Search me, O God

Submitted by Roger Carswell on Sat, 01/01/2022 - 15:51

‘Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me and know my anxieties; and see if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.’ Psalm 139:23&24

It’s a side of me I don’t like, but why should I be fascinated by the fate of wrong-doing celebrities, or the scandals of politicians, or the shenanigans of royalty? Does it deflect my attention from my own inconsistencies and shortcomings, allowing me to feel self-righteous or smug? 'There, but for the grace of God, go I’, is too true for comfort. King David was spot on as he concluded his prayer found in Psalm 139. Living a millennium before Jesus, David did not know how he could be led in the way everlasting. But we do, because we can look to Jesus to forgive our past, indwell us by His Holy Spirit and so lead us in the way everlasting.

J. Edwin Orr’s hymn, sung to the Maori tune is a good prayer to pray:

Search me, O God, and know my heart today,

Try me, O Savior, know my thoughts, I pray;

See if there be some wicked way in me;

Cleanse me from every sin, and set me free.

I praise Thee, Lord, for cleansing me from sin;

Fulfill Thy word and make me pure within;

Fill me with fire, where once I burned with shame;

Grant my desire to magnify Thy name.

Lord, take my life, and make it wholly Thine;

Fill my poor heart with Thy great love divine;

Take all my will, my passion, self and pride;