Day 62 with David: Even when you mess up big, take it to the Lord.

“My wounds are foul and festering Because of my foolishness. I am troubled, I am bowed down greatly; I go mourning all the day long. Do not forsake me, O Lord; O my God, be not far from me! Make haste to help me, O Lord, my salvation!”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭38:5-6, 21-22‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

We can only imagine what it must’ve been like to have been placed in Eden, the paradise garden of God. The first man and woman had everything they needed to succeed; the world was literally at their command. But there was just this one thing: don’t eat the fruit of that one tree. Well, we all know the rest of the story. That temptation proved to be too much for them and they fell with a thud, still resounding throughout the millennia. Thank God, through Jesus Christ, that paradise lost, will one day be regained. But back to the fallen duo.

Having directly disobeyed God, and feeling the awful change in their being, their reaction was to hide from the Lord.

“And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. Then the Lord God called to Adam and said to him, “Where are you?” So he said, “I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself.””

‭‭Genesis‬ ‭3:8-10‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

We need not wonder what their “nakedness” was. The point is, they knew what it was like to be connected to the dynamo, the power, of God; they knew what it was like to be able to hear His voice without fear; now they felt isolated, as the voice of their Creator, inspired terror in their fallen souls.

I dare say none of us could identify with the level of fall this first couple experienced. After all, we haven’t walked with the Lord, looking at Him face-to-face, fellowshipping with Him as with a dear Father. But I would imagine that we all know what it feels like to fail miserably. And then—to make it even worse—we often fail in such a way that the repercussions continue to reverberate.

When we fail, and fail miserably, we’re often tempted to take the route the first couple took: to “hide.” Now, I don’t imagine we think we can actually hide from God; but we often withdraw from Him with our hearts. And, adding insult to injury, we may fail to acknowledge our responsibility in finding ourselves in such a miserable state. But, denial, especially before the Lord, just digs us into a deeper hole.

Now the truth is, it’s better if you don’t mess up big time or otherwise. It’s better if we keep ourselves listening to the Lord, watching and praying, and being sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit. But—every once in a while—life may deal you a sucker punch for which you were not prepared, and you fall hard.

The wonderful news is that we don’t need to hide anymore; the Lord Himself has made a way for us to obtain mercy, even when we’ve messed up big time.

“My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world.”

‭‭I John‬ ‭2:1-2‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

It’s common for people to retort, “You don’t know me!” when they feel that something about them has been assumed. But, that is something we can never say to our Lord. He came, taking on the envelope of flesh, so that He could absolutely know who we are and how we feel.

“For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”

‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭4:15-16‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

In our portion from Psalms today we see David basically throwing himself on the mercy of the court, so to speak. He knew he was in a miserable situation; sounds like he got a good dose of some very bad STD. But whatever his misery was, it was real, and he knew that he had no one to blame but himself. But, instead of hiding himself from the Lord, he ran into His arms, begging for His mercy.

Unlike the Lord, I don’t know what you’ve been through; I don’t know the temptations you’ve faced or the failings you’ve experienced. But one thing I do know: His grace is sufficient. Whether you are facing a grand slam failure, or you’ve just dropped the ball somewhere, don’t make things worse by denying your sin or allowing your sin to cause you to hide from the Lord. Do what David did: run to the Lord, admitting your sin, and ask Him to help you!

For today let us know and understand what David knew:

Even when you mess up big, take it to the Lord.

#100dayswithdavid