Make Sense of Your StorySample

PRAY YOUR FEELINGS

To deny sorrow is an odd inclination for people who value the Bible, given the large portions of its text in which people pour out their sorrow to God. Here is a small sampling from Psalms:

My soul is in deep anguish. How long, Lord, how long? (6:3)

Why, Lord, do you stand far off? Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble? (10:1)

How long, Lord? Will you forget me forever? (13:1)

My eyes fail, looking for your promise; I say, “When will you comfort me?” (119:82)

Why would God have put these expressions of despair into Scripture? Perhaps so we can give ourselves permission to pour out our true feelings to God in lament.

Lament consists of two things: (1) allowing yourself to feel your sorrow and grief and (2) expressing your sorrow and grief with complete honesty.

When was the last time you poured out your feelings to God without first making them “appropriate” for expression to a holy God or consistent with some sort of theology? When was the last time you poured out your sadness to God without first editing your words?

The psalmists, Job, and others in the Bible model for us to pray our feelings. To pray your feelings is to pour out your feelings to God before you’ve reflected on them and judged them as good or bad.

Nothing is more hardwired into the human heart than the tendency to run to someone bigger and stronger than you for help when you are in need. If you have stopped running toward someone stronger than you and stopped expressing your sadness, fear, and anger, engaging with your story will help you understand why you have stopped.

It is not pain we fear; it is aloneness and meaninglessness in the pain. More than wanting a particular circumstance to change, we want to feel the presence of Someone with us.

Lamenting alone leads to despair. But lament poured out to God leads to connection with God. The laments that fill the book of Job, Psalms, and throughout Scripture give us permission to feel. If you risk letting your deepest parts engage with God, you will find Someone in the fire with you.

Spend time lamenting to God, praying your feelings without editing them. If it’s too hard to speak words of lament out loud, consider writing them down instead.