Wednesday, June 9, 2010

Attending Upon God Without Distraction

In the vein of Richard Steele's (1629-1692) classic work A Remedy for Wandering Thoughts in the Worship of God (1673), Nathaniel Vincent (brother of Thomas Vincent) wrote The Cure of Distractions in Attending Upon God in 1695. This work is being reissued by Soli Deo Gloria Publications under the title Attending Upon God Without Distraction. Based on 1 Cor. 7.35 ("that ye may attend upon the Lord without distraction"), and written in the spirit of humility ("A sense of my own wanderings in those ordinances I administer and engage in has put me upon a more serious study how to prevent them"), Vincent argues the importance of singleness of mind and spirit in the service of God and aims to equip the reader with practical counsel to achieve this, by his grace. The book includes a biographical sketch of the author, and is expected to be available by June 30, 2010. Written by one of the signers of the 1673 Puritan Preface to the Scottish Metrical Psalter, this book addresses a concern of the saints in all ages to "do what God commands, and as He commands, else what we call our religious duties will be looked upon by Him as acts of disobedience," much like Nadab and Abihu. This work, like Steele's, is a welcome aid to the saints who would seek to arm themselves against distractions from the world, and the flesh, and the devil, and serve God with their whole heart, soul, strength and mind (Luke 10.27).

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