I recently came across a prayer from the English puritan Myles Coverdale (1488-1569), one of the early translators of the Bible into English. He hit upon some themes that I found particularly poignant for modern Christians.

Our head and the one who goes before us, we are so unlike you! We are so far from right and true humility, when we are offended by fellow believers at the slightest wrong or unadvised word. And where should we give thanks for being rebuked for our own good, we are impatient and aggrieved!

O Lord Jesus Christ, help us to consider your holy sacrifice, so that it might produce fruit in us. Make us patient in the face of hurt and disapproval. Teach us by your example not to fear the rants and persecution of wicked people. Help us not to be discouraged by any wrongful accusations.

Teach us to see our own depravity, and how justly we are reviled and despised for our sins. Have mercy, O Lord, on our imperfection. You were reviled that you might take from us everlasting shame. You were beaten to deliver us from the beating we deserved for our sins. You were spit upon and mocked to bring us from everlasting confusion to everlasting honor.

So strengthen our minds, Lord, that in lowly shame we may patiently suffer and bear the hard words and checks that others give us for our sins and offenses. After all, you endured many more and much more false accusations and rebukes for us vile sinners. And you bore it all with the highest patience.

May the hard blows you endured ease our pains. May that scornful blindfolding of your eyes restrain us from hard-heartedness and conceit. Let the vile spitting on your holy face expel all carnal lusts from us. And may it teach us not to regard the outward appearance, but to hold and keep in honor the virtues of the soul.

May all the undeserved scorn and ridicule you experienced drive from us all our corrupt or degraded ways. May that rejection of your worthiness drive from us all desire of honor in this world. May it move us instead to pursue things which, in this world, are looked down upon.

Give us, Lord, strong victory in all patience. From our heart-roots may we acknowledge and confess ourselves to be most worthy of all contempt and slander, of all rebuke, shame, and punishment. Amen

And Amen!

Source: Grace from Heaven: Prayers of the Reformation, Robert Elmer, editor