I (Jonny) am currently studying a module called 'The Dynamics of Spiritual Growth'. As part of the module I am working on an assignment with the title: 'Evaluate the public prayers of Charles H. Spurgeon'. I am reading a book of his public prayers and below is an excerpt that links with what we've been looking at in James chapter 1. It's a challenging prayer to pray for ourselves...
Lord, purify us in head, heart, and hand, and if it be needful that we should be put into the fire to be refined as silver is refined, we would even welcome the fire if we may be rid of the dross. Lord, save us from constitutional sin, from sins of temperament, from sins of our surroundings. Save us from ourselves in every shape and grant us especailly to have the light of love strong within us.
May we love God, May we love Thee, O Saviour. May we love the people of God as being members of one body in connection with Thee. May we love the guilty world with that love which desires its salvation and conversion and may we love not in word only, but in deed and in truth. May we help the helpless, comfort the mourner, sympathize with the widow and fatherless, and may we be always ready to put up with wrong, to be long suffering, to be very patient, full of forgiveness, counting it a small thing that we should forgive our fellow-men since we have been forgiven of God. Lord, tune our hearts to love and then give us an inward peace, a restfullness about everything.
May we have no burden to carry, because, though we have a burden, we have rolled it upon the Lord. May we take up our cross and because Christ has once died on the cross, may our cross become a comfort to us. May we count it all joy when we fall into trials, knowing that in all this God will be glorified, His image will be stamped upon us, and the ternal purpose will be fulfilled, wherein He has predestined us to be conformed unto the image of His Son.
... Bless us now for Jesu's sake. Amen