Psalm 51:12 NKJV
Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, And uphold me by Your generous Spirit.
There is joy in salvation that comes from God. Although David did not have access to the salvation we now enjoy, he knew about the joy of a relationship with God and God’s delivering power. The experiences he had when the Lord brought him deliverance from his enemies or restored his soul from painful situations were wonderful. It brought him great joy. When we are first born again and saved from the kingdom of darkness and translated into the kingdom of light we experience the joy of the Lord. There is nothing as wonderful as knowing you are born again – saved and your name is recorded in Heaven’s Book of Life. As we face the trials of this earthly life we can experience sadness. There is no greater sadness one can feel than the sadness of having disappointed God when we love Him so much. David in this psalm was suffering from a memory of letting God down and he longed for the joy he once experienced knowing he was in right standing with God. So he cried out for restoration. Regardless of the reason for our joy being sapped away we must not foolishly turn to everything but the source of our joy. We must pursue the lover of our souls and cry out like David, “Restore to me the joy of Your salvation.” God will delight in doing that. Cry out, pursue and do not look in any other place because joy is a kingdom benefit (Romans 14:17) and it comes from the Lord.