October 18, 2012

Peace In the Valley

On my scattered bookshelves I have a variety of devotional books --- Lutheran, Puritan, and much in between --- and both fiction and non-fiction dedicated to faith in the Protestant tradition. One of the most touching of these is “The Valley of Vision,” from which I have already taken various writings for this blog. As there is little in this book that appeals *only* to those of the Calvinist persuasion, I believe most of it can be utilized by traditional Protestants of the “Reformation faiths.” Today’s selection is “The Valley of Vision,” the poem for which the book was named:

Lord, high and holy, meek and lowly,

Thou hast brought me to the valley of vision,

    where I live in the depths but see thee in the heights,

    hemmed in by mountains of sin I behold thy glory.

Let me learn by paradox

    that the way down is the way up

    that to be low is to be high,

    that the broken heart is the healed heart,

    that the contrite spirit is the rejoicing spirit,

    that the repenting soul is the victorious soul,

    that to have nothing is to possess all,

    that to bear the cross is to wear the crown,

    that to give is to receive,

    that the valley is the place of vision.

Lord, in the daytime stars can be seen from deepest wells,

    and the deeper the wells the brighter thy stars shine;

Let me find thy light in my darkness,

                thy life in my death,

                thy joy in my sorrow,

                thy grace in my sin,

                thy riches in my poverty

                thy glory in my valley.

(c) 2012 Joyously Saved