January 25

Restore us to Yourself, O LORD, so we may return; renew our days as of old, — Lam 5:21 BSB

Are you not often without the power to truly repent and confess your sins before God? Does your conscience not often bring up a dismal view of your carnal thoughts, wicked desires, vain imaginations, foolish words, and frivolous conversations? That long list of evils—the huge bill of offenses that godly fear sometimes files in the court of your heart—reveals all your departures from the life of God. But can you repent? Can you truly feel sorrowful, as if cut to the heart? Can you mourn and sigh when your conscience accuses you with this long indictment? Can you always feel your soul melting with sorrow because you are proud, worldly, covetous—everything that is evil, everything that God hates?

Yet, there are times and seasons when the Lord is pleased to work on your conscience, to stir your soul, and to touch your heart with His gracious hand. Then, repentance and godly sorrow flow. It’s like the rock that Moses struck—there was water in the rock, but it took the rod to make the water flow out. Similarly, we may have the grace of repentance in our souls, but it takes God’s hand to strike the rock and cause the waters of godly sorrow to gush forth.