Every day we battle thoughts that aren’t so kind about our neighbor, or we realize that our motives aren’t always completely honorable.  As someone who loves Christ, God has ensured me that His Holy Spirit lives in me and that He has given me a new heart.  Even though this is the case, I still battle the old habits within me, and sometimes neglect loving my neighbor as I should.  Deficiencies like this lead me to pray the Bible verse above.  It is a reminder that God is the One who creates a clean heart within me.  When unkind thoughts plague us, it can be easy to go down the path of self-condemnation, but when we turn to God and ask Him to work on our hearts, we can’t go wrong.  Maybe we don’t always feel freedom from those thoughts right away, but at least we know that we have put them in the right Hands.

“Create in me a clean heart, O God.”

(Psalm 51:10a, NLT)