Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord.  

Lord, hear my voice! Let your ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications!  

If you, O Lord, should mark iniquities, Lord, who could stand?  

But there is forgiveness with you, so that you may be revered.  

I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I hope; my soul waits for the Lord more than those who watch for the morning, more than those who watch for the morning.  

O Israel, hope in the Lord! For with the Lord there is steadfast love, and with him is great power to redeem.  

It is he who will redeem Israel from all its iniquities.

Do you have a tendency to see the negative side of life? All of the "should have, would have, could haves" can really get you down. "I should have stayed in school." "If I would have had parents that loved me, things would be different." "I could have said something encouraging, but instead I just berated her."

The psalm for today reflects the feelings of someone who is keeping score. The weight of the sin is too much. "Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord." The psalmist knows that if God were keeping score, there would be no hope - "Who could stand?"

When we look to our Lord during this season of Lent, remember that we do not have to keep score. God is not keeping statistics on our thoughts and behavior. God simply offers forgiveness and the great power to redeem. And with redemption, we are free to start anew. We are promised God's steadfast love while our souls wait for the Lord. Ask for forgiveness, thank God for his tender mercy, and throw the score card away. Oh, and if you are also keeping a score card on others in your life, Lent is a good time to get rid of that one, too.