Vol. 17 No. 12 | March 23, 2015
Create in me a pure heart, O God,and renew a steadfast spirit within me. (Psalm 51:10, NIV)
Create in me a pure heart, O God. You must do it. I cannot do it on my own. I have tried, O God. Perfect church attendance has not accomplished it. Reading and memorizing Scripture has not accomplished it. Recounting all my years of preaching and teaching has not accomplished it. Keeping a record of all the good things I have done to help other people has not accomplished it. Living with guilt and shame over all the bad things I have done has not accomplished it. I have done all I know to do to create a pure heart and my heart is not yet pure. Father, will You please create in me a pure heart.
Create in me a pure heart, O God. I have tried to clean my heart and make it pure. I do okay for a while, then I find I am right back where I started. It seems as if I never really did much cleaning or purifying. A pure heart? That sounds almost too good to be true. Or, as someone has said about Your grace and mercy, “Maybe it’s too good not to be true.” Lord, I want a pure heart. I want a clean heart. I want a heart that is filled with things that are pure, not the impurities of the day.
And renew a steadfast spirit within me. Lord, my spirit is weary. It needs renewing. I need a new start. A clean start. Again, I have tried to renew my spirit by doing all the right things. That helps some. I see the value in praying, reading Your Word, fasting, and spending time in with Christian people, but my spirit still seems dry.
And renew a steadfast spirit within me. My spirit is not very strong. My spirit is not very solid. My spirit is not very steady. Flimsy would be a better description. I tend to drift along with the wind. If I am not very, very careful I can be swayed and persuaded and distracted from where and who I should be pretty easily. Father, steady my spirit.
And renew a steadfast spirit within me. I know that it is within me to live as You would have me to live. It is within me because You are in me. You live in me. Because You are within me, know I can be strong, I can be steady, and I will experience renewal. So, Father, please renew my spirit from deep within me.
I am with You, Father. I belong to You. I am weak and weary and I am a wanderer. But, if You create in me a pure heart and renew a steadfast spirit within me, I will praise You and tell of Your wonderful ways.
Create in me a pure heart, O God,
and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Tom
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