C. A. R. Prayer

Daniel 9: ⁴ I prayed to the Lord my God and confessed:

“Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and keep his commandments, ⁵ we have sinned and done wrong. We have been wicked and have rebelled; we have turned away from your commands and laws. ⁶ We have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes and our ancestors, and to all the people of the land.

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¹¹ All Israel has transgressed your law and turned away, refusing to obey you.

“Therefore the curses and sworn judgments written in the Law of Moses, the servant of God, have been poured out on us, because we have sinned against you.

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 ¹⁷ “Now, our God, hear the prayers and petitions of your servant. For your sake, Lord, look with favor on your desolate sanctuary. ¹⁸ Give ear, our God, and hear; open your eyes and see the desolation of the city that bears your Name. We do not make requests of you because we are righteous, but because of your great mercy. ¹⁹ Lord, listen! Lord, forgive! Lord, hear and act! For your sake, my God, do not delay, because your city and your people bear your Name.”

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As I pondered this prayer, I noticed something very powerful. Daniel was moved to pray for Jerusalem but did it with a heavy heart. HE did not leave himself out of the prayer. He did not say “Why are those people doing this or those people doing that?” I noticed a structure to his prayer.

• GOD wants me to confess my sins instead of blaming those around me.
• GOD wants me to acknowledge the punishment I deserve and my need for the FORGIVER to do as they wish.
• GOD wants me to request based on HIS holy name.

Confess, Acknowledge, Request (CAR) is a structure that is not manipulative in nature. I Confess I am part of a bigger mess and I need a savior just like everyone else. I acknowledge that I do not deserve favor from GOD, only punishment. I also ask GOD, “What good is it to crush me when I am YOURS and should be used as an example of YOUR grace?”

GOD is gracious enough to hear when I truly confess.

• Are you blaming someone for your problems?
• Do you think you are above sin?
• Can you confess your sins to GOD and acknowledge you deserve to be where you are?
• Will you put your request before GOD stating you are one of HIS and HIS name and example should be shown in you?