“Praise and Thanksgiving”: A Puritan Prayer

When you think of the puritans, what comes to your mind? Grim men in gold-buckled hats, and strict women who never smile? A group of religious fanatics who upended their lives and families to move to colonial America? That’s pretty much what I thought until I started reading their prayers.

The Valley of Vision

Years ago a dear pastor friend introduced me to a collection of puritan prayers called The Valley of Vision. Many of the men quoted were actual puritans living in America during the mid-1600’s. Others were born in the 1700’s but still lived according to the puritan tradition. In the 1970’s, an English minister researched, collected, and edited these prayers, publishing them in book form. What a gift to the world!

These prayers reveal depth of devotion, grief over sin, amazement about grace, and joy in God that is virtually unknown in our modern American churches. After all, how often are today’s first-world Christians (myself included!) uncomfortable enough to cling to Christ alone? In many ways, the puritans were stripped of everything but God, and they found Him to be more than enough.

A Prayer of Thanks

This Thanksgiving, whether we find ourselves in times of joy or sorrow, plenty or need, faith or doubt, may this excerpt from a puritan prayer remind us of a good God who lavishes us with blessings big and small. That’s something to be thankful for!

“Praise and Thanksgiving”

I bless thee for the soul thou hast created,
for adorning it, sanctifying it,
though it is fixed in barren soil;
for the body thou hast given me,
for preserving its strength and vigour,
for providing senses to enjoy delights,
for the ease and freedom of my limbs,
for hands, eyes, ears that do thy bidding,
for thy royal bounty providing my daily support,
for a full table and overflowing cup,
for appetite, taste, sweetness,
for social joys of relatives and friends,
for ability to serve others,
for a heart that feels sorrows and necessities,
for a mind to care for my fellow-men,
for opportunities of spreading happiness around,
for loved ones in the joys of heaven,
for my own expectation of seeing thee clearly.
I love thee above the powers of language to express,
for what thou art to thy creatures.
Increase my love, O my God, through time and eternity.
Amen

Happy Thanksgiving, friends!

Want to know more about how The Valley of Vision was collected and published? Check out this article.