Lord Jesus, my only hope, my only source of comfort: Lift me up from the swamp of my sin-sickness, from the wretched brokenness of my fallen state.
I am a mess. But in your will, I am not meant to be a mess. I am made by you with the intent that I should shine with the glorious goodness of your image. Your purpose for me is that I should bear the light of your likeness into this darkened world. Made in your image and likeness, I am to be a partner with you, cooperating in the reclamation and transformation of this old order of things into a new and renewed creation, shining with a greater goodness than at the beginning.
But, oh, my Lord, how horribly I have failed in this calling. I have instead partnered with the satan, with the destroyer. I have not renewed your good world. Rather, I have added to the ruin. I have ruined myself, and I have joined in the work of poisoning. Instead of adding goodness, I have added rot and ruination to myself and to so much of what my life has touched.
I am guilty, and I need–most desperately need–your mercy and forgiveness.
But I am not merely guilty; I am wretched and ruined by a sinful heart. Sinfulness corrupts my very nature like a creeping poison, like a consuming cancer. I do not need mere forgiveness; I need to be conquered. I need to have the sinfulness and corruption purged from my heart. I need for you to vanquish and destroy the sin that clings like a putrifying mold to every particle of my being.
Unless you win the victory down deep in the core, in the essence of who I am, I have no hope. Unless you cleanse my soul, I am lost in my corruption. I need your forgiveness, yes. But that is not enough. I need your victory. I need you to invade my life and drive out the sinfulness and corruption that my partnership with the satan has planted and established within me.
Come, Lord Jesus, and reclaim me. Reassert your rights to me, Master and Deliverer. Make your victory on the Cross a true reality within every square inch of my life. Amen and amen.
© 2026 Gary A. Chorpenning
Related posts:
Pastor Note #139: Learning to Live without Chains in Christ’s Victory
Prayer Note #238: A Prayer on an Easter Morning
Bible Note #44: The Centurion at the Cross–A Lenten Meditation
Prayer Note #44 — Longings
Prayer Note #58–Burnishing my Clay
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