Ready:
“Restore the joy of your salvation to me, and sustain me by giving me a willing spirit.” – Psalm 51:12
Set:
Have you ever lost your joy? Maybe it’s been a rough season where everything that could go wrong did go wrong and you don’t even enjoy the game anymore. For David, the author of Psalm 51, he had lost his joy too but not because of a rough season. He lost his joy because of the decisions he made that he knew he shouldn’t have.
Instead of fulfilling his kingly duties on the war front, David stayed home where he decided another man’s wife should be his. That choice led to deception, manipulation and eventually murder. All because David chose to do what he wanted instead of what he was called to do.
Sin often feels really good in the moment, but David became miserable sitting in his unconfessed sin. When he was confronted and finally came to his senses, he asked God for help. The good news is that God can restore our joy because our joy is tied to His salvation. This is reason in itself to rejoice because God’s salvation is firm, unmovable and rooted in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. David also understood that he needed to rely on God not his fleshly wants. He needed God to restore to him the “joy of His salvation and to sustain him by giving him a willing spirit.” One that would be willing to obey God’s commands.
We see in 2 Samuel 11-12 that David didn’t lose his joy. He simply traded it away to grasp temporary pleasures. Competitors fall prey to this all the time. We trade the joy of competition for stats, starting positions and winning records. We trade friendships for fleeting popularity and social media likes. When David returned to God – repented for doing it his way – his joy was restored. The same can be true for us. When we return to God and compete (and live) the way He calls us to, our joy can be restored.
Go:
David’s plea in the verse for today reflects his understanding of the consequences of his sin; he lost his joy. What are you trading your joy for today? Is it worth it?
Which specific areas of your life need the same sincere cry for God’s presence to return to?
Workout:
Overtime:
"Dear Heavenly Father, forgive me for carelessly trading my joy for temporary pleasures. You have gone to such great lengths to purchase the joy of Your salvation for me, and I am so sorry for squandering it. Please restore to me the joy of Your salvation and sustain me by giving me a willing spirit to obey your commands. Your pleasures are so much better than the temporary pleasures my flesh and this world offers me. In Jesus’ name, amen.”