He was a rebel without a cause.

He delighted in hedonistic ways that led him down a path of theft, drunkenness, and immorality. Augustine of Hippo lived for the moment, especially if it meant rejecting Christianity and following selfish desires. He had a “greedy love for doing wrong” and had no desire to change.

But God had other plans.

Through a series of events, God interrupted the trajectory of Augustine’s life. Confronted with his inability to change his self-destructive habits or to desire God, Augustine wept bitterly. He realized his helplessness before God. He wanted more from life than what he had pursued in years past. His heart was filled with godly sorrow and He knew that the only cure for that sorrow was in surrendering his life to Christ, which he did.

In his classic, “Confessions,” Augustine of Hippo writes, “I sighed and you heard me. I wavered and you steadied me. I travelled along the broad way of the world, but you did not desert me.”

Augustine knew that our hearts are restless until they rest in Christ. He went on to become one of the greatest theologians in the world, and it began with godly sorrow.

If the Holy Spirit is pricking your heart, don’t give in to despair, remember, some sorrows have Godly origins and transformative power.