Reading this moring in The Valley of Vision: A Collection of Puritan Prayers, one struck me as particularly helpful for re-aligning the heart with God's sufficient, sustaining grace at the beginning of a day. It reflects the heart of Paul in 2 Corinthians 12:7-12:

7 So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations,t a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited.8 Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me.9 But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.10 For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Here is the first part of the prayer. 

O Lord of Grace, 

The world is before me this day, and I am weak and fearful, but I look to Thee for strength; If I venture forth alone I will stumble and fall, but on the Beloved's arms I am firm as the eternal hills; If left to the treachery of my heart I shall shame Thy name, but if enlightened, guided, upheld by Thy Spirit, I shall bring Thee glory.

Here are five take-aways for me today from this prayer:

1. God is a God of grace - he is a glad and generous giver 
2. I am weak in every way
3. God is strong in every way
4. Without a conscious awareness of my weakness and his strength, I will fail and fall hard and often
5. But walking close to Jesus, by his Spirit's power, I can face my fears and obstacles (those from without and within) with supernatural power and peace and glorify God, as the giver of saving and sustaining grace

Soli Deo gloria.

The Valley of Vision daily devotional may be found here.

"Grant that I may always weep to the praise of mercy found and tell others as long as I live that thou art a sin-pardoning God, taking up the blasphemer and the ungodly, and washing them from their deepest stain."

From a prayer, The Great Discovery, in The Valley of Vision, p. 62.

At a Key Life pastor's conference, Dan Allender, said, "The Christian faith and the grace at its heart is so radical that most congregations can't deal with it." I will raise my hand to confess that I am one of those who wants to believe the gospel at a radical depth, but who struggles. Fear of failure and rejection. Insecurity and a need for approval and praise. These are often what influence me the most.

What if I were able to live completely under the liberating influence of the cross? What if I were to embrace the grace of God in Jesus that Tullian Tchividjian says is "way more drastic, way more offensive, way more liberating, way more shocking, and way more counterintuitive than any of us realize."

How would it affect how I pray? How I parent my kids? How I love my wife? How I treat my enemies? And what I do when nobody is looking? Nobody but Jesus. He would become the One for whom I long to live—to honor my Savior as a fully devoted disciple, enraptured by the immensity of his love, grace and mercy, knowing that I am that only because he was and is fully devoted to me... even when I wasn't devoted to him... even as I continue to wander, much of the time being much more devoted to my own reputation than to his. 

Paul's prayer for the church in Ephesus was that they would know this kind of transformative love and grace more and more deeply. That is what I want for myself, my wife and my children. May that be our prayer together at Creekstone as a community of ordinary folks who are coming alive to the wonder of the gospel by living all of life in view of the cross!

Throughout his book, Gospel, J.D. Greear describes what he calls The Gospel Prayer, a four-part way to tie and tether ourselves daily to the person and work of Jesus.

Here 'tis (with a wee bit of reordering and modification):

1. “In Christ, there is nothing that I can do that would make You love me more perfectly and completely than You do now; and there is nothing that I can do that will cause You to love me less perfectly and completely than You do right now. I am yours. I am safe. You will never let me go."
2. “Your presence and approval are all I need today for present and everlasting joy.” 
3. “Today, I’ll measure Your compassion and forgiveness by the cross and Your power by the resurrection.”
4. “As You have been to me, so I will be to others.” 

What do you think? Helpful? Not helpful? If helpful, how might your life be different if this became a daily prayer?

HT: Andy, the Wizard of Woz

I will be spending the next two days (today and tomorrow, Dec. 14/15) on a prayer and planning retreat as I look toward leading Creekstone into 2012. Pray for me if you think about it—not only that I would be given a clear vision for the ministry and receive wisdom for leadership, but also (and primarily) that I personally would come alive to the wonder of the gospel like never before. I hope to share some of the fruit from this time in the coming week.  

Paul Miller, in his book, A Praying Life, says something that rings true in my experience. He describes the disconnect that takes place when my heart gets out of tune with God. He says, "I continue to perform and say Christian things, but they are just words." That is the place of revival. Running on empty. Living an "externally religious" life. What do I need in that season? Simply confess my the icyness of my affections and know the heart of God, whose love and grace expressed in the cross will begin to melt my cold heart. It may hit all at once or take place over time... but the music of the gospel will melt the ice and warm my heart. At that point, my faith is not just words. Rather, it hears the music, dances and sings.

Paul Miller, in A Praying Life, writes:

"Power in prayer comes from being in touch with [my] weakness. To teach us how to pray, Jesus told stories of weak people who knew they couldn't do life on their own. The persistent widow and the friend at midnight get access, not because they are strong, but because they are desperate."

If you are wondering how you can pray for Creekstone over the next few weeks, here are some suggestions:

1. Pray that we would be relentless about keeping the message of grace through the cross front and center in everything, from Sunday mornings to staff meetings.
2. Pray that the many new folks who have become connected to the Creekstone community really will experience authentic community as we learn to live life together in the context of grace. 
3. Pray that the staff team will have wisdom in planning for outreach and assimilation as we move into our second year of Sunday morning worship. Our first anniversary will be Aug. 21, when we are planning a special Vision Banquet in the high school cafeteria following the service.
4. Pray for our our summer mini-series in Jonah, that begins this coming Sunday, "Mission Impossible." The purpose of this three-week series will be to prime the pump of mission (its compelling motive, core message and potential impact) as we head into the new school year and begin an eight-month series in Romans entitled, "Extreme Makeover: How Grace Remodels Our Lives." For a sermon archive of our recent series in 1 Peter, just go here. For more information on our "Mission Impossible" series, just go here.