Forgive us, Lord ??

King David was an interesting character in the Old Testament. He was quite a combination of humility and compromise, courage and devious cunning, praising and warring. David, the shepherd boy turned king, was one of the most inspirational leaders and yet one of the most sinful. 

Just imagine for a moment the lust that drove him to steal another man’s wife and expose the husband to a sure death at the front of a military attack. In other words, he deceitfully had him killed so he could steal the man’s wife. Wow! That’s deplorable. But I’ve sinned before, too…gratefully, there’s lots of hope for us. The Bible even says God considered David the apple of His eye: “Keep me as the apple of Your eye; Hide me under the shadow of Your wings” (Psalms 17:8, NKJV).

Why did God excuse such horrendous behavior? It’s pretty simple: David asked for forgiveness, and God forgave him. “When we were overwhelmed by sins, you forgave our transgressions.” (Psalms 65:3, NIV)

I used to be crippled by guilt from my past. I wasn’t a choir boy in my youth, but I heard about the grace of God. I needed that grace to wash away my guilt. Ephesians 2:8 can become the foundation for people like David; Paul Marc; and you, too. “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God.” (Ephesians 2:8, NIV)

David had enough sense to pray this prayer: “Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.” (Psalms 51:2) I’m not ashamed to admit I’ve failed in a million ways, but I’ve made it a point to ask God to do five things:

1. Forgive me for all my sins and mistakes.
2. Cleanse me of all defilement.
3. Heal me of all the trauma and damage in my life.
4. Help me reconcile with those I may have hurt.
5. Ask others to forgive me.

You don’t need to be perfect to be the apple of God’s eye…only honest. You can do it because you are a miracle.