Psalm 51:1-10
Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions. Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me. Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight; so you are right in your verdict and justified when you judge. Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me. Yet you desired faithfulness even in the womb; you taught me wisdom in that secret place. Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones you have crushed rejoice. Hide your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquity. Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Psalm 51:1-10 (NIV)
One of my first thoughts after reading this psalm for today’s devotion was that there are moments in life that you don’t know you’ve made a mistake until much later. When that happens, it can make the mistake feel that much worse because you thought you were on the right path. Sometimes that realization comes from someone calling you out (like the prophet Nathan did for David in this case) or it comes from seeing consequences of your choices you hadn’t predicted. Either way, I think I would come crying for forgiveness like this passage does.
Conversely, there are moments when you just know you’re doing something right. Most often you know because people have praised your actions or chosen to follow you. For me, I see this in how I choose to lead others. In sports we often see motivation through fear of failure, fear of conflict, or fear of being unable to act. While fear does motivate people, I believe it does so in the worst ways. Instead, I choose to focus on positivity, like simply patting partners on the back when they do something right. Surprise! They then go and repeat that behavior! People like knowing they’re on the right path, and while you may need to correct them from time to time, you will see better results when you reinforce good behavior instead of focusing on what you don’t like.
The prayer in this passage is all about trying to get back to that “on the right path” feeling. We know we’ve messed up, and we want to get back to feeling good about ourselves. The hard part, though, is figuring out how to get back there because we can’t do it alone. That’s where God comes in.
We know God gives us a clean heart forgiven of sins, and we know we will sin again despite our best efforts. How awesome would it be to have a heart that stayed clean? We will never get there, but we pursue it as a way of saying thank you to God for His Grace. Just keep trying. That’s the right path.
Questions for Reflection:
- When was the last time you felt in your bones that you were on the right path?
- What gave you the sense/knowledge you were getting things right?
- When you did/do make mistakes, do you let yourself be forgiven?
Prayer:
Heavenly Father, we know our human condition and the sin that comes with it. We know that we cannot escape it except through You. Help us to remember Your Grace is a gift, and You give it freely. May we continue to show our thanks by trying to get closer to You in words and deeds. Amen.
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