Day 10 - 40 Days in the Word

But who can discern their own errors?  Forgive my hidden faults.   Keep your servant also from willful sins; may they not rule over me.  Then I will be blameless, innocent of great transgression.   May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.  – Psalm 19: 12-14

Isn’t it amazing that we can think we see so clearly other people’s faults but often are blind to our own?  Jesus told us, “How can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when all the time there is a plank in your own eye?  You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye (Matthew 7:4-5).”  How do we actually take that plank out?  We take it out by going to our Lord.  He is the One that can help us see what we can’t.  He is the One who can forgive our hidden faults.  He also, if we ask, can keep us from those willful sins that are so hard to break so that they don’t have to rule over us.  How much better would things be if we started each day by asking the Lord to make the words of our mouths and the meditations of our hearts be pleasing to Him?  How about if we asked every hour?

Prayer:  Lord, we thank you for Your mercy.  We thank You that You are here to offer us help in this sinful, broken world.  We all have faults that are both known and even unknown to us, and we ask that you lovingly show us these things and help us to overcome them. We reach out to You and ask that You would help us with those willful sins that are often so hard to break.  However, we know we can have victory through You, Lord!  May the words of our mouths and the meditations of our hearts truly be pleasing to You!  We ask this in the precious, mighty Name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, Amen.