Tag: lament

Lamentations 5:1-22

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment
            Prayer is not about getting the right words strung together in a correct formula in a perfect disposition of the heart.  Prayer is conversation.  Prayer is communication with God.  Sometimes it looks a lot more like a triage unit than a steeple, and like desperation more than ebullient praise.  God is someone we tell the truth about what is really going on in our lives.  Prayer is not prayer when we just tell God what we think he wants to hear.
 
            Jeremiah prayed, and much of it was lament, complaint, and raw feeling.  We hear his cry to God, not worrying about whether it is appropriate language or not.  So, we get prayer phrases like:  “We are worn out and can find no rest.”  “Our hearts are sad.”  “We are doomed.”  “We feel sick all over and can’t even see straight.”  “Why have you forgotten us for so long?”  “Do you despise us so much that you don’t want us?”  Jeremiah was not concerned about how he sounded, and not afraid to express his real thoughts.
 
            Every thought or feeling is a valid entry into prayer.  It is of utmost importance that we pray what is actually inside of us and not what we believe God would like to see in us.  God doesn’t like pretense and posturing; he wants the real us.  Plastic words and phony speeches are an affront to him.  We need to pray precisely what is on our minds and hearts – unfiltered if need be.  It’s okay.  God is most certainly big enough to handle it.  No matter the headache or the heartache, we only need to pray without concern for perfection.
 

 

            Gracious God, sometimes I feel like I have to have it all together to even speak to you.  But you already know my heart better than I know it myself.  Forgive my constant hiding from you, and accept my heartfelt prayer to you for grace and help!  Amen.

Lamentations 3:19-26

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment
            Those who are regular readers of this blog know that I continually talk about the need to read and pray the Scriptures over and over again, slowly.  Reading our Bibles ought to be last thing we do in order to check it off our to-do list.  One of the reasons I believe so many Christians struggle today with how to cope with life in a difficult and changing world is that there is far too little contemplative and meditative readings of Holy Scripture.  Today’s poetry from the Old Testament is most certainly one of those Bible passages that really demands to be read several times with some thought, prayer, and flavor.  Here it is in the Contemporary English Version of the Bible:
 
19 Just thinking of my troubles
and my lonely wandering
makes me miserable.
20 That’s all I ever think about,
and I am depressed.
21 Then I remember something
that fills me with hope.
22 The Lord’s kindness never fails!
If he had not been merciful,
we would have been destroyed.
23 The Lord can always be trusted
to show mercy each morning.
24 Deep in my heart I say,
“The Lord is all I need;
I can depend on him!”
25 The Lord is kind to everyone
who trusts and obeys him.
26 It is good to wait patiently
for the Lord to save us.
 

 

Amen!

Good Grief

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Exploring Church Ministry BlogLeave a comment
 
 
            Sometimes we just need permission to grieve.  In the evangelical church today it is sometimes looked down upon to grieve since we know the reality of heaven.  This is both unfortunate and unbiblical.  Bereavement is Scripture is a reality and recognized as an important part of coming to grips with death.  Far from stuffing his feelings, the Old Testament character David personally expressed his grief and agony over the death of his best friend, Jonathan.
 
            The final chapter of the book of 1 Samuel is the account of a decisive battle in which the Philistines defeated the Israelites.  As a result, both King Saul and his son Jonathan were killed.  Jonathan and David were close – so close that their relationship was as if they were one soul, not two.  So, to have his friend no longer with him was a great loss to David.  The beginning of the book 2 Samuel tells us of David’s response to the news that his friend was gone:  he lamented the loss.  To lament means to have a deep and passionate expression of sorrow over a significant loss.
 
            Here are a few observations about David’s lament (2 Samuel 1:17-27):  it was not only personal, but was voiced publicly, meaning that others were invited to grieve along with him; it affirmed the tragedy of death and its deep impact upon us; it focused on remembering the positive characteristics of the deceased; and, it was verbalized with heartfelt thoughts and emotions.
 
            Grief and lament is as individual as a fingerprint; there is not a fixed process to a person’s bereavement.  Therefore we cannot pigeon-hole ourselves or someone else to fit a certain way of grieving.  But no matter how we grieve, we must do it so that we come to a point of making sense how to live without the person’s presence and relationship.  David was close to the Lord, and God’s presence was the most decisive factor in helping him move on to the demands of serving others as their new king.
 
            There are times when we simply feel stuck.  Not much seems to be happening and nothing apparently makes any difference.  Oftentimes, at the root of such feelings, is some unrecognized and/or unresolved grief underneath.  It causes us to respond to life as if we were moving in slow motion.  There is no quick and easy solution to the reality of a loss; it must be acknowledged and worked-through with some attention and care.  If not, it will inevitably lead to problems down the road, and end-up causing emotional breakdowns over the smallest of issues.
 
            So, let’s take our cues from David.  Let’s do the good work of lamenting losses and grieving significant changes of life.  Otherwise, we will only run into each other in the church like uncaring zombies and avoid the truly important things which God has for us as his people. 
 

 

            May you know the comfort and grace of God today through his encouraging Word, his comforting Spirit, and his compassionate people as you do the good and important work of grieving your losses.

2 Samuel 1:4-27

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year C2 Comments
            In the evangelical church today it is sometimes looked down upon to grieve since we know the reality of heaven.  This is both wrongheaded and unbiblical.  Bereavement in Scripture is a reality and recognized as an important part of coming to grips with death.  Far from stuffing his feelings, David personally expressed his grief and agony over the death of his best friend.
 
            Here are a few observations about David’s lament:  it was not only personal, but was voiced publically, meaning that others were invited to grieve along with him; it affirmed the tragedy of death and its deep impact upon us; it focused on remembering the positive characteristics of the deceased; and, it was verbalized with heartfelt thoughts and emotions.
 
            Grief and lament is as individual as a fingerprint; there is not fixed process to a person’s bereavement.  Therefore we cannot pigeon-hole ourselves or someone else to fit a certain way of grieving.  But no matter how we grieve, we must do it so that we come to a point of making sense how to live without the person’s presence and relationship.  David was close to the Lord, and God’s presence was the most decisive factor in helping him move on to the demands of serving others as their new king.
 

 

            Compassionate God, you are present with all who grieve and lament this day.  Let your Holy Spirit come alongside and encourage those in bereavement, and enable me to be a conduit of blessing to them.  May your grace be sufficient for us all; through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.