by Anna Haiar

From Disorder to Renewal

“Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.”
Psalm 51:10, English Standard Version

My desk at school rarely stays clean for long. Papers pile up with assignments waiting to be graded, notes to review, reminders scribbled in the margins. Before long, the surface is covered, and finding what I actually need becomes harder and harder.

 Our hearts can look much the same.

Life piles things on us: worries about tomorrow, lingering frustrations, unconfessed sins, endless distractions. Little by little, the clutter grows until it becomes difficult to focus on what matters most. Lent invites us to pause and take an honest look at the state of our hearts.

King David prayed, “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.” David knew that a clean heart is not something we achieve by our own effort. It is something God creates in us through repentance and His mercy. Lent is our invitation to bring the clutter to Him. As we lay it before the Lord, He clears away what does not belong and restores what truly matters.