Have mercy on me, O God,
according to your unfailing love;
according to your great compassion
blot out my transgressions.
Wash away all my iniquity
and cleanse me from my sin.
For I know my transgressions,
and my sin is always before me.
Against you, you only, have I sinned
and done what is evil in your sight;
so you are right in your verdict
and justified when you judge.
Surely I was sinful at birth,
sinful from the time my mother conceived me.
Yet you desired faithfulness even in the womb;
you taught me wisdom in that secret place.
Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean;
wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
Let me hear joy and gladness;
let the bones you have crushed rejoice.
Hide your face from my sins
and blot out all my iniquity.
Create in me a pure heart, O God,
and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Do not cast me from your presence
or take your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of your salvation
and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.
Then I will teach transgressors your ways,
so that sinners will turn back to you.
Deliver me from the guilt of bloodshed, O God,
you who are God my Savior,
and my tongue will sing of your righteousness.
Open my lips, Lord,
and my mouth will declare your praise.
You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it;
you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.
My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit;
a broken and contrite heart
you, God, will not despise.
May it please you to prosper Zion,
to build up the walls of Jerusalem.
Then you will delight in the sacrifices of the righteous,
in burnt offerings offered whole;
then bulls will be offered on your altar.
Psalm 51
Psalm 51 is the perfect Psalm for Lent. I hope you will join me in Praying the Scriptures through Lent as we focus on passages that teach us to wait on God alone.
So often, in my own life, I have found myself waiting on something to change, someone to change, circumstances to change…yet what I need to be waiting on is the Lord. To wait on Him is to place my complete trust and full hope in Him and Him alone. Not what He may do for me, but Him.
Wait Only Upon God
It is not too late to join us as we spend 40 days waiting on God alone. Find the ebook here and the print version here.
Each day I will be sharing a graphic similar to this on Instagram and Facebook with the hashtag #prayingthescriptures and we will share Scriptures, prayers and discussions as God leads on how to wait on God. I would love for you all to chime in with what God is teaching you through this season of Lent.
Mistake Noted in Book
The night before Lent begins I have found an error in the book that I wanted to go ahead and point out! Day 16, the Scripture should be Psalm 130:5-6. I will also be sure to share this online as we are going through the study.
Praying Psalm 51 for Lent
As we begin this season of prayer, fasting, repentance and cleansing, join me in praying Psalm 51 together and asking God to show us the sin in our lives as well as abundant grace to move in the opposite direction.
Dearest Lord Jesus,
Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your unfailing love. According to your great compassion blot out all my transgressions. Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me of my sin, precious Father.
For I know my sin, it is always before me, sometimes I can’t move forward. Against You and You only have I sinned and done what is evil in Your sight, so you are always right and justified when You judge. Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from conception. Yet you desire faithfulness and you teach me wisdom in the secret place of our intimate relationship!
Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from Your presence, dear Lord, or take Your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.
Then I will teach others your ways, so that sinners can turn back from You. Deliver me from the guilt, O God, You are God my Savior, and I will sing of your righteousness! Open my lips, Lord, and I will declare Your praise! You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it, You do not take pleasure in burnt offerings. My sacrifice, dear Father, is a broken spirit, a broken and contrite heart you, oh God, will not despise. Amen.
from Psalm 51
Free Printable Scripture Cards
Throughout this season, if you’re like me, you will need help keeping your focus. I created 4 Scripture cards for me as much as I did for you. I hope they are a blessing!
If you wish to print on card stock and laminate these will hold up for you a lot better!
Click on the PDF link or the graphic to download your Scripture cards and print!
Subscribe to His Mercy Is New
“I have found myself waiting on something to change, someone to change, circumstances to change…yet what I need to be waiting on is the Lord.”
Yes, yes…oh so true in my life too. The Psalms are such a balm to the soul. I’ve been reading a number of them during this season.
Thank you so much for joining us during our 40 Days of Seeking Him Lent link-up.
Blessings,
Trish
Hi Candace, I used to subscribe to your blog and things got crazy so I didn’t have time to read it for awhile and I missed it a lot. I have your book for advent but I thought to myself I wonder if she’s doing Lent and I’m blessed that you are and it couldn’t come at a better time. My husband found out almost 2 months ago that he has throat and neck cancer. He’s had two surgeries to remove both his tonsils and part of his tongue and then 43 of his lymph nodes with 12 of them malignant. Then just a little over a week ago he noticed another lump right next to the incision. But the doctor said he has a very aggressive cancer and now he starts with radiation and chemotherapy. It has brought so close to the Lord and I’ve praying and reading my Bible more than ever before. Bless you for praying the Psalms and going daily through it with us. I just ordered your book from Amazon so I will be ready. This means so much to me Candace, Thank you so much for the work you have done to write the book. I will be with you every day and I can’t wait. Is it starting now or not until lent? God bless you Candace you have no idea how much this means to me.
Hi again Linda!! I am so very sorry to hear about your husband. I am saying a prayer for the both of you now. I’m glad you found some encouragement just when you needed it. God is so good, isn’t He? Lent starts this year on February 10th, so that is when most will start the devotional!