Length: 15-30 mins

Bring the brokenness of the world to God, and speak the story of his renewal in faith.

Link to printable version coming soon

Introduction

The Psalms are the prayer book of the people of God, and tell the story of human responses to the action and presence of God. 67 of the 150 Psalms are lament.

Lament is honestly bringing the brokenness of the world to God and clinging to God’s history of meeting brokenness with redemption and grace.

Psalms of lament are very direct in speech and very demanding. The Psalms refer generally to “enemies” – anything that is against us and against God. They ask not “why?” but “how long?” They demand a response from God because of who God is, who he has shown himself to be.

We may often do this on our own - but we rarely do it corporately.


Practice: Write a Lament

It's hard to do, because it is painful to go there. You may not be able to do that here and now. You might be thinking, “I can’t open a little crack because I’m afraid the whole dam will blow.” That's OK; just tell God where you are at this moment.

  1. Start: “How long O Lord?”

  2. Honesty: “This is where I am”

    • Emotions that others identify with:

      • I am so tired of this!

      • I keep hoping ... but nothing changes.

      • I am about to give in to despair.

      • I cry out to you and there is no answer... no healing.

      • I’m afraid.

      • I am angry.

  3. Remembering: “This I call to mind”

    • The times that God seemed to be absent, but now you see that he was there.

    • The times God answered in a way you never expected.

    • The truth that might be hard to see but you want to believe. This is not putting a shiny bow in a way that doesn’t make a difference but a heartfelt recognition of what might be helpful to remember.

  4. Petition: “This is what I want you to do for me”

  5. Affirmation of trust: “Restore us O God! Let your face shine, that we may be saved!”

    • Psalm 80


If you can, have each person write out their version of 1-5, then take turns reading them out.

As each reads their psalm, end by saying #5 together:

  • “Restore us O God! Let your face shine, that we may be saved!”