Into His Presence

Bob Kauflin

Having read Arthur Bennett’s The Valley of Vision multiple times, I’ve always hoped someone else would mine the writings of the Puritans for more Scripture-drenched, Christ-exalting, God-glorifying, heartfelt prayers. My wait is over. Tim Chester has produced a volume eminently useful for private devotions, public gatherings and personal reflection. I expect his carefully chosen, thoughtfully organized, and beautifully edited prayers will serve the church for many generations to come.”

Christopher Ash

These superb prayers model and teach a rich, deep devotion to God— Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Soaked in Scripture, they are wonderfully realistic about the life of faith. From a prayer for unbelieving children to a prayer with a dying Christian, with every style from the gripping logic of John Owen to the passionate warmth of Samuel Rutherford, these old believers walk with us in deepening our own lives of prayer. Tim Chester has done us a great service in editing and updating them so beautifully and clearly.

“Everyone should have this!”

The words of the Puritans are so saturated with Godly wisdom that we’d all do well to read them on a daily basis. If you struggle with prayer or are looking for ways to boost your prayer life, this book is a wonderful way to do that. This compilation of puritan prayers is broken up into various categories including topics like Praise to the Father, Gratitude, Confession, Tims of Anxiety, Morning and Evening, Everyday Life. Each prayer is rich in gospel-centered truth, pointing the reader to fix their eyes on Jesus Christ. Chester did a wonderful job at updating the language for modern readers without losing any of the theological richness of the original.

I really appreciate the source list at the end of the book to do further reading if so desired. And the ribbon bookmark is a nice touch!

This is a book all homes should have. I leave it on our coffee table for anyone to pick up and read when they have a few spare minutes. There’s abundant richness within this small book that is appropriate for any day of the year.

“Excellent Guide to Prayer”

In our busy world, it is likely that prayer is the most difficult aspect of the Christian life. Most people probably think that they are too busy to stop and pray. Yet we cannot afford not to pray. Along with Bible reading, it is our lifeline for knowing our heavenly Father in personal relationship. It is for this reason that Jesus gave a model prayer to his disciples (see Matthew 6 and Luke 11). In Into His Presence Chester provides a treasury of several dozen Puritan prayers specifically curated with updated language for modern believers. The book can be used as a companion to personal worship by praying one of the prayers each day. It can also be used a prayer reference by turning to one of the prayers in a given topic during a specific season. The prayers can be used for both individual or corporate use. Into His Presence is truly a new version of The Valley of Vision for a new generation not familiar with the wealth found in the Puritans.

“A Must Have”

When I discovered the puritans, I immediately admired their high view of God, reverence for His Word, and commitment to personal holiness. I have recently also learned to respect the puritans for their profound, passionate praying life. I read a collection of puritan prayers (Piercing Heaven) and was blessed by their biblically rich and beautiful prayers. So when I discovered Tim Chester’s new book, Into His Presence: Praying With the Puritans, I had to get a copy.

Into His presence is a collection of puritan prayers carefully selected and edited by Tim Chester. The goal of this book is not simply to sample puritan writings or to be inspired by their prayers. Chester aims to provide prayers that can be prayed. This book is designed to be read on your knees in communion with God.

Therefore, Chester arranged these 80 prayers under 16 categories that show how or when to use the prayers. These categories include Prayers of Praise to the Father, Prayers of Wonder for the Son, Prayers of Dependence on the Spirit, Prayers for Times of Temptation, Prayers for times of Anxiety, Prayers for the Lord’s Supper, Prayers for the Lost, Prayers of Gratitude, and Prayers for Everyday Life.

The prayers in this book come from the pen of puritans, such as Thomas Watson, Thomas Brooks, Richard Baxter, John Owen, and George Swinnock. There are brief biographies of the puritans at the end of the book.

Chester did an amazing job with Into His Presence, and I sincerely enjoyed reading it. As expected, the prayers are beautiful, rooted in Scripture, inspiring, convicting, and soul-stirring. The book also has a beautiful and durable hardcover design that should withstand the repeated use it deserves.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to deepen their prayer life and communion with God. It is a fantastic resource to add to your library.

The Good Book Company graciously gave me a copy, and this is my honest review.

