Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within (Psalm 51:10)
Happy New Year! What are your hopes for this new year? We have many hopes for a new year, hopes for our individual lives, for our families and friends, for our workplaces and churches, for our country and our world. A new year requires some adjustment, liking writing “2023.”. But, in truth, the fact that the calendar has changed actually makes relatively little difference in our lives. The year may be new, but for the most part, you and I haven’t undergone some magical, overnight renewal. We’re still the people we were yesterday, only perhaps more tired if we stayed up until midnight, celebrating the new year, with appropriate social distancing, of course. When I stop to think about it, I’m not really all that excited about changing my calendar. The newness I crave goes much deeper than this. The yearning of my heart is captured perfectly in Psalm 51:10, “Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” That’s what I need today, a heart cleansed by God’s grace, a spirit that is new and right. Yes, that’s it! Notice that this kind of renewal is not something you can I can produce on our own. Only God can “create” a clean heart and a new spirit within us. This is clear, not only from the request of verse 10, but also from the use of the verb “create” (bara’ in Hebrew). This verb is found in the first verse of the Bible, as God created the heavens and the earth, and it is used in Scripture exclusively for God’s activity. God alone has the power to create the universe. God alone has the power to create a clean heart and new spirit within us. This does not mean, however, that we cannot participate in this work of divine renewal. We can, according to Psalm 51, by coming before God as we are, acknowledging our brokenness, relying on God to forgive, restore, and renew us. Then we can participate in practices that help us grow in relationship with the Lord. These included sacrifices offered in the temple (51:19). For us, practices that contribute to our inner renewal include prayer, worship, biblical study and reflection, silence, journaling, Scripture memorization, community, gratitude, hospitality, loving-kindness, doing justice and walking humbly with God (Micah 6:8). None of these disciplines make us instantly new. But they all help us grow in God’s grace, thus opening our hearts to ongoing renewal by the Spirit. So, as you celebrate the beginning of a new year, ask the Lord to renew you from the inside out. As you ask, make yourself available to the Spirit by engaging in practices that open your heart and mind for the work of God within you. Where do you need to be made new? In what ways you need God to renew you in 2023? Gracious God, create in me a clean heart. Renew a right spirit within me. Do in me what I cannot do myself, Lord. Make me new by Your grace. May I engage in practices that open my heart to You, practices that form me in the image of Christ. All praise be to You, O God, for You are making all things new . . . including me! Comments are closed.
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