From C.H. Spurgeon's Prayers

Prayer 19

God's Unspeakable Gift

O Lord, many of us feel like the lame man at the Beautiful Gate of the temple. Come by this way and make the lame ones perfectly sound. O Lord, Thou canst do by Thy servants today what Thou didst by them in the olden time. Work miracles of mercy even upon outer court worshippers who are too lame to get into the holy place.

But there are many who feel like that man when he was restored. We would follow our Restorer, the Prince of Life, into the temple, leaping and walking and praising God. He has gone into the temple in the highest sense, up to the throne of God. He climbs and we would follow, up the steps of the temple one by one, made meet. We would come nearer and nearer to the throne of God.

O Lord, Thou hast done such great things for us that we feel the drawings of Thy love. "The Lord hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love, therefore with loving kindness have I drawn thee."

Draw us nearer, Lord, draw us into the inner Sanctuary. Draw us within the place which once was hidden by the veil which Christ has rent. Bring us right up to the throne of grace and there beholding the glory of God above the Mercy Seat, may we have communion with the Most High. Heal all our diseases and forgive us all our trespasses.

Still, Lord, though healed of a former lameness so that now we have strength, we need a further touch from Thee. We are so apt to get dull and stupid. Come and help us, Lord Jesus. A vision of Thy face will brighten us, but to feel Thy Spirit touching us will make us vigorous. Oh! for the leaping and the walking of the man born lame. May we today dance with holy joy like David before the Ark of God. May a holy exhilaration take possession of every part of us. May we be glad in the Lord. May our mouth be filled with laughter and our tongue with singing, "For the Lord hath done great things for us whereof we are glad."

Today help Thy people to put on Christ. May we live as those who are alive from the dead, for He is the quickening Spirit and may we feel Him to be so. Is any part of us still dead, Lord, quicken it. May the life which has taken possession of our heart take possession of our head. May the brain be active in holy thought. May our entire being, indeed, respond to the life of Christ and may we live in newness of life.

We would fain fall down on our faces and worship the Son of God today. It is such a wonder that He should have loved us and He has done such wonderful things for us and in us that we may still call Him God's unspeakable gift. He is unspeakably precious to our souls. Thou knowest all things, Lord. Thou knowest that we love Thee. May that love bubble up today like a boiling cauldron. May our hearts overflow and if we cannot speak what we feel, may that holy silence be eloquent with the praise of God.

Lord, send Thy life throughout the entire Church. Lord, visit Thy Church, restore sound doctrine, restore holy and earnest living. Take away from professors their apparent love for frivolities, their attempts to meet the world on its own ground, and give back the old love to the doctrines of the cross, the doctrines of the Christ of God, and once more may free grace and dying love be the music that shall refresh the Church and make her heart exceeding glad.

Just now when the earth is waking up to life, Lord, wake up dead hearts and if there are seeds of grace lying dormant in any soul, may they begin to bud. May the bulb down at the heart send forth its golden cup and drink in of the light, the life of God. Oh! save today. "Thy King in the midst of Thee is mighty: He will save." Our very heart is speaking now much more loudly and sweetly than our lips can speak. Lord save sinners. Great High Priest, have compassion on the ignorant and such as are out of the way. Great Shepherd of the sheep, gather the lambs within Thine arm. Find out the lost sheep. Throw them on Thy shoulders and bring them home rejoicing.

We ask that everywhere there may be great numbers added to the Church. Thou who didst bring in five thousand so soon, bring in five thousand in many and many a place. We read the statistics of Thy Church with great sorrow. How small an increase! Lord, multiply us with men as with a flock. Increase the people and increase the joy. Make us to joy before Thee as the joy of harvest.

Lord, we pray for our country with all our heart and as Thou biddest us we pray for those in authority, for the Sovereign as supreme, for the Court of Parliament, for all magistrates and rulers. We pray also for the poorest and the down-trodden. The Lord look upon the poor of this world and make them rich in faith, and comfort them in heart by the Holy Ghost. The Lord save the nation. Let Thy light and Thy truth go forth to the most distant parts of the earth. "Let the people praise Thee; O God let all the people, praise Thee." Give us the times of refreshing. May we have a visit from Christ by the power of His Spirit and until He come may there be a blessed halcyon time of peace and salvation.

"Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth, as it is in heaven." And do Thou come Thyself, great King. May our eyes, if it please Thee, behold Thee on earth, but if not, if we fall asleep ere that blessed array, we can say, "I know that my Redeemer liveth; and though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God."

Bless every Sunday school teacher, every tract distributor, every open-air preacher. Bless, we pray Thee, all Bible-women and nurses, deacons and missionaries of the City Mission, Bible readers, and all others who in any way seek to bring men to Christ. O God the Holy Ghost, work mightily, we pray Thee. Flood the world with a baptism of Thy power and "Let the whole earth be filled with a knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea." We ask all in that dear name which made the lame man whole, which is sweet to God in heaven and dear to us below; and unto Father, Son, and Holy Ghost be glory, world without end. Amen.

Published 1905