A Day of Lament

Have you ever had one of those days? A day where it seems that nothing goes right, where bad news piles on top of bad news? Today has been one of those days. A day of lament.

For those unfamiliar with the language of lament, the Bible is full of cries of pain and sorrow. Too often, it seems that the "Christian" message we hear is one of happiness, comfort, and ease. That's not the Bible. Many of the Psalms speak of pain, yet worship in its midst. Jeremiah, the weeping prophet, penned the book, Lamentations.  May we learn from these authors that we can worship in the midst of pain.  CS Lewis once wrote, "God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains: it is his megaphone to rouse a deaf world."

May you read this psalm of lament and worship.

O Lord, I cannot catch my breath
Sorrow crashes like waves upon me
I draw a ragged breath, and I am pulled back under
I cannot find the surface

O Lord, where are you? 
I seek you in my distress
and yet all I hear is silence
I do not know where you are

I look around me and what do I see?
Pain upon pain,
Sorrow upon sorrow,
Hurt people hurting people

Yet, O Lord, in you I will place my trust
Let me not weary of recalling your steadfast love and faithfulness
You are a God full of mercy and compassion
who promises to wipe every tear

See Psalm 13, Psalm 22, and Psalm 88 for a few more examples. If you want to know more about lament, I would also recommend Michael Card's excellent book A Sacred Sorrow.