Create Us Anew

A Reflection on the Psalm for Sunday, February 22, 2026:
First Sunday of Lent

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Psalm 51

R.​ Have mercy, O Lord, for we have sinned.

Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. 

R.​ Have mercy, O Lord, for we have sinned.

For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. Against you, you alone, have I sinned, and done what is evil in your sight. 

R.​ Have mercy, O Lord, for we have sinned.

Create in me a clean heart, O God, and put a new and right spirit within me. Do not cast me away from your presence, and do not take your holy spirit from me. 

R.​ Have mercy, O Lord, for we have sinned.

Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and sustain in me a willing spirit. O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare your praise. 

R.​ Have mercy, O Lord, for we have sinned.

Pause. Pray. Reflect.

I am not an artist in the traditional sense. I don’t paint paintings or sketch drawings. But I aspire to. So, the other day I went to a watercolour painting class. Guided by a lovely teacher, I, along with several other curious wanna be artists, put paint to paper and learned a little, laughed a lot, and - low and behold - art was made!

The experience taught me about patience, perspective, and perfection. 

Painting requires patience; a conscious slowing down and paying attention. How am I holding the brush or putting down paint? Sometimes, I literally had to watch paint dry before moving on to the next step. Painting requires me to adjust my perspective. Work on a detail in a small spot. Then re-focus on the whole. Add a darker layer of paint here. Wash it out with water there. Add a pen marking. Make a squiggle. Every addition changed the picture and my perspective on it. Painting requires me to let go of perfection. That is the struggle. I want to get it “right” right away! But paining doesn’t require perfection. It asks for my patience and my willingness to shift my perspective and allow a new creation to come forth. 

Funny enough, God asks the same. 

God is patient. Period. No if ands or buts about it. God is patient. Thank goodness!  ‘Cause I screw up somewhat often. Sometimes without realizing it until long after I’ve done it. God is ready and waiting to forgive me. I just have to ask - which is the hardest part. Who likes to admit they made a mistake? But gently, like a great artist, God will brush His steadfast love and abundant mercy over my life and things shift. When I patiently allow that grace and mercy to permeate my being, God transforms my heart and reminds me of the good He created in this world, in me. And a new creation comes forth.

The picture changes. And God is not seeking perfection from me, regardless of how much I may seek it for myself. And unlike my finished artwork from my watercolour class, I am yet to be finished. So, when I make mistakes, I can start again. Starting again is hard, yet it hints at possibilities. Possibilities that highlight that I am not done yet. And God is certainly not done with me yet. Continually working with me, on me, to become what He has created me to be. And what has he created me to be? Truthful. Beautiful. Love-full. Full of all the goodness that He has to offer this world that He created. God’s ever available mercy and grace require my patience, my openness to shifting my perspective, and my letting go of perfection. God knows that no matter how many times we fall or fail, we have been created by Him out of good for good and God will continually create us anew. Just ask!




Aurea Sadi

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