The Valley of Vision

The Valley of Vision: A collection of Puritan Prayers & Devotions was on my reading list for the month preceding Passover and First Fruits. As the title implies, it is a book of prayers. The prayers are short; most are less than a page in length. I kept this book in the front pocket of my purse along with a pair of reading glasses. Whenever I found myself out and about with extra time, I pulled it out. It was the perfect book to bring along when I had to pick Marissa up from work and wait for her to get off. It was also the perfect book to read during this season of preparation.

Christ died on Passover. This is the day that God commanded that the Israelites remembered how God miraculously saved them from slavery in Egypt (Leviticus 23). Do this in remembrance of me -- Christians are commanded to remember this night too. Each of us has been personally brought out of our slavery to sin, death and the world. The time of preparation reminds us of the feelings, life and consequences we had while we were enslaved. It is a time to remember that there is still tyranny and enslavement in our world today.

"Keep me in the freedom of experiencing thy salvation continually."

It is a time to remember what we were saved from:

Keep me ever mindful of my natural state,
but let me not forget my heavenly title,
or the grace that can deal with every sin.

It is a time to prepare to celebrate Christ's sacrifice and resurrection; a time to remember that we have died to our old life.:

Give me to die with thee that I may rise to new life
for I wish to be as dead and buried
to sin, selfishness, to the world;
that I might not hear the voice of the charmer,
and might be delivered from his lusts.
O Lord, there is much ill about me -- crucify it,
much flesh within me -- mortify it.
Purge me from selfishness, the fear of man, the love of approbation,
the shame of being thought old-fashioned,
the desire to be cultivated or modern.