God's Minute

December 17

O Thou that hearest prayer, unto Thee shall all flesh come.--Psalm 65:2

MOST Gracious Father, from Whom all good gifts come, grant us, we entreat Thee, the gift we need above all others, Thy Holy Spirit to help our infirmities, that our worship may be purged from all unreality. We long to pray to Thee sincerely, but we cannot unless Thou dost cleanse our hearts from the dross of vain desire. Free us from selfishness in our prayers; deliver us from asking for those things that will minister chiefly to our earthly pleasure. Thou must inspire the petitions which Thou alone canst answer. We are conscious of our sinfulness, but cannot be truly sorry for our misdoings until Thou dost move us to honest contrition and unfeigned repentance. We would be grateful to Thee for the mulititude of Thy tender mercies, but it is not until Thou dost grant us a due sense of Thy goodness, and awaken within us sincere gratitude, that our cold hearts are ready to praise Thee.

Our love languishes and dies except Thy Spirit shall quicken it into a living flame. Our good deeds cry aloud to Thee for pardon, if Thou dost not inspire them and purify them by Thine own indwelling.

We would live the prayer life; we would learn what it is to pray without ceasing. To this end do Thou come and dwell within us, O Thou Spirit of Christ! We want day by day to glorify Thee, our Father, and to serve our fellows, even as did Jesus, Thy well-loved Son. In His Name. Amen.

S.P. Rose, D.D.,
Montreal, Canada