“God, I invite your searching gaze into my heart.
Examine me through and through;
Find out everything that may be hidden within me.
Put me to the test and sift through all my anxious cares.
See if there is any path of pain I’m walking on,
And lead me back to Your glorious, everlasting ways –
The path that brings me back to You.” – Psalm 139:23-24
Opening up our hearts fully to God requires honesty with ourselves. Exposing all the areas of our lives… even the ones we’ve tried to hide from ourselves. He already knows all and knows what we have hidden, but God can’t cover and mend and heal us, if we don’t offer up to Him the areas of us that we’re not wanting to deal with.
I’m sure we can all agree, that this is not an easy process. Exposing what’s at the root of our woundedness and allowing Him to bind up our pain and draw us to new life, despite of what we’ve walked through, can be what feels like the crushing and re-crushing of our heart. And maybe it feels so raw and hard, because He’s breaking things down and taking out the roots, so we don’t find ourselves in that situation again…. or so He can teach us that His strength can help combat any future pain that comes our way.
I’m convinced of this - that everything that we bring before the Lord, and we wrestle through with Him, allowing Him to change in us, break in us, remove from us… is only ever for our greater good - drawing us closer to Him and leading us back onto the path He has for us. His glorious…everlasting…beautiful way… that restores us and redeems all things. And while the trespass against us may never be forgotten, it can be forgiven.
He tests us. Allows our hearts to be sifted. Calls us to deal with our anxious thoughts. But all paths lead us to His loving arms. His Truth. His Peace. His Strength.
“Lord, examine me through and through… and help me to trust You with the process of continually making me new. Amen.”
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