Reflections
Psalm 51: 3-4, 12-13, 17, 19 (Read)
“A
clean heart create for me, O God.”
We
are shown in the Psalm that although David was
chosen
by God to be king, even David sins gravely.
David is
sincerely sorry for having committed adultery
and murder, two
grievous sinful acts which separated
him from our loving
Father. He pleads with the Lord,
"Have mercy on me, God,
in your goodness; in your
abundant compassion blot out my
offense." We are
reminded here that no sin is too
big for God to forgive.
Just as
Moses trusted God to relent in His wrath against
the Israelites
(Exodus
32:11), we
too trust in the Lord
to be far more forgiving than we ourselves are
capable of.
And when we do fall into deep patterns of sin, we
must
realize that our wrongdoing, ultimately, is a
rebellion
against the Lord himself. David’s sins, like our own,
are offensive to God first and foremost –we are all born
of a
sinful nature
David
prays words of repentance that recall for us the
power of the
Sacrament of Confession. “A clean heart
create for me, O God; renew
within me a steadfast spirit.”
The Lord is the source of
cleanliness and purity of heart.
God wants to have a close relationship with us, but
unconfessed sin
will always get in the way. We must
confess our sins openly and
sincerely. Where
else can
we turn when we are separated from God?
Who
else has the healing power to cleanse us?
David
reminds us that without the Holy Spirit we are
ruled by the desires
of this world. “Cast me not out from
your presence, and
your Holy Spirit take not from me.”
We
can almost hear David’s loud cries and see his tears,
as he offers
this prayerful psalm and seeks his own inner
renewal. And
just as David is profoundly grateful for God's
compassion, so
too St Paul acknowledges God's mercy
in this Sunday's second
reading (1
Timothy 1:13).
When
we receive the Sacrament of Confession, we also
are given an
opportunity to be restored in the joy of His
Salvation, to
offer up what is dead within us, so that like
the prodigal son in the
Gospel we can return to the Father
and again be good witnesses for
the Lord.
“I shall
get up and go to
my father.”
(Luke 15:18)
Once we
have regained a solid foundation with God
the Father, no strong
assault from the evil one will
overcome us. We can have
that very same "steadfast
spirit" that David asks for and
receives from the Lord.
Amen
Discussion Questions for Reflection
1. Our Psalm is King David's mea culpa, his personal confession to God. Speak of
how the verses of the Psalm inspire you to
receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation.
2. Our psalmist pleas with the Lord not to take from him God's Holy Spirit. Tell of how
2. Our psalmist pleas with the Lord not to take from him God's Holy Spirit. Tell of how
you also rely on the Spirit in your daily life.
"She will take you to Heaven"
ReplyDeleteThis is what Fr. Fernando, a healing Priest from
the Philippines, told me when I jokingly disclosed in Confession my made up concerns about my wife.
Even though I started out joking, Fr. Fernando was correct. My wife is one of the hardest working women I know. She manages home and work duties with precision. We have been married over 26 years. One son and two cats.
After my confession was over I thanked God for my wife.
Thanks be to God.
Most precious lesson in this psalm is the possibility of all sin being effaced, and the high hopes which even a sinful man has a right to cherish. What a prayer these clauses contain to be offered by one who has so sinned! What a marvelous faith in God’s pardoning love, and what a boldness of hope in our own future, they disclose!.
ReplyDeleteCreate in me a clean heart,O God; i.e. do more than purify me - do more than cleanse me (ver.7); by an act of creative power make in me a new clean heart. Like David, in asking both for a new heart and a new spirit, we request the renovation of our entire mental and moral nature now and every day.
This Psalm 51 inspires me a great deal because of God's forgiving and cleansing of David's grave sins of adultery and murder. Because of David's true repentance with a contrite heart, God forgave him. God will also blot out our transgressions no matter how big our sins are if we truly repent of our sins. Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners like us. How merciful our God is!
ReplyDeleteIn 1 Timothy 1:16 every one who repents will be mercifully treated. I have come to realize how important it is to receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation and along with it the joy of Salvation. Our relationship with God will be restored and renewed by confessing our sins. I also realize that God wants our hearts to be right with him. Whenever I commit a sin, like David I will plead for God's mercy.
Yes, I also rely on the Holy Spirit in my daily life because the Holy Spirit guides me, convicts me, directs me along the right track. Without his leading I will be totally lost. He leads me to God, and His eternal home. No wonder David pleas to God, "Do not take your Holy Spirit from me."