Psalm 51:10-13

    10      Create in me a clean heart, O God,
    And renew a steadfast spirit within me.
    11      Do not cast me away from Your presence,
    And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.

    12      Restore to me the joy of Your salvation,
    And uphold me by Your generous Spirit.
    13      Then I will teach transgressors Your ways,
    And sinners shall be converted to You.
-Psalm 51:10-13

One half of this passage is appropriate to pray for modern day believers. The other half, however, is not so appropriate. In our initial repentance, the first half of this passage was our prayer. Yet by the blood of Jesus we have been given a pure heart. We are renewed in Him. He does not cast us from His presence and remove His Spirit from us should we continue in faith. With that being said, the second half of this passage becomes increasingly valuable to us.

We should seek that the salvation we have been given by the Lord is the cause of great rejoicing in us. The joy of salvation is the very pulse of believers. The joy of the Lord is our strength, yet joy is so lacking in our modern day society. Evangelism becomes difficult when we ourselves lack that joy. Without such joy, we even find it difficult to wage war against the flesh. It is vital that this is something we pray. Pursue the Lord that we might gain a heart of joy in this heart of purity. Be upheld by the generous Spirit of God.