Sustained by His Spirit!

Sustained by His Spirit!

Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. Psalm 51:12 NIV

I wonder what the Psalmist must have been going through at the time these words were penned down. The account reveals that this words were written just after the events involving King David and Uriah's wife, Bathsheba. A king had done wrong- committed adultery with another man's wife and then murdered the husband. He had done all these and tried to cover it up, but he did not reckon with the one who sees even the most secret things. Here was a man who was favoured by God, sustained by his power, yet stooping so low to do such abominable things. But before we get too critical, when we take a good look at ourselves, do we not see these same vices in us too? We have a God who can supply our deepest desires, yet we scheme to get what we want by our own strength and wisdom. We have a God who owns heaven and earth, yet we labour in our power to claim a small portion of the earth, that we cannot even take with us to the next life.

What do we do? When we have done all the chasing and realised the futility of it all, what is next? When we have struggled in our power to amass what we think will sustain us, and yet feel empty and unfulfilled, where do we turn to? Today's extract focuses our attention on what is important- we can only be truly sustained by the Holy Spirit of God. When we have done all we can and are empty, God is the one who can fill us up. When we have reached the end of the rope, he is the one who keeps us hanging on, or throws a fresh rope to us. When we have done wrong too, he is watching and waiting, so we can return to him and he can restore us. No amount of sacrifice, self hate or regrets can restore you; only a return to God can. David was called a man after God's heart not because he was perfect, but because he would always run back to God when he ran out of ideas. He would go with his baggage and dirt, get cleaned up and then return to his ways.

God is not calling inherently perfect people to himself; he is the one who will perfect all that come to him through Christ. He is the one who grants a willing spirit, so we can be sustained through the hard and tough times. He is the one who can restore all that has been broken or damaged in us. He is the one who can put back in the joy that the world took out. Return to him, he will restore, repair and refresh you. His time of favour is here.