Verse of the Day for July 6

David wrote this after his own life went off course, and not by accident. The heading of the psalm ties it to Bathsheba and to Nathan's visit. The future he had planned now contained a sin he could not undo.

He does not ask God to fix things. He asks, Create in me a clean heart, O God. Create is the word from the first page of the Bible, the word for making something where there was nothing. He knows repair will not be enough.

Then, renew a right spirit within me. A right spirit is a steady one, a spirit that can stand up straight again. And under it all is a fear: Cast me not away from thy presence. He is less afraid of losing the kingdom than of losing God.

Plans change for many reasons. Some are storms you did not cause. Some, like David's, are your own doing. Either way the prayer has the same shape. Not, give me back my old plan, but, make something new in me that can live in the new one.

If you are sitting in a parked car outside the office where the news was bad, or outside a house where you did wrong, this is the prayer for that seat.

God does not only patch what broke; he is able to create.

When a plan is lost, his presence is the thing to hold on to.