A Morning to Lament

Dear Lord,

Sometimes it doesn’t feel like all things work for our good. It is hard to believe in your purposes prevailing in our lives in the face of destruction, of loss, of death, of abandonment. It is hard to trust your goodness when we are hurt by others, or when we do the hurting. Your plans feel distant in the face of abuse, of darkness, and politics that lean far from hope.

We turn on the news and we lament the loss of lives and the destruction we see in the paths of hurricanes and earthquakes. We cry out with those whose lives and homes have been destroyed, who face crippling poverty and unspeakable loss. We lament the suