Wednesday, February 14, 2024  

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Today's Hymn
“Create in Me a Clean Heart”

Create in me a clean heart, O God,
and renew a right spirit within me.
Cast me not away from your presence,
and take not your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of your salvation,
and uphold me with your free Spirit.
Create in me a clean heart, O God,
and renew a right spirit within me.

A setting of Psalm 51:10–12
Glory to God: Hymn 422

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Reflection

Thanks to an unlikely convergence in our liturgical and annual calendars, we begin the season of Lent today with both hearts and ashes. Ash Wednesday and Valentine’s Day are, to put it mildly, a jarring pairing: one encourages a recognition of our mortality, the other encourages saccharine sentiments and expensive dinner reservations. Yet I wonder — even at the risk of straining credulity — if there is not some similar aspiration lurking under the surface, encouraging us to put our lives in perspective.

Recognizing our mortality is, after all, not a fundamentally morbid practice. Instead, Ash Wednesday is a reminder of the gift of life God has given each one of us, coupled with a challenge to live a life centered around that which is most important. For many, the answer to that question is simply our relationship with our loved ones. For Christians, though, our answer must be broader: our love is not only for spouses or family but for God and our wider neighbors.

This season of Lent, then, is an invitation to better center our lives around that truth — starting with an acknowledgment of how often we fall short of God’s hopes for us. Our hymn today names this by directly quoting from Psalm 51:10 — “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me” — as the psalmist asks God for a life defined by loving more fully — heart, soul, strength, and mind.

Lent poses a challenge to us: What in your life needs to be renewed or remade?

But it also invites us: What are you going to do with this wondrous gift of life God has given you?

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Prayer
Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Help me let go of all that is keeping me from you and your people — and inspire me to live a life that proclaims your love. Amen.

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Written by Matt Helms, Associate Pastor for Children, Family, and Welcoming Ministries

Reflection and Prayer © Fourth Presbyterian Church

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