Lord, grant me a spiritual reality that is based on far more than external religion. Take the feebleness of my life and exude strength in the Spirit because my weakness makes it abundantly clear how much I need You. Break any natural fascination with worldly gain and give me a spiritual adoration for all things holy. I am prone to a mischievous habit of indulging false expectations. I come to You in prayer with the answer already formulated in my heart. Whether I acknowledge it or not, I carry disappointment when Your ways don’t match my own. Forgive me, Lord. Our relationship is far more than an outward profession of religious belief. It is a bond of abiding faith. Rid me of the after-effects of a carnal existence. Take me into the realm of the holy, Lord Jesus. To indulge the base of my human nature is to embrace enmity against You. Teach me to live as a reflection of Your image, not as a slave to the flesh. Settle my desire firmly on purity and truth. Grant me a consistency in my conduct that will make me more aware of temptation’s stealthy approach. I want far more than daily religious observance, Lord. I want Your nearness and Lordship to rule the moments of my days. Under the blessed truth set down in 1 John 5:3-5 and the authority of Christ, I approach the altar in prayer.

In fact, this is love for God: to keep His commands. And His commands are not burdensome, for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.
1 John 5:3-5, NIV