There are days when I still feel the weight of my own shortcomings pressing heavily on my heart. It’s in those moments that Psalm 51:10 speaks directly to my soul: “Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.” David’s cry becomes my own prayer. I know I cannot cleanse myself from the stains of sin, nor can I manufacture a right spirit...

We try to clean ourselves up first, like children trying to wash themselves at the sink, and all they do is smear around the dirt.