A Diary of Private Prayer

Title: A Diary of Private Prayer

Author: John Baillie

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Genre: Nonfiction, Devotional Classic, Prayer, 

Source: Library

My Review:

I can see why John Baillie's A Diary of Private Prayer is a devotional classic. I want to say the book is simply a book of prayers, but there is nothing simple about them.

Baillie describes the book as "prayers for all the mornings and evenings of the months; and at the end of the book two prayers which, when any day falls on a Sunday, may be substituted for the others or else added to them."

There are thirty-two days of prayer, two prayers for each day, so 64 prayers in all. You can hear Baillie's heart in each prayer, his desire to draw closer to God, pray Scripture back to God, and confess anything that might be hindering his relationship with God. The morning prayers are more for the day, and the evening prayers are a reflection on the day, with confession.

The prayers are profound and moving, and yet, at times so simple. I will include a few snippets of the prayers, as I will not do the book justice without them. I will say I am changed because of this book. It is one that I hope to own a copy of someday.

"Eternal Father of my soul, let my first thought today be of you, let my first impulse be to worship you, let my first word be your Name, let my first action be to kneel before you in prayer."

"O Lord, you are from everlasting to everlasting. I turn my thoughts to you as the hours of darkness and of sleep begin. O Sun of my soul, I rejoice to know that all night I shall be under the watchful eye of the One who dwells in eternal light."

★★★★★/5

Synopsis (Amazon):  

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Editor Susanna Wright offers this updated edition of a Christian devotional classic—invoking the daily prayers and timeless imagery of the original text through modern, accessible language.

In this wonderful collection, famed theologian Dr. John Baillie shares personal prayers for people who are seeking a better understanding of God and themselves. Organized by morning and evening—with special prayers for Sundays— A Diary of Private Prayer is written with eloquence, piety, and directness. Blending praise and meditative thoughts about God with a concern for the social and individual good, these daily invocations help and inspire us to search our inner selves and find the deep religious beliefs that lie within.

First published in 1936, A Diary of Private Prayer remains a seminal Christian devotional with more than a million copies in print. This modern edition—completely redesigned into a gift package—admirably preserves all the qualities of the original, ensuring that the wisdom of God and the wonder of Baillie’s prayers remain accessible for many generations to come.