The Light of His Presence by Anne Graham Lotz 

A refreshing introduction to the life of prayer; an asset for anyone seeking meaning in life, for both new and mature Christians

The Light of His Presence - prayers to draw you near to the heart of God
By Anne Graham Lotz 
Multnomah Books
ISBN 978 1-78893-204-2
Reviewed by Martin M’Caw 

 
This is a lovely book: simply profound and profoundly simple. You have it both ways. On its own page before the Introduction, Anne writes the book is ‘dedicated to those who struggle in prayer yet who long to draw near to the heart of God’.
 
Whether you are wondering how to pray as someone new to Christian faith, or an experienced Christian, long in the tooth with all the burdens of life on your shoulder, ‘The Light of his Presence’ is both a refreshing introduction and an encouraging help to the life of prayer. 
 
As the second daughter of Billy Graham one might expect prayer to be easy peasy. However Anne Lotz writes ‘prayer has been the greatest challenge of my Christian life’.  The two appendices explain where Anne Lotz is coming from. In the first she tells how after a serious robbery at her home she went to bed counting all the disasters that could happen to her. Then at the sharp end of shock ‘God began to whisper to my heart’ and brought to her mind all the blessings in Christ she had been reading in Ephesians.  In the morning she wrote them all down: ‘the blessings no thieves could steal.’ In her book they cover a whole page.
                                                                                                                               
The second appendix is headed ‘preparing your heart through confession’. That may be painful, but it is also a healing exercise that brings ‘cleansing, and the fulness of joy, blessing and freedom that are found in restored fellowship with God’.  Her lengthy list of sins helps us see ourselves in the mirror of self-realisation, and switch on the light that leads us to restored fellowship with God.
 
None of the 40 prayers are over long. They include prayers for unshakeable trust for where we are at:  for the weary, the lonely, and the hardest times, prayers of encouragement, thanksgiving for the cross, overcoming evil with good being mission minded and much more besides.
 
This book is an asset for anyone seeking meaning in life, and for both new and mature Christians. It is a good tool for use in personal times of prayer: probably the reason why it was written. It is also good to use in wider settings. I have used a couple of the prayers in our Sunday evening zoom prayer fellowship, and they are not too long to enrich a church service.  What more can you ask for such a comprehensive little book?
 

The Revd Dr Martin M’Caw (Retired Baptist Minister. Retired Wing Chaplain No.2 Welsh Wing RAF cadets.)