Long-billed Curlew, Morro Bay State Park, CA USA
King David was said to have a “heart like God” (1 Sam 13:14; Acts 13:22). Yet David, the boy that slayed Goliath, the king that danced before the arc of the covenant, fell far grace. David went from defeating Israel’s enemies in battle to laziness, to adultery, to murder in a short period of time. How did David fall so far, so quickly? Was it pride? Was it power? Was it selfish pleasure? Psalm 51 is ascribed to having been written by David after he was confronted with his sin of going to Bathsheba and then killing her husband, Uriah. David’s words in Psalm 51 show an understanding of our need for a prayerful self-examination, an examination of our secret heart, least we fall from the Lord.