We have been going through the Tozer classic again as part of our nightly devotions. Tozer's prayers have been resounding in my heart as I have been drawn to meditate on God as our portion. Here are some words that flowed from the readings...
Follow Hard
O God, I taste and see that You are good
At your table I am satisfied to feed
I thirst anew and hunger for your food
So painfully conscious of my need
I am desperate for further grace.
I am ashamed of my lack of desire.
Oh Lord my God I seek Your face
Your presence is what I require.
O God, the Triune God, I want to want Thee;
I long to be filled with longing for You
I thirst to be made more thirsty still.
And want to quench this thirst anew
Show me Thy glory, I pray Thee,
That so I may know Thee indeed.
Begin in mercy a new work of love
Within me plant Your holy seed.
Say to my soul, “Rise up, my love,
My fair one, and come away.”
Then give me grace to rise above
And fly from this misty lowland I pray.
I would follow up and follow hard
From where I have wandered for so long.
Give me the grace to drop my guard
Deliver me to where I belong.
O God, the Triune God, I want to want Thee;
I long to be filled with longing for You
I thirst to be made more thirsty still.
And I want to quench this thirst anew
Show me Thy glory, I pray Thee,
That so I may know Thee indeed.
Begin in mercy a new work of love
Within me, Lord plant Your holy seed.
After A. W. Tozer
A.W. Foster
January 20, 2011
The Blessedness of Possessing Nothing
Father, I want to draw near
But my coward heart falls into fear
Help it give up its toys
And discover new joys
Tear from me those old things I hold dear.
I cannot part with them without bleeding,
I cannot part with them without pain
I do not try to hide from Thee the terror of the parting.
Help me discover the loss that is gain.
Then shalt Thou make glorious the place of Thy feet
On the footstool before Thy Mercy seat
There where Thy radiance is complete
Then my heart has no need of the sun to shine
My heart has no need for another sign
Then there shall be no night,
For Thyself wilt be its light!
Purge from me that very part of my living self,
Destroy every idol
So that Thou mayest enter in and dwell
Without a rival.
Without a rival.
Without a rival.
Father, I want to hold true
But my coward heart fails to seek You
The distractions attain
And my Spirit is drained
Tear from me those old things I pursue
I come trembling, but I do come.
Please root from my heart all those things
Which I have cherished for so long
For they only serve to clip my wings.
Build a refiner’s fire upon this altar
Built a place where I fall down and confess
If I should fail and if I should falter
Fill the brokenness with blessedness
Strip away my possessions
For we’re possessed by what we own
I would have Thee for my portion forever
Possessing nothing but Thee alone!
Then shalt Thou make glorious the place of Thy feet
On the footstool before Thy Mercy seat
There where thy radiance is complete
Then my heart has no need of the sun to shine
My heart has no need for another sign
And there shall be no night,
For Thyself wilt be its light!
Purge from me that very part of my living self,
Destroy every idol
So that Thou mayest enter in and dwell
Without a rival.
Without a rival.
Without a rival.
After A. W. Tozer
Anthony Foster
January 20, 2011
Removing the Veil
Lord, how excellent are Thy ways,
And how devious and dark the ways of man
To newness of life in You transform us
Show us how to die, that we may rise again
The veil of our self-life rend
Tear it from the top down
As You did rend the Temple veil
That your glory might be unbound.
You have formed us for Yourself,
And our hearts are restless
Till they find rest in You
There to be forever blessed.
In full assurance of faith we draw near
And in daily experience we would dwell here.
Here on this earth so that we may be
Accustomed to the fullness of glory
When we enter Your heaven to dwell with You there.
You have formed us for Yourself,
And our hearts are restless
Till they find rest in You
There to be forever blessed.
After A. W. Tozer
A.W. Foster
January 20, 1011
Apprehending God
Quicken to life every power within me,
That I may lay hold on eternal things.
Open my eyes that I may see,
And hear the unheard song the Spirit sings.
With the eyes of the Spirit let me see
Enable me to taste only Thee
To know that Thou art good will begin
To make heaven more real to me
Than any earthly thing has ever been.
The soul has eyes with which to see
And ears with which to hear.
From long disuse feeble they may be,
Give a life-giving touch to mine ear.
Obedience to the Word more secure
Will enable the heart that is pure
To clearly hear the clarion call
Our faculties grow sharper and more sure,
Christ will become to us the great All in All.
His Presence is the glory and the wonder of our lives.
His Presence is the glory and the wonder of our lives.
After A. W. Tozer
Anthony Foster
January 20, 2011
Universal Presence
O God and Father, I repent
Of my sinful preoccupation,
My focus on visible things.
The world has formed my vocation.
Thou hast been here and I knew it not.
To Thy Presence I have been blind
Open my eyes that I may behold Thee
In and around me
Through me and to me
Over and under in everything I see.
Give an affinity for
A bent toward
A response in sympathy
A firm desire
A holy fire
Place a fervent faith in me
Help me to dwell in your Presence
All of the days of my life
Help me to live in reverence
To live and move and be in Christ.
