Give Me Back My Joy
Do you long for joy that comes from God?
Verse of the Day
“Oh, give me back my joy again; you have broken me— now let me rejoice.”
Today’s Devotional
I generally love the New Living Translation of the Bible. But for today’s verse, there is power in seeing it in other translations:
- “Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones you have crushed rejoice.” (NIV)
- “Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones that you have broken rejoice.” (ESV)
- “Let me hear joy and gladness, Let the bones You have broken rejoice.” (NASB)
Most of the time, other scholars describe the Biblical text with so much more clarity than I am capable of. This is from bibleref.com: “David’s sins had robbed him of joy and gladness. The phrase “joy and gladness” implies a deep joy. Pardon restores the joy that sin steals. David’s sin had affected him emotionally, mentally, spiritually, and even physically. He felt that the conviction God had brought upon him had a bone-crushing effect. He longed for relief from his pain. His contrite confession would bring him relief and deep joy.
The return of the prodigal son to the father illustrates what happens when a prodigal believer returns to his heavenly Father and confesses his waywardness. The father in the Luke 15 story welcomed his penitent son with open arms, outfitted him with a new robe, put a ring on his finger, and gave him new shoes. But he did even more. He hosted a glad celebration for his son. The celebration was so lively, that the prodigal’s older brother who was out in the field heard the music and dancing. Likely, when David confessed his sin, God restored David’s joy and even heaven celebrated the occasion.”
Before we can get the joy, gladness, and celebration, we go through the “bone crushing” agony of the realization of our sin. Please notice that David’s actual sin did not break him. He didn’t even see it until Nathan pointed it out using a story. (2 Samuel 12 ) Once the realization of what he had done became apparent, THAT’S when David’s spirit was broken. That is conviction. And conviction is the work of the Holy Spirit. Jesus tells us, “And when he comes, he will convict the world of its sin, and of God’s righteousness, and of the coming judgment.” (John 16:8) Jesus also tells us in John 14:26 that the Spirit “will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you.”
Conviction is part of the renewal process. A broken spirit that realizes the mistakes and brings them to the Father to heal. Most of us want joy and gladness, but we tend to want it from the earthly perspective, also known as temporary happiness. But true joy and gladness come from God alone. And as we have seen through Psalm 51 and the life of David, this is a messy and unpleasant process. I guess it depends on how badly we want God’s joy and gladness, and if we are really willing to go through the same process David endured. How much do we want it? We can declare before God, “Give me back my joy!” His answer is likely, “Gladly. But are you willing to go through a tough process to get there?”
Journal Prompts
Answer only the questions that seem relevant to you today.
Have you ever had a “bone crushing” realization of your sin? What did you do?
How has the Holy Spirit revealed your sin to you? How did it happen? Are you willing to put yourself in that position again?
How badly do you want the joy and gladness that comes from God? What are you willing to do about it?