A new beginning

I'm doing a little spitballing here.

I do not like the practice of Christians telling people to begin a relationship with Jesus by "asking Jesus into your heart." Maybe I haven't read the Bible through enough times but I think it's a terrible practice. Nowhere does Jesus say, "Ask me into your heart and that's that." Jesus tells people to follow him. Asking Jesus into one's heart is passive: it's a one time event that, given the state of American Christianity, doesn't require much of the inviter. On the other hand, following Jesus is a daily practice of discipleship (Luke 9:23) that demands much of the believer and is consistent with the witness of the New Testament. 

This is on my mind at the moment because several of the men on our church are about to help on a weekend event designed to help men encounter Jesus. One guy asked me this recently: "What do we do if someone decides to become a Christian? How can I help them do that?" It's a great question. I've discouraged people in the past from merely thinking about conversion as "asking Jesus into your heart" and I often explain what it means to follow Jesus. In doing so, I remind them that if you get up out of your chair to follow someone, there is a first step and I think a prayer acknowledging that is helpful. But what to pray? I've been scratching out some ideas, and here's the rough draft:

Jesus Christ, the Son of God and Lord of all: 

Through your love and grace, this is the moment I choose to follow you. I believe that you are Lord and that God raised you from the dead and now I want to follow you by denying myself and taking up my cross. Hear my confession of my sin. You are faithful and just. Thank you for forgiving me and cleansing me from all my sin. With the gift of your Holy Spirit, I pray that your work in me will bear fruit as I am now a new creation; the old is gone and the new has come. Thank you, Jesus. AMEN.