“Vindicate me, O Lord, for I have walked in my integrity, and I have trusted in the Lord without wavering. Prove me, O Lord, and try me; test my heart and my mind. For your steadfast love is before my eyes, and I walk in your faithfulness” (Psalm 26:1-3 ESV).

Are you afraid to pray these words? Do you wonder how you would stack up and if the Lord would say to you, “No, you haven’t walked in integrity or trusted me without wavering.” Do you feel afraid to ask the Lord to test your heart and your mind? 

The writer of this psalm, David, says this next: “For your steadfast love is before my eyes, and I walk in your faithfulness.” Do you really know God’s unconditional love for you? Do you know that because of Christ’s sacrifice, you set out each morning walking on his path?

We experience conditional love from other humans, so it’s hard to fathom the unshakeable love of God. His love isn’t contingent upon our behavior. We’re forgiven. He deeply desires to help us walk in integrity and trust. We can ask him to examine our lives and trust that when he does, he responds in love. He is unflappable. He remembers our sins no more. As he opens our eyes to places where we need to grow, he does this with our best interests in mind: “I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope” (Jeremiah 29:11 ESV).