Restore to Me the Joy

Restore to me the joy of Your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. – (Psalm 51:12, NIV)

Your help made me so happy. Give me that joy again. Make my spirit strong and ready to obey You. – (Psalm 51:12, ERV)

Give back to me the deep delight of being saved by You; let Your willing Spirit sustain me. – (Psalm 51:12, VOICE)

 

As I sat down to read my devotions this morning, the words that kept resonating in my heart and mind, were “restore to me the joy”, despite the lack of connection to the passages I was reading. For the last few days, I have been in a bit of a funk. I seemed to reach my breaking point yesterday, as I could not coax the normal joy from within, to make any sort of appearance externally. The weight on my heart and mind was just too heavy. Between sickness, disease, and pending death in family members, work, home, and numerous responsibilities and demands that go far beyond what one person is meant to bear alone, I was beginning to crumble on the inside. Kindness extended from colleagues made my eyes threaten to defy me, and it took everything in me to fend off tears. Isolation and work best suited my sullen state during lunch, and God granted me the strength to navigate the remainder of the day. Thankfully, gymnastics practice after school is a place that brings joy, as I delight in the doing that offers help and encouragement in an arena outside of the classroom, where I am not being assessed on every move that I make. Post practice I had the privilege of meeting up with my running buddy for a run, and that too, reminded me of the joy that is within me as I moved freely, pounding out the pain into the pavement. Upon arriving home, my amazing husband was set to love me well. He was aware of my struggle, and took care of dinner preparations, clean up, and then just sat with me, in silent support loving me all the while. This morning, I feel lighter somehow. God is faithful, and He is willing to restore His joy in us as we seek Him. His joy is not happiness with our circumstances, but rather a deep delight in Him, despite what we are walking through. The smile that is typically so readily seen on my face is not because life is always easy, but rather it is rooted in the joy granted through knowing who holds me in the hollow of His hands, every minute of every day. Perhaps yesterday I lost sight of that for a time, or my frail humanity reared its ugly head. Either way, sorrow and heavy took a spot not designated for them, and today, they are being placed back in the palms of He who can carry it all. May we ever seek the Lord to hold our heart and our hands in our heaviness, and pursue Him to restore the joy that comes in knowing our eternity is secure forever in Him.

 

O Lord God above,

May I ever seek;

Your joy in sorrow,

And strength when I’m weak.

For You are faithful,

You’re mighty to save;

You love us to life,

Through all of our days.

Help us to place all,

In Your mighty hands;

As Your love restores,

Faith we need to stand.

 

Dear Heavenly Father, thank You that You are the One who restores true joy within us. Thank You that You love us and take our burdens upon Yourself, when we are carrying more than we should. Forgive us for losing sight of where our true joy resides. Teach us to trust You more, so that Your light will shine through us, always. Show us how to love those around us in practical and tangible ways. May many come into a lasting relationship with You. Be glorified O God, as we seek You to restore our joy in You. Amen.

 

© Shannon Elizabeth Grabrick and Revelations in Writing, May 2011 – present

 

When Jesus spoke again to the people, He said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. – John 8:12

To Find Forgiveness

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. – (1 John 1:9, NIV)

But if we confess our sins, God will forgive us. We can trust God to do this. He always does what is right. He will make us clean from all the wrong things we have done. – (1 John 1:9, ERV)

But if we own up to our sins, God shows that He is faithful and just by forgiving us of our sins and purifying us from the pollution of all the bad things we have done. – (1 John 1:9, VOICE)

 

God has amazing grace for all who recognize their need for Him and His forgiveness, and are willing to admit it to He who already knows. Not one of us is void of sin, and none of us are without need of forgiveness and grace. As we come to Christ and seek His goodness and grace, He forgives us from every word, thought and deed that did not reflect the light of His love. The cleansing He provides, picks us up, dusts us off, and grants us courage to press forward in faith; to go forth and love as we are loved by Him. Though we will fall short in our broken humanity, He is ever-present to forgive and fuel our faith. May we confess our sins to He who is without sin, so that we may find forgiveness and grace that grants us the strength and courage to continue to walk in His way and seek to do His will.

