O Yahweh, God of the open ear,
Teach me to live by prayer as well as by providence,
for myself, soul, body, children, family, and church;
Give me a heart frameable to your will;
so might I live in prayer, and honor you, being kept from evil, known and unknown.
Help me to see the sin that accompanies all I do, and the good I can distil from everything.
Let me know that the work of prayer is to bring my will to yours,
and that without this it is folly to pray;
When I try to bring your will to mine it is to command Christ,
to be above him, and wiser that he:
this is my sin and pride.
I can only succeed when I pray
according to your precept and promise,
and to do as it pleases you,
according to your sovereign will.
When you command me to pray for pardon, peace, brokenness,
it is because you will give me the thing promised,
for your glory, as well as for my good.
Help me not only to desire small things
but with holy boldness to desire great things
for your people, for myself,
that they and I might live to show your glory.
Teach me that it is wisdom for me to pray for all I have,
out of love, willingly, not of necessity;
that I may come to you at any time,
to lay open my needs acceptably to you;
that my great sin lies in my not keeping your ways;
that the remembrance of this truth is one way
to sense your presence;
that there is now wrath like the wrath of being governed
by my own lusts for my own ends.
in the strong name of Christ my Savior I offer this prayer.
Power Prayers are an updated version of prayers found in The Valley of Vision: A Collection of Puritan Prayers & Devotions, edited by Arthur Bennett, Canon of St. Albans Cathedral. We hope you will find them spiritually enriching. We post new Power Prayers regularly.