Conviction, Confession and Comfort.
(Based on Psalm 38)

Lord, I beg you not to correct me in anger,
Or discipline me when You’re furious with me.
Your arrows of punishment have struck hard and deep,
And I can feel Your hands pressing down on me.
I’m literally sick because of the effects of Your anger on me.
But it all because of the guilt of my own sin.
I’m literally drowning in guilt,
It’s all too much for me to handle.
My wounds make me offensive,
All because of my own foolishness.
My sin has left me bowed down in brokenness,
I spend my whole day in mourning.
I am humiliated and it is affecting my health.
I am numb and emotionally crushed,
My heart groans in pain and sadness.

But Lord, You know what I long for,
My groans are not hidden from You.
My heart longs, my strength fades,
And any ability to view life with hope diminishes daily.
Everybody avoids me like a had the plague,
Even my own family.
But not my enemies,
They continue to lay traps for me,
Devising ways to do me harm,
Spending their entire days making plans to do me in.

But I might as well be deaf and dumb,
I can’t hear what they’re saying or speak up in my own defense.
I simply choose to ignore them and say nothing.
Because I am waiting on You God.
I know You are going to answer me.
I have prayed to You for deliverance,
Because otherwise my enemies will win,
And they will gloat over me in victory.

I am ready to give up because my pain is constant.
So I acknowledge my own guilt,
And I am anxious about the effects of my sin.
My enemies are alive and strong,
And their numbers seem to grow daily.
When I do them good, they return the favor with evil,
They can’t stand what I stand for.
So I beg You not to forget about me, O Lord!
Hurry up and bring me salvation!