should be! —DH
—David Hoskins, Founder & Care Guide, Sanctuary Clinics