Psalm 26:1-8 (NRSV)
Read Psalm 26:1-8 on biblegateway.com
Verse 1Vindicate me, O Lord, for I have walked in my integrity, and I have trusted in the Lord without wavering.
Verse 2Prove me, O Lord, and try me; test my heart and mind.
Verse 3For your steadfast love is before my eyes, and I walk in faithfulness to you.
Verse 4I do not sit with the worthless, nor do I consort with hypocrites;
Verse 5I hate the company of evildoers, and will not sit with the wicked.
Verse 6I wash my hands in innocence, and go around your altar, O Lord,
Verse 7singing aloud a song of thanksgiving, and telling all your wondrous deeds.
Verse 8O Lord, I love the house in which you dwell, and the place where your glory abides.
Devotion
Have you ever wanted to be vindicated? I have! I rarely enter into debates without a self-righteous belief that I am factually correct. Today with Google and Wikipedia it's easy to prove you're correct about anything, no matter how miniscule.
Last week I played in an adult slow-pitch softball league. This is much more serious than it sounds. The umpire called the other team's runner safe at third, despite all of us clearly hearing the thud of a glove hitting her back before her cleat hit the bag. "She was out!" The next batter hit an easy fly ball and we were out of the inning, winning the game. Vindicated!
Life is more difficult than softball. Often I want God to prove me right, to vindicate me as the psalmist pleads. Instead, God often asks me to wait. Listen. Despite my self-righteous conviction, occasionally I am wrong. Sometimes my facts are right but my emotions off-target. Sometimes I misread motives. Sometimes I need to be vindicated; sometimes I need God to show me where I'm wrong.
Prayer
Lord Jesus, vindicate the oppressed, the wrongfully accused, the unjustly convicted, the innocent behind bars. And Lord when I seek to be vindicated, remind me to also seek your grace and mercy. Amen.