“Glorious”

This book is an absolute gem. If you like the Valley of Vision then I highly recommend this!
Into His Presence is a collection of Puritan Prayers that are a great blessing and are deeply rooted in scripture.
The prayers are compiled into different categorical groups as you can see in the photo of the contents page which is a very helpful guide.
What I like about Into His Presence is it also gives the names of the writers of each prayer at the end of each one.
There is also a biographies page at the back which gives a short biographical paragraph on each puritan mentioned in the book which is a really nice feature.
If you struggle with the old English in the Valley of Vision then this is a great alternative as Tim Chester has done a great job of modernising the prayers into today's English.
I have been deeply encouraged by this book and I have found it to be very inspiring to think about how we can incorporate scripture into our prayers.
The binding is absolutely stunning and comes with a ribbon bookmarker.
I think it would be great if more binding options were later on released such as leather etc as this is definitely a book to carry around and take on your travels.

“Wonderful beyond words”

This book is an absolute jewel. The way the Puritans thought and were able to express themselves as they would think about God is so rich. I will read and reread.

“Another Excellent Chester Gem”

If you liked Valley of Vision and want some new prayers for your church services, small groups or personal devotions, I would really recommend Chester's new volume of Puritan prayers. With a little modernisation of language (without losing their original feel) and then organised within themes and categories, this is a really helpful way of learning from and utilising the wisdom the puritans had that still blesses us today. There are also a few lesser remembered areas such as prayers of consecration, and many prayers that remind us that we can bring ANYTHING to God! Chester's editing together of these prayers just give us some inspiration to help us along the way. (It's also printed and bound in hardback which is a personal favourite!). This is definitely a book I'd recommend, whether for your church or your own life.

“Empower your prayer life!”

I love the Puritans. I mean they make up about 80% of my personal library. Their works, teachings, and value for God's glory and personal piety are treasures and examples that still benefit the modern church today. But aside from this, the Puritans were also known as people of fervent prayers. Books like The Valley of Vision, Piercing Heaven, and Everyday Prayer with the Puritans contain their most passionate and powerful prayers. But there’s a new addition to these collections. In his newest book, Into His Presence, Tim Chester gathered eighty theologically rich and beautifully written prayers and meditations, adapted from Puritan prayers and prose.

Bound in a beautifully designed blue hardback, this new Puritan prayer book published by The Good Book Company includes rich and glorious prayers from John Owen, Thomas Watson, Anne Bradstreet, Richard Baxter, and more. This is also slightly modernized and covers a lot of topics and themes—from praise to gratitude, anxiety and sickness, and even prayers in times of temptation and need. This book will surely help you when you just can’t find the words to say in prayer. It is also in a small book format so you can just slip it into your bag and bring it with you.

Tim Chester did a wonderful job in bringing these prayers together and putting a modern touch on them for the benefit of the church. If you love reading the works of the Puritans; love reading prayer books; or simply want to empower your prayer life, do yourself a favor and grab a copy of Into His Presence!

“Theological Riches”

What can we learn from Puritan prayers? In Into His Presence, Tim Chester takes you along in praying with the Puritans.

Faithful Saints
In just over 200 pages, this is a beautiful book. The prayers cover a wide variety of topics, including prayers of gratitude and dependence, as well as prayers for times of need and times of temptation.

Half of the prayers are Puritan prayers edited by Chester. The other half were created by Chester out of descriptive passages from Puritan sermons or books. This is truly a work of art, collaborating with saints in the past and giving new life to their prayers. Read them as a part of personal devotions to be inspired and think about the faithful saints who have come before us.

Theological Riches
What I most appreciated was the modern language used throughout. Chester updated the language while trying to retain the feel of the original writers. This results in richly theological, accessible prayers that sound natural enough to read aloud with a modern audience in mind. Employ them in the pulpit and use them during your family devotions.

Housed in a small, beautiful blue hardcover, this book makes the perfect Christmas gift to guide you in prayer throughout the new year. The book concludes with brief biographical entries on each author. I was reminded of the privilege of prayer, and resolved to live my life in the presence of God.

I received a media copy of Into His Presence and this is my honest review.

“Absolute gold dust”

Ah yes I'm so happy about this! I love the Puritan prayers, and in this book Tim Chester has edited them and put them into clear categories to make them more accessible to more people. It's also a gorgeous book - which lays flat, which I love. It would be a beautiful gift. It's such a joy to be able to read aloud and pray these profound and challenging prayers: prayers that I would never manage to make up myself. It helps me have a bigger view of our very big God, and a more honest view of myself. It's gold dust!