Prayer of Recollection by John H. Coe

To rouse our soul and prepare us to meet with God in truth (Ps.15:1-2).

To put away all falsehood and awaken to our true identity in union with Christ by the Spirit (Col. 3:1-4).

1. Present and open your heart to the Lord and intend to learn from Him.

Prayer of Presenting: Lord, I am here; I present myself to you. Open my heart to the truth of what is
going on in my life. (Rom. 12:1-2)

2. Open to the truth that in Christ and by means of Christ in you that you have already died with Christ to the old Adamic nature that used to live apart from God. Remind yourself in prayer that by the Spirit, who is your new existence at the core of your personality, you have already (indicative) put off and put to death the old nature’s habits such as excess anger, wrath, malice, excess fear, worry, pride, arrogance, selfishness, impatience, unkindness and all the deeds of the flesh. Open to the truth of these matters and talk to the Lord about this, whether you still struggle with these matters of the flesh (Col 3:9).

Prayer of Detachment: At the core of my spirit, I am no longer an angry person, a fearful person, a worrier, arrogant, prideful, envious, distrustful, unkind, impatient, jealous, full of malice, wrath. At the core, my identity is not longer being a sinner, wicked, rebellious and unloving. I am not a . (Confess any sins of the heart that are brought to consciousness by the Spirit)

3. Affirm to your soul and the Lord your true identity in Christ and as Christ in you, so that being in union with Christ, you are no longer condemned but accepted in Him, your debt of sin being cancelled. And open to your true self by the Spirit, that you have already (indicative) put on compassion, kindness, humility, patience, trust, love, self-control, peace, goodness and all the fruits of the Spirit. Be open to the truth of this, whether this is truly
what you experience or not and talk with the Lord about this (Col. 3:10).

Prayer of Attachment: I am now clothed with Christ's righteousness, with full pardon from guilt and full acceptance from God. I am precious in God's eyes. God calls me His beloved. And by the Spirit, at the core of my personality, I have put on His fruits of love, compassion, humility, kindness, forgiveness, gentleness, patience, self-control, peace and goodness. That is who I truly am. (Confess any unbelief.)

4. Resolve in your heart and in prayer to obey the Lord, to put off the old and put on the new (the biblical imperatives) by setting your mind continually on Christ, who is your life, and as the appropriate moments arise, to let go of any sin or “old self” residue and to live out who you are from the heart (Col. 3:1-4, 8, 12).

Prayer of Obedience: Lord, may my mind and heart all day open to Christ, who is my life. And may I have the wisdom when the time is right to lay aside the old person residue and its ways and to simply
put on Christ, to obey you in all things and to reaffirm who I really am in Christ. Lord, have mercy.

5. Hear the Word of God Col. 3:14 Beyond all these things, put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity.

PRAYER OF RECOLLECTION IN COLOSSIANS Dr. John H. Coe Director, Institute for Spiritual Formation, Talbot School of Theology © Copyright 2012 John H. Coe. All rights reserved.