Thanksgiving for Being Restored

You turned my lament into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and covered me with joy. So now my heart will sing to you and not be silent; O Yahweh, my God, I will always give thanks to you. Psalm 30:11

Oh give thanks to Yahweh, for he is good, for his gracious kindness is everlasting. Let those whom he has redeemed from the hand of the adversary shout it out. Psalm 107:1–2

God declared that King David was “a man whose heart accords with mine.” But David was inconsistent in his affections. There were times when, because his heart strayed away from God’s path, he experienced God’s displeasure. When he realized his situation, he lamented his waywardness and cried for God to be his helper: to forgive him, to realign his heart, and to set his feet back to the right path. While we don’t want to follow David’s negative example, we will. Fortunately, because he shared part of his story with us, we have a positive example to follow as well. So here’s a prayer to help us express our gratitude to God for extricating us from the morass of dishonoring affections just as he did David.

My heart, O Lord, at times has gone astray;
Rebellious fool, I spurned your wisdom’s light
To walk in darkness, follow my own way,
Till I was stranded in a deathly night
Of misery so I could only pray
For clemency and rescue from my plight.
My heart was fainting; so to you I cried
Because your grace is always bountiful.
My hungry, thirsty soul you satisfied
By filling me with what is beautiful.
I thank you, Lord, for kindness in my pain,
For turning my lament to joyful song,
For saving me from trouble once again,
For setting right a heart once set on wrong.