“Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.”
Psalm 51:11-12
As a young man when I first discovered the hiking path leading to the top of Yosemite’s famous Half Dome, I was mesmerized with its grandeur. The trail is the most popular hike in the park for good reason—it includes waterfalls, classic Sierra forest, and a granite dome summit at the end. I became obsessed with going on that particular trail every year. But in time the hike became familiar, so familiar that I started to grow indifferent to its majesty and wonder.
The human heart can be that way—growing accustomed to things and losing a sense of awe. Sometimes a spiritual lethargy sets in when we become too comfortable with our sin and apathetic toward the holiness of God.
Psalm 51 reminds us that when we see and confess our sins, we’re shaken from the spiritual haze that sin brings. From David’s well-known psalm of repentance, we recall that part of the joy of our salvation lies in the freedom and restoration God gives us when we turn to Him. Don’t take sin lightly; confess it to your Holy, awe-inspiring Lord who welcomes you.
The human heart can be that way—growing accustomed to things and losing a sense of awe. Sometimes a spiritual lethargy sets in when we become too comfortable with our sin and apathetic toward the holiness of God.
Psalm 51 reminds us that when we see and confess our sins, we’re shaken from the spiritual haze that sin brings. From David’s well-known psalm of repentance, we recall that part of the joy of our salvation lies in the freedom and restoration God gives us when we turn to Him. Don’t take sin lightly; confess it to your Holy, awe-inspiring Lord who welcomes you.
Scripture Focus
Psalm 51
Insight
Though our sinfulness warrants judgment, we have been given salvation through Jesus instead. This is the ultimate source of our joy in life.
Bible In A Year
- 2 Chronicles 17-18
- Psalm 16
- Matthew 23
