My patent leather shiny-red shoes are a time machine in disguise. Each time I slip into them and walk out the front door, I feel twenty-nine again. Trimmed in ivory with a small bow on top and a cute peep toe, they have marvelous style.
Last year, I pulled them from the top shelf of the closet and saw something that startled me. Small bits of the inside lining drifted to the floor. The heels showed no wear, no scuff marks spoiled the outside, and they felt as comfortable as I remembered. Despite their pristine outer appearance, sitting neglected for months near the warm ceiling of the closet must have dried out the inner lining. I set them aside, thinking surely this could be fixed. Months later, they continue to sit primly on the closet floor waiting for rescue from an inevitable fate, the trash can.
Those shoes remind me of King David’s plea (Psalm 51:10-11). He looked clean on the outside, but inside, his lining was disintegrating, and his spirit was broken. What happened to account for such anguish and remorse? We could blame Bathsheba, but her role in this tragedy isn’t the whole story. She played a part in defiling David’s heart, as well as her own, but David knew his own actions made him unclean. This psalm was David’s prayer of repentance. Anger, lies, immoral decisions, fear, hateful words. Every day, our hearts grow dirty and unclean by our actions and inactions. Our lining falls apart. What can restore us?
Unlike my red shoes that are unredeemable, God will not toss us aside. When we ask for His forgiveness and trust the promise of His unending mercy and love, He assures us He will forgive us. He will renew our hearts and spirits. Jesus took our sin and paid the price required for our redemption. He repaired the crumbling lining in our heart, cleaned the dirt with His blood, and restored our soul with a new and steadfast spirit.
Ask for the Holy Spirit’s strength to daily strengthen your faith and renew your relationship with God, your Father. He will provide all that you need to sustain your body and your soul. His love endures forever.
Karen Cerny is an award-winning author who considered a writing career after that A+ in seventh-grade English, but became a nurse instead. She writes articles, essays, and devotions and has begun her first novel. When her brain is too full to write, gardening, sewing, or playing the piano restores creativity. She lives in Georgia with her husband.