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“Purify me from my sins, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. Oh, give me back my joy again; you have broken me— now let me rejoice. Don’t keep looking at my sins. Remove the stain of my guilt. Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a loyal spirit within me. Do not banish me from your presence, and don’t take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and make me willing to obey you.”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭51:7-12‬ ‭NLT

David, the king of Israel, had committed adultery and murder. We read the story in 2 Samuel 11. While the troops were away at battle, David sat in the palace of comfort. While in his complacency, he took a walk on the roof of the palace that overlooked the city. He saw a most beautiful woman bathing, named Bathsheba. He sent someone to find out who she was. He discovered that she was the wife of Uriah, the Hittite, one of his warriors. He, then, sent messengers to bring her to the palace. There, he slept with her and she returned home. Later, she realized that she was pregnant and sent word to David. David called Uriah in from the battle field and told him to take some time off and go home to be with his wife. He was hoping to cover up the adultery and pregnancy by Uriah having sexual relations with his wife. This would make everyone assume that the baby was Uriah's. Uriah would not go home. Uriah was a dedicated, faithful warrior. Instead of going home, he slept at the palace entrance. When David learned that he did not go home that night, he summoned him to his quarters and inquired why. Uriah responded that the Ark of the Covenant and the army were out in the field in tents. He could not, in good conscience, go home to wine and dine with his wife with those conditions. Two days pass and David calls Uriah to dinner. David gets him drunk. Even drunk, Uriah was more noble than David. He, again, sleeps at the palace entrance. David writes a letter to Joab, his Army Commander, and instructs him to place Uriah at the front line of battle and to retreat back from Uriah so he would be killed. This is, perhaps, history's most notorious story of a godly man who fell. Acts 13:22 says that David was "a man after God's own heart." David was susceptible to sin just like any of us. No matter what position you have in life, no matter what your track record may be, you are still capable of committing the worst of sins. I Corinthians 10:12 says “If you think you are standing strong, be careful not to fall.” NLT‬‬ We all must be conscientious and careful to not become complacent and comfortable. We must always be aware of our potential to sin. Today, if you have sinned and you need forgiveness, God waits for you to pray like David did in the scripture above. Even after David had committed adultery and murder, God forgave him. This doesn't mean that there were no consequences. The sword never left David's house. He anguished greatly for his wrongs. The beauty in all of this is that God forgave him and allowed him to finish well. Acts 13:36 says “...for after David had done the will of God in his own generation, he died and was buried with his ancestors, and his body decayed.” NLT‬‬ No matter what you've done, God wants to restore you and help you finish well. Let Him restore the joy of salvation to your heart today.