With Christ in the School of Prayer, by Andrew Murray, 53

This post continues a series of excerpts from With Christ in the School of Prayer, by Andrew Murray. I thank the Christian Classics Ethereal Library for making this public domain work available. To see their post of the book, go here. The previous post is here. As usual in this blog, long quotations are in this color.

O my Blessed Lord and Teacher!  I must come to Thee in prayer.  Thy teaching is so glorious, and yet too high for me to grasp.  I must confess that my heart is too little to take in these thoughts of the wonderful boldness I may use with Thy Father as my Friend.  Lord Jesus!  I trust Thee to give me Thy Spirit with Thy Word, and to make the Word quick and powerful in my heart.  I desire to keep Thy Word of this day:  ‘Because of his importunity he will give him as many as he needeth.’

Lord!  teach me more to know the power of persevering prayer.  I know that in it the Father suits Himself to our need of time for the inner life to attain its growth and ripeness, so that His grace may indeed be assimilated and made our very own.  I know that He would fain thus train us to the exercise of that strong faith that does not let Him go even in the face of seeming disappointment.  I know He wants to lift us to that wonderful liberty, in which we understand how really He has made the dispensing of His gift dependent on our prayer.  Lord!  I know this:  O teach me to see it in spirit and truth.

And may it now be the joy of my life to become the almoner of my Rich Friend in heaven, to care for all the hungry and perishing, even at midnight, because I know MY FRIEND, who always gives to him who perseveres, because of his importunity, as many as he needeth.  Amen.