Crying Out

 

As you continue to swim in the psalms, sing the psalms, and let the words settle into your soul, you will notice that many of the words are not exactly warm and fuzzy.  The more you read the psalms, the more you start to think, “Good Lord, did the editorial board of the psalms consist of Grumpy Dwarf, Eeyore, and the Sadness from the movie Inside Out?  Most research suggests that psalms of lament make up one-third of the psalms.  But lament is not just woe is me.  Rather, when you look at a lament there is anticipation for change because the author will often recall and remember how God has acted in history.  There is expectation that God will act again, even when the situation the psalmist if facing looks dire and desperate.

Hold this.  Because often our cynicism today says that hope is foolish.  Cynicism says you already know the end of the story and it isn’t good…so why bother?  Cynicism can be a cycle when we end up criticizing other’s efforts to make a difference.  Cynicism has a poor memory and thinks, “Things have never been this bad.”  I am not saying that everything is coming up roses and we should all be singing “Somewhere over the rainbow.”  But I think cynicism clogs our ears and closes our eyes to goodness and grace and love.  We end up thinking that the goodness and grace and love of God are not enough.  We end up thinking in terms of binaries, rather than complexity and contradictions that are part of life.

Psalms of lament end with hope.  These are honest and heartfelt hymns to God.  I’ve read that only a deep relationship with God will allow us to lament.  In psalms 25-28 (as well as 31, 35, 38-43 – see there really are a lot of laments), you have an example of individual laments.  These are first person accounts of crying out to God.  As you read one of these psalms lean into the description of distress.  The point is not that there will be a test to see if you can remember the pain or problem, rather the point is to find your pain in the spaces between the words.  Rather than ask, “who was the psalmist’s enemy?” ask, “who is my enemy?”  Who is that person who causes you pain?  Psalms are a permission slips to name and notice that humans can hurt one another, and we need to find a release to find relief…or cynicism will creep into our lives.

Note that some of the individual laments say that the problem isn’t only “out there” but it can also be within the human heart, within you and me and us.  An example of this is Psalm 32.  As you read a few of these psalms notice how the crying out weaves in confessions of trust in God ~ that God will be God.  The Psalmist asks for God to intervene and intercede.  How do you want God to step into the stress and strain, the hurt and heartbreak you carry today?  Finally, the psalmist gives praise to God, not because the problem has been instantly and immediately resolved, but because when we are honest about the pain – rather that pushing it to the cobweb corner of our souls – we are inviting God into one of the most intimate places of our lives (what we don’t usually show on social media).  Prayer is giving access to God, even when we are not sure we fully know all we are carrying with us.

Pray a few of the psalms I listed above with me today…and may you discover healing and hope and wholeness and yourself in these words.  Amen.