We must pray that the Holy Spirit will cause us to be born again.

The New Birth is an act of God the Holy Spirit in the soul of man. John 6:63; Romans 8:9

Repentance and resting in the Lord Jesus are prerequisites for the new birth. These conditions do not merit salvation; they make salvation possible. No one merits salvation.

Repentance is an abhorrence of sin as a deliberate, habitual way of life. Repentance has active results. Specific sin habits and sinful patterns of life are forsaken.

Resting in the merits of the shed blood of Jesus is the passive aspect of salvation. John 1:29; 1 Peter 1:18

Jesus, I am resting, resting, In the joy of what Thou art.
I am finding out the greatness of Thy loving heart.
-Jean S. Pigott

Someone has said, "The children of God do sin. They sin knowingly. They sin voluntarily, but they do not sin habitually. It is not the prevailing habit of their lives to disobey the commandments of God..." 1 John 1:7 - 10; 1 John 5:18

Four conditions that cast grave doubt on a man's profession of salvation if they persist are: unchanged desires (2 Corinthians 5:17); unforsaken sin (1 Corinthians 6:9-11); an unaroused appetite for the things of God (1 Peter 2:2); and an unforgiving spirit (Mark 11:26; Luke 6:37; Matthew 6:14, 15; Matthew 18:21).

Charles Wesley wrote for all genuinely converted believers when he prayed,

"I want a principle within
Of watchful, godly fear,
A sensibility of sin,
A pain to feel it near."