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The Bible never denies or ignores human suffering and emotions. You’ll find throughout Scripture God understands and provides a sacred dignity to anger and despair, to injustice and sorrow. Christians are invited to share their grief, not to cover up and “fake fine” and hide their struggles.
That’s why it’s really important for all of us to use this spiritual means of lamenting when we find ourselves overwhelmed by life. I’ve encouraged you to lament to God when you’re baffled and worried. Ask your questions, express your outrage, tell God just how you feel. That’s where a lament begins.
Lament is often living in the reality of our faith journey—“the already but not yet” aspect of our faith. It’s the tension between knowing God is good, he has good plans for you, he is sovereign and in control, while living in a world that is terribly broken and often very evil. Lamenting is an acknowledgement of that tension, sitting in the grief and pain of the present while looking forward to the promise of the future, our eternity with Christ.
You will note the Psalms of lament always end with a reaffirmation of trust in God. For example, Psalm 13 begins with how long, oh Lord, will you forget me and begs God for deliverance. But here is how David closed that Psalm of lament:
But I have trusted in your steadfast love; my heart shall rejoice in your salvation. I will sing to the LORD, because he has dealt bountifully with me (Psalm 13:5-6).
He sets his heart and his mind to trust in God’s love, to rejoice in his salvation, and to sing to the Lord. Let me encourage you to follow his example. Pour out the fear, the anger, the confusion, and all the questions you have to God, with total honestly. But don’t end there. Always, always confess that you still trust God; you will rejoice again, and recite all you have to be thankful for.
Jesus invites you to exchange your heavy burden for his light one because he can handle the heavy stuff; you can’t. Leave your heavy burden with Jesus; take his light one. He’ll always walk through it with you and bring you out to a good place. You can trust him.
