Father,
You are the God who
forgives sin. And that makes You unique. The gods that others worship either
don't expect much of their devotees or they don't really forgive. But You are
the holy God who has high expectations of Your creatures. You demand perfection.
And there are consequences when there isn't perfection. But at the same time,
You are the God of mercy and compassion. And that is why You came in Christ.
You were determined to be able to forgive. And what You did in Jesus provided a
way for that to happen without You lowering Your expectations.
Father, we know
these things - but only sort of. We know that Jesus died on the cross for our
sins. Even the youngest among us know that. But there are depths to that simple
statement that we need to grasp.
And so, we ask,
Father, that You would grant us the grace that we need to do better at grasping
those depths. Teach our hearts more of the mysteries of the Gospel so that we
would be stunned by the forgiveness that You have provided.
The reason for our
request is simply this. Even based on our current understandings of Your
gracious forgiveness, we know that You deserve heartfelt worship. And we do
strive to offer that to You. But it is as we grasp the depths of what Your
forgiveness is about that we will give ourselves more fully to worshiping You.
So, bless us in this way so that our worship would develop some more. Bless us
in this way so that we would be even more convinced that You are worthy of all
praise, honor and glory.
And we know that as
we are changed in these ways, as we see You more clearly, others will notice.
Other Christians will have in us examples of what the Scriptures call for in
the lives of Your saints. They will be encouraged to grow in these ways. But this
will also affect those outside Your Church. Unbelievers will see our devotion
to You and how that affects our lives and that will prove so attractive to them
that they will want to come to know You also. So, we look to You, Father, to
bless us so that we might be a blessing. And we ask this through Christ our
Lord, Amen.