Daily Walking with God

By Samuel Rutherford, Matthew Vogan, John Sturrock and Robert Dickie

This guide to daily walking with God has been transcribed from a manuscript and is now published for wider benefit. It contains valuable spiritual counsel on setting aside time for reading the Word and prayer, meditating frequently on the Word, having spiritual thoughts during the day, while resisting idle thoughts.

This very searching brief volume is also highly personal and shows Rutherford’s own convictions of conscience as to how he had misspent his time. He shows us the way to reflect more deeply on this and gives some very practical rules for ordering daily life to the glory of God alone. Rutherford’s general guidance on how to seek the presence of God in all circumstances is both concise and weighty.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Reformation Press
• Release date: Jun 2, 2023
• ISBN: 9781912042234

Book preview

Daily Walking

with God

Samuel Rutherford

C:\Users\Robert\Documents\Reformation Press published work\Meditations on the Lord's Supper - published files\RP logo.tif

Reformation Press

2023

Published by

Reformation Press, 11 Churchill Drive, Stornoway

Isle of Lewis, Scotland HS1 2NP

www.reformationpress.co.uk

Originally published as Samuel Rutherford’s ‘Directory’: A Reflex Upon a Man’s Mis-Spent Life, Backed with Challenges. The present edition is edited and annotatedby M. Vogan and R.J. Dickie.

Layout, repunctuated text and additional material are copyright.

© Reformation Press 2023

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

ISBN numbers

Paperback: 978-1-912042-22-7

E-book: 978-1-912042-23-4

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior permission in writing of Reformation Press, or as expressly permitted by law, by licence, or under terms agreed with the appropriate reprographic rights organisation.

Introduction

THIS BRIEF PRACTICAL TREATISE by Samuel Rutherford is not well known. It is interesting in that it reflects the benefit and influence of Puritan practical divinity. This movement to cultivate godliness and devotion began from the 1580s. It was particularly associated with Richard Greenham and William Perkins. There was focus not only on spiritual experience but also right living. It also sought careful application of scriptural teaching to a host of practical matters that included employment, family matters, dress and recreation.

It also involved the God-glorifying use of time to advance piety and righteousness, and one key element of this was the Sabbath. Like the English Puritans, Rutherford stresses in this treatise how to spend the day with God. This involves setting aside time for Word and prayer, meditating frequently on the Word, having spiritual thoughts during the day, while resisting idle thoughts. At the end of the day he counsels an examination of how we have lived and acted, and what growth in grace has taken place. As part of these daily accounts before God he even exhorts to examine every thought if possible.

The treatise is in three parts: (1) challenges, i.e., spiritual questioning of the soul and conscience to produce conviction of sin; (2) helps to a more exact walking with God; (3) some ways of spiritual