Make me hear joy and gladness, that the bones You have broken may rejoice.– Psalm 51:8
Years ago, I played collegiate soccer as a goalkeeper. It was more fun than I can describe here, but all that fun came at a hefty price – one I continue to pay today. Being a goalie means that you are constantly throwing your body into harm’s way to prevent the other team from scoring, often resulting in injuries. During the course of one season, I suffered a broken leg, several cracked ribs, a separated shoulder, and a concussion! Today, especially on cold days, I am visited by painful reminders of those broken bones.
David also had reminders of broken bones, but his injuries were spiritual, not physical. After David’s moral collapse involving an affair with Bathsheba and the murder of her husband, God firmly disciplined him. But then David turned to Him in repentance and prayed, “Make me hear joy and gladness, that the bones You have broken may rejoice” (Ps. 51:8).
God’s chastening was so crushing that David felt like his bones were broken. Yet he trusted that the God of grace could both repair his brokenness and rekindle his joy. In our own failure and sin, it’s a comfort to know that God loves us enough to pursue and restore us with His loving discipline. – Bill Crowder
Father, open my eyes to see my failings, open my heart to receive Your discipline, and open my will to embrace Your loving purposes. When I fall, I pray that You will make me whole and restore my joy in You.
READ: Psalm 51:1-13
God’s hand of discipline is a hand of love.