Union With Christ

O FATHER,

Thou hast made man for the glory of thyself,

and when not an instrument of that glory,

he is a thing of nought;

No sin is greater than the sin of unbelief,

for if union with Christ is the greatest good,

unbelief is the greatest sin,

as being cross to thy command;

I see that whatever my sin is,

yet no sin is like disunion from Christ by unbelief.

Lord, keep me from committing the greatest sin in departing from him,

for I can never in this life perfectly obey and cleave to Christ.

When thou takest away my outward blessings, it is for sin,

in not acknowledging that all that I have is of thee,

in not serving thee through what I have,

in making myself secure and hardened.

Lawful blessings are the secret idols, and do most hurt;

the greatest injury is in the having,

the greatest good in the taking away.

In love divest me of blessings that I may glorify thee the more;

remove the fuel of my sin,

and may I prize the gain of a little holiness

as overbalancing all my losses.

The more I love thee with a truly gracious love

the more I desire to love thee,

and the more miserable I am at my want of love;

The more I hunger and thirst after thee,

the more I faint and fail in finding thee,

The more my heart is broken for sin,

the more I pray it may be far more broken.

My great evil is that I do not remember the sins of my youth,

nay, the sins of one day I forget the next.

Keep me from all things that turn to unbelief

or lack of felt union with Christ.

This week’s devotionals are from The Valley of Vision