 

We all fall to sin,

In word, thought or deed;

Reminders of truth,

That we are in need.

In need of the Lord,

Forgiveness and grace;

Cleansing from our sin,

‘til we see His face.

For we all fall short,

Need confess our past;

Turn away from sin,

Receive love that lasts.

The Lord is faithful,

To forgive, grant grace;

As we come to Him,

Throughout all our days.

 

Dear Heavenly Father, thank You that as we come to You and confess our sins, You forgive us and love us to life, so that we may continue to do the things to which we are called. Forgive us for staying stuck in our sin, instead of coming to You to set things right. Teach us to trust You more, so that we would keep short accounts before You, allowing Your love to cleanse us and flow through us to all whom surround us. Show us how to love those who You have placed in our path, so that they too, may come to know the fullness of Your forgiveness. May many come into a lasting relationship with You. Be glorified O God, as we seek You to confess our sins and trust You to equip us with all that we need to go forth in love. Amen.

 

© Shannon Elizabeth Grabrick and Revelations in Writing, May 2011 – present

 

But with You there is forgiveness, so that we can, with reverence, serve You. – Psalm 130:4

 

 

Reinstating Radiance

This morning, the reading plan I follow had me reading the account of David numbering the fighting men in Israel, (found in both 2 Samuel 24 & 1 Chronicles 21). The gist of the story is that David was incited by Satan to take a census of Israel of all his fighting men. Rather than listen to Joab, his commander, who tried to dissuade him, David sent Joab on his way. Upon his return, David recognized the reality of his sin, (for he was looking to trust more in military power than in God) and confessed to the Lord the error in his ways. God was gracious and gave him a choice as to which of three consequences should befall the nation of Israel. David selected the shortest of the three, and an angel of the Lord began to carry it out. As the people of the nation of Israel were falling, David cried out to the Lord’s grieved heart. God was merciful, and had the angel withdraw. David went on to purchase a field, build an altar, and sacrifice burnt offerings to the Lord.

 

Psalm 30, also accompanies today’s read. This particular passage is one of David’s, in which he celebrates God’s deliverance. It is bookended in the following verses: “I will exalt you, O Lord, for You lift me out of the depths and did not let my enemies gloat over me. – vs. 1 “You turned my wailing into dancing; You removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy, that my heart may sing to You and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give You thanks forever.” – vs. 11-12

 

God is gracious and hears our prayers, no matter what situation we find ourselves in. Be it in the sludge of our own sin, the anguish of a loss, fear, defeat, despair – He is able to remove the wreckage and reinstate joy and hope and peace. May our hearts cry out to Him, as we allow the Lord to fill the spaces once occupied by sorrow, with sweet songs of praise.

 

No matter what state,

our hearts when we come;

His arms are open,

where all peace is from.

He’ll take our sorrow,

the wreckage of loss;

and love us to life,

no matter the cost.

He already paid,

the ultimate price;

so we could find hope,

Love’s true sacrifice.

He will grant us joy,

where sorrow once stood;

and plant in us, peace;

all from Him is good.

May praises rise up,

all thanks to the Lord;

true freedom is found,

hearts in one accord.

 

Dear Heavenly Father, thank You that You are gracious and kind, and ready to receive us, no matter how we come. Thank You Jesus, for making the way for us to come unto You with repentant hearts, knowing that as we do, we are forgiven and set free from the stains of our sin. Thank You that You hold our hearts in Your hands, and that You turn our mourning into joy, and raise up songs of praise as You continue to show us Your faithfulness, even in the difficult and painful places. Forgive us for losing sight of Your hand in the hard places, and help us to trust You, regardless of the trials we face. Grant us strength and peace and joy and hope, as You are the reason we sing. May we love others as we are loved by You, and may we encourage and lift up those who are hurting. Let those who are looking, find the peace that is held in You alone. Be exalted, O God, in all that we say and do. Amen.

© Shannon Elizabeth Moreno and Revelations in Writing, May 2011 – present.

May God be gracious to us and bless us and make His face shine upon us. – Psalm 67:1