CREATE A PURE HEART

Major decisions in the palaces of ancient kings were often made in quiet and secluded rooms. From that room, a king tried to regulate the lives of all his people. However, there is another room far more decisive than the king's throne room, namely the human heart. From there, thoughts, decisions, and actions originate. If the heart is corrupt, the decisions that arise will bring about destruction.

The Lord Jesus once explained this to the people. In Mark 7, He said that what defiles a person is not food or things from outside, but what comes out from within the heart. Evil thoughts, greed, pride, and various evil actions originate from the depth of human beings. In other words, the source of human problems actually lies within themselves.

This truth was realized by King David. After being rebuked by the Prophet Nathan for sinning, David not only asked for forgiveness from the Lord. He realized that the root of his problem lay in his heart. Therefore, he prayed, "Create in me a pure heart, O God ..." (Psalm 51:12). David understood that without a renewal of the heart, humans easily fall back into the same mistakes.

David's awareness is an important lesson for us. How often do we try to improve our outward appearance or self-image, but forget to pay attention to the condition of our hearts. The Word of God invites us to come to Him humbly, asking Him to renew our inner selves. For when our hearts are renewed by Him, our lives move in the right, good, and righteous direction. --SAP/www.renunganharian.net