CREATE IN ME A CLEAN HEART
Fretwell
CREATE A CLEAN HEART
Portions of Psalm 51 have been set to music. It has been a real blessing to
me, for I can identify with the pleadings of David as he repented of the
terrible things he had done.
Although I have not been guilty of what David did, I recognize the dangers
involved in everyday life. I am every bit as human as David was, and my
fallings short of the mark are probably as bad in the sight of God as his were.
I "sing" it in my mind as I go about my daily duties, and it has become a real
prayer of my heart.
"Create in me a clean heart, Oh, God, And renew a right spirit within me.
Create in me a clean heart, Oh, God, And renew a right spirit within me.
Cast me not away from Thy Presence, And take not Thy Holy Spirit from me.
Restore unto me the Joy of Thy Salvation.
And renew a right spirit within me."
Only God can change our hearts. Only God can renew our spirits. These must be
accomplished before we can again have the Joy of Salvation.
I find, in my own life, that even if I am not aware of a trans gression, I reap
an abundant harvest of God's Blessing on my soul when I identify with the
pleadings of David.
When I first learned the little chorus, it captivated me. I could see, in my
mind, David pleading with the Lord for His Mercy. And as I sang it over and
over, a change began to take place in my own life. The Lord graciously opened
to me a door of personal repentance that I had not dreamed possible.
It went on for months (about ten years ago), and I was able to see how prone I
had been to following the impulses of the spirit of the man I am, instead of
the impulses of the Spirit that God is.
My actions, and reactions, had been those of my own nature and personality
instead of His. My opinions and judgments of others had been those of my own,
instead of His. The choices I had made had been flavored by the desires of my
own heart, rather than what He would have wanted.
I repented of each thing as God brought it to my mind. I repented, and
repented, and repented some more. At times, I wondered just how deeply into
my being He was going to probe before He turned me loose. But I didn't really
care, for I felt so good and clean on the inside after each session of
repenting.
It was NOT such sins as adultery, murder, etc. and all that kind of stuff, for
I had gained victory over those things long ago. But, it was MYSELF that I was
mourning about-- how unlike the Lord I was-- and didn't seem to mind it at all.
UNTIL. Until, that is, God GRANTED repentance to me, and as I responded,
showed my ugly inner self to me. It got really bad before He stopped probing.
I'm glad He didn't stop probing. It has brought such an indefineable
satisfaction to my soul. I see Him, His Work, His People in such a different
light now than I could before.
Jeremiah 17:9 The heart [is] deceitful above all [things], and desperately
wicked: who can know it?
Jeremiah 17:10 I the LORD search the heart, [I] try the reins, even to give
every man according to his ways, [and] according to the fruit of his doings.
HE KNOWS US FULLY-- YET HE LOVES US!
ISN'T HE WONDERFUL!
FRETWELL INSIGHTS
DAY OF ATONEMENT