Brokenness - Pt 1

Dave Shepardson

Jul 12, 2014 • 2 min read

Psalm 51 is a scary psalm to pray in this setting. “What will people think?” makes this psalm hard to pray here. But I know that’s pride, being worried about what people think, and this psalm is about brokenness, which is the only cure for pride.

Psalm 51:1-9 (esv)
1 Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions.
2 Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin!
3 For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me.
4 Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you may be justified in your words and blameless in your judgment.
5 Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me.
6 Behold, you delight in truth in the inward being, and you teach me wisdom in the secret heart.
7 Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
8 Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones that you have broken rejoice.
9 Hide your face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities.

Have mercy on my, O God. Not according to what I deserve, but according to your steadfast love. Not according to what I deserve, but according to your abundant mercy, forgive me of my sin.
Wash me from my sin, Lord, cleanse my life from it. I know I’m wrong so often, Lord. I know my thoughts, attitudes, and actions are constantly impacted by my sin nature.
And I know that when I sin it is ultimately against you. I drag your name down, and I make little of who you are in my life, I’m so sorry for that Lord. Your word is right, and your judgment is blameless. Thank you for showing me your grace and mercy instead of the judgment I deserve.
I was born a sinner; I was living completely in sin before I was saved, and I’ve been warring against sin since I was saved.
What you want Lord is complete honesty, from the core of who I am. You delight in me being completely truthful about my sin condition, and in that state of truthfulness you are able to teach me wisdom in the deepest places of my life.
Please continue to purge sin from my life, Lord. Wash me and make me pure before you.
Let me live in the joy and gladness of a right and full relationship with you, God. Let me learn from the pain of being separated from you by my sin, and return me to that place of unspeakable joy with you. Please remove my sin as far as the east is from the west, and remember it no more. Please forgive me, Lord, of all my sin and all my failures. And please give me right standing before you. Not because of anything I’ve done or earned, but solely because of your grace and mercy.
Thank you for saving such a sinner as me. Thank you for your continual washing and renewing of my life. I love you radically. In Jesus Name, amen.

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