A prayer for this week:
Teach me how to take reproofs from friends, even though I think I do not deserve them;
Use them to make me tenderly afraid of sin, more jealous over myself, more concerned to keep heart and life unblamable.
Give me such vivacity in religion, that I may be able to take all reproofs from other men as from thy hands,
and glorify thee for them from a sense of thy beneficent love and of my need to have my pride destroyed.
From The Valley of Vision, “Reproofs.”
Being a pastor who is regularly saturated in pride and self-protection, I needed to hear, pray and prepare my heart for a faith-filled willingness to hear from others (saved or not) what I need to hear that will humble me and be used of the Spirit to sanctify me. Whether a look from my wife that says she can see what is in my heart, or comments this morning from my brother pastors who will graciously but fervently critique my poor preaching, or the pastoral interns who are learning from me but teaching me more than I am they – or the many unanticipated encounters of reproof that God knows I need this week. I do pray I will “be able to take all reproofs from other men as from thy hands.”
Hello Bret. I love the Valley of Vision. I have added you to my blog list. Tell Brother Sracy I said hello when you see him we went to college together and he used to be my wifes pastor.
Robert, welcome and thanks for commenting. I have been reading the VoV for about fifteen years now – humbled by its contents every day.
I will tell Stacy “hello.” He’ll be thrilled – if he hasn’t seen your comment already.