After A. W. Tozer
Anthony Foster
January 20, 2011
Thy Speaking Voice
Lord, teach me to listen.
Lord, teach me to listen.
The times are noisy
And my ears are weary
With a thousand raucous sounds
Which continuously assault...
Bring the clamor in my soul to a halt.
Lord be Emmanuel
Give me the spirit of the boy Samuel
When he said to Thee,
“Speak, for thy servant heareth.”
Help me to hear clearly.
Let me hear You speaking within my heart.
Let me get used to the sound
Make the tones of Thy Voice so familiar
So that in your Word of Life I am found
And when the sounds of earth die away
And the music of heaven is given sway
And as silence reigns in hearts that rejoice
We hear the music of Thy speaking Voice.
Let me hear You speaking within my heart.
Let me get used to the sound
Make the tones of Thy Voice so familiar
So that in your Word of Life I am found
And when the sounds of earth die away
And the music of heaven is given sway
And as silence reigns in hearts that rejoice
We hear the music of Thy speaking Voice.
After A. W. Tozer
Anthony Foster
January 20, 2011
Gaze of the Soul
O Lord, I have heard
A glorious good word
Inviting me to look away to Thee
And to be satisfied.
So to my life I’ve died
And turn my eye Godward to Glory.
My heart longs to respond,
But sin has clouded my vision
Till I see Thee but dimly.
Be pleased to cleanse
Me from my sins
By Thy precious blood set me free.
Make me inwardly pure,
Thy glory to endure
And with unveiled eyes
Gaze upon the prize
To receive the blessed cure.
So I'll gaze on Thee all the days
Of my pilgrimage on earth.
Then shall I will be prepared to behold
The full splendor of Thy worth.
Perfect love shall cast out every fear
In the day when Thou shalt appear
Glorified as man’s desire
In Thy saints and admired
By those who will receive
By all them that believe.
O Lord, I have heard
A glorious good word
Inviting me to look away to Thee
And to be satisfied.
So to my life I’ve died
And turned my eye Godward to Glory
After A. W. Tozer
Anthony Foster
January 20, 2011
Restoration
O God, be exalted over my possessions.
Let not your gifts to me become transgressions
Nothing of earth’s treasures shall give me pride
If only in my life--You are glorified!
Over my friendships You I exalt
I am determined that You shall be above all,
Though I must stand deserted and cursed
Alone in the midst of the earth.
Be exalted above my comforts and pleasures
Though it mean the loss of worldly treasures
And the carrying of a heavy cross
I shall keep my vow and count as gain my loss.
Be exalted over my reputation.
To please You may it be my ambition
Even if I must sink into obscurity’s stream
And my name be forgotten as a dream.
Humble me that You may rise above.
Ride forth upon me as You did ride in love
Into Jerusalem on the humble beast,
Let me decrease that Thou may increase,
Let me hear the children unto Thee cry
Hosanna in the highest.
After A. W. Tozer
Anthony Foster
January 20, 2011
Meekness and Rest
I would be simple and artless
And meek as a little child.
Deliver me from posing and pretense
A man that’s without guile.
Forgive me for thinking of myself;
In beholding Thee, find a peace that is True.
That you may answer this prayer
I humble myself before You
Lord, make me childlike, like a child
Make my heart be reconciled
From the urge to compete Deliver me
From pursuit of prestige or position set me free
Lord in your meekness may I find rest
Reduce me to childlike blessedness.
The heart of the world is breaking
Lay upon me grace that I may find rest
Replace a load of pretense and pride
With your easy yoke of self-forgetfulness
Lord, make me childlike, like a child
Make my heart be reconciled
From the urge to compete Deliver me
From pursuit of prestige or position set me free
Lord in your meekness may I find rest
Reduce me to childlike blessedness.
After A. W. Tozer
Anthony Foster
January 20, 2011
Sacrament of Living
Lord, I would trust Thee completely;
I would be altogether Thine;
I would exalt Thee above all others.
I desire Your desires to be mine.
To feel no sense of possessing
Anything outside of Thee.
I want constantly to be aware
Of Your Presence overshadowing me!
I long to rest in sincerity of heart.
So fully in the Spirit to live
That all my thoughts may be as sweet incense
Ascending to Thee as True worship I give.
And every act of my life may be
An act of worship consecrated to Thee
And every act of my life may be
An act of worship consecrated to Thee
Therefore I pray in the words
Of your great servant of old I have heard,
“I beseech You to cleanse the intent of mine heart
with the unspeakable gift of Thy grace,
That I may perfectly love
And worthily give You praise!”
And every act of my life may be
An act of worship consecrated to Thee
And every act of my life may be
An act of worship consecrated to Thee
May my life itself be a sacrament
The whole world a sanctuary, I ask.
All my life a priestly ministry
As I perform my never so simple task.
I will hear the voice of the seraphim
Saying, “Holy, Holy, Holy,
Is the Lord of hosts: All praise to Him!
The whole earth is full of His glory.”
After A. W. Tozer
Anthony Foster
January 20, 1011
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