Psalm 51 from "The Message"
A David Psalm, after he was confronted by Nathan about the affair with Bathsheba. Generous in love -- God, give grace!
Huge in mercy -- wipe out my bad record.
Scrub away my guilt,
soak out my sins in your laundry.
I know how bad I've been;
my sins are staring me down. You're the One I've violated, and you've seen
it all, seen the full extent of my evil.
You have all the facts before you;
whatever you decide about me is fair.
I've been out of step with you for a long time,
in the wrong since before I was born.
What you're after is truth from the inside out.
Enter me, then; conceive a new, true life. Soak me in your laundry and I'll come out clean,
scrub me and I'll have a snow-white life.
Tune me into foot-tapping songs,
set these once-broken bones to dancing.
Don't look too close for blemishes,
give me a clean bill of health.
God, make a fresh start in me,
shape a Genesis week from the chaos of my life.
Don't throw me out with the trash,
or fail to breathe holiness in me.
Bring me back from gray exile,
put a fresh wind in my sails!
Give me a job teaching rebels your ways
so the lost can find their way home.
Commute my death sentence, God, my salvation God,
and I'll sing anthems to your life-giving ways.
Unbutton my lips, dear God;
I'll let loose with your praise. Going through the motions doesn't please you,
a flawless performance is nothing to you.
I learned God-worship
when my pride was shattered.
Heart-shattered lives ready for love
don't for a moment escape God's notice. Make Zion the place you delight in,
repair Jerusalem's broken-down walls.
Then you'll get worship from us,
acts of worship small and large,
Including all the bulls
they can heave onto your altar!!!
Sexual sin is nothing new. King David is a prime example of sexual sin, repentance, consequences of sexual sin, forgiveness, and God's second chance -- David and Bathsheba birthed Solomon to become part of the lineage of Jesus. Last Friday morning (Nov 3) I turned on the news to experience great pain with the allegations against Pastor Ted Haggard. At first there was hope that somehow this was a mistake, some political ploy. By Saturday afternoon it was certain he was guilty of immoral sexual conduct and had been removed from his pastorate at New Life Center in Colorado Springs. I knew the consequences of sexual sin were unfolding. My pain had more of a personal note than just someone in the Body of Christ who lives in Oregon. While living in Colorado almost 27 years (with the last 14 years on the eastern slope in the Denver area), I became aware of the development of New Life Center. Glen and I visited once in 1997 and found the Body of Christ there a great joy to worship with. We also appreciated the opportunity to hear Pastor Haggard preach/teach. I have since followed the continued development of the World Prayer Center (on their campus) and learned that Pastor Haggard had become the president of the National Evangelical Association. A fun note is that I knew he had written a book that spotlighted the concept of small groups around interests/hobbies, thus "interest groups". I now have an "interest group" dealing with family history, digital photography and scrapbooking. My heart was so heavy over the weekend. I hurt for Ted Haggard, his wife, his children, his church, and the Body of Christ overall. I prayed. I know that sexual sin is so very difficult to deal with. While living in Denver I was involved with the founding of a Christian crisis telephone ministry, Colorado Helpline. Through some of our instructors, I learned how tenacious Satan is in getting his hooks into people .... and not wanting to let go after many years of "victory" over one's particular sexual sin. I am so thankful to know there are those who have continued in their victorious walk. Exodus International has a very strong, worldwide ministry to those desiring to walk away from the homosexual lifestyle. One ministry has developed from Exodus that specializes in addressing transsexuality. www.realityresources.com There are a variety of other ministries dealing with other sexual brokenness. Healing and walking victoriously seems to take lots of hard work, and support from others that needs to include tough accountability. See the Exodus response to Rev. Ted Haggard's admission of moral failure. I know that God is our Redeemer God. Somehow He can turn what Satan has intended for evil into good.... as we surrender it to Him. Gen 50:20. He heals. He restores. He is the God of second chances. Let's keep praying. There are so many sexually broken people walking around. Some may be in our own church sitting in a pew nearby. Check this blog for the concept of "walk alongside".
For other crisis information resources check out the Crisis Information Center at Network211. | 