Dinner With JesusSýnishorn

Have you ever found yourself upset over something that wasn’t that big of a deal? Of course, at the time, it felt like a huge deal, but when you look back you realize the anger, frustration, or impatience you felt wasn’t actually about what you were experiencing in the present. It represented something different going on below the surface. And if you had taken a moment to think about it, you would have realized there was some unfinished business from the past that was affecting your present.

That’s what makes this prayer from the psalmist so powerful. Asking God to search his heart, to know what was going on, is a prayer of introspection and reflection. It’s learning to say, “Show me things about myself I can’t yet see. Show me the things about myself I don’t want to see.” This is a tough prayer to pray. But also? It’s the way toward a healthier spiritual life than if we never ask these questions of God and ourselves. Learning to do this means learning to slow down, pause, get quiet, and be willing to face things in ourselves and about ourselves that may be difficult to see. But that’s how we end up living the life we want.