Prayer: Closing the GAP

Ah, Lord, God: so often we choose not to hear Your voice when we read Your Word, sit in small groups, or listen to sermons. We confess that it is in the intimate language of our circumstances where You finally get our attention. Forgive us, O Lord, for being so hard of hearing, so hard-hearted. May our eyes be opened and may our ears be ever attuned to Thee. May we turn to You and find rest, peace, quiet, trust and security. May we see that we are being led in a very definite way by You, and begin to acknowledge that You are the Architect and we are merely the builder.

We present ourselves to You as a living sacrifice, choosing very deliberately not to be conformed to this world -- disavowing corruption, hardness of heart, self-centeredness -- choosing instead to be transformed by Your Spirit and Your Word so that we might choose Your good, acceptable and perfect will. Close the gap between what we say we believe and what we actually do. May we be willing to ask:

• Is this good?
• Is this acceptable to God?
• Does this more perfectly demonstrate the reality of the Kingdom of God to others? (Psalm 37.23, Isaiah 32.17-18, Romans 12.1-2)