Father God,

    Today, I pray the church would awaken from its slumber, would open its eyes and see where it is guilty of Israel’s sin in Isaiah 43:22-24, and then repent.  We look down upon Israel and ask how they could so forget the holiness and the commands of their God who had delivered them, yet we so easily slip into habits and patterns of religious activity devoid of real worship. 

     We believe that the God of creation, the Sustainer of all things, the Sovereign is satisfied with our rituals and repetitions when You want our hearts, our desires, our lives.  You have purchased us by the blood of Christ as foretold in Isaiah 43:25 where You blot out transgressions.  Why do we think that our bloodless offerings of today would satisfy any more than the blood sacrifices did in that day?

      Purify our hearts so that our worship may be pleasing in Your sight.  Turn us from the polite sins, the worldly compromises, the comfortable sins of our culture.  Create in us a clean heart, O Lord. 

In Christ’s Name,

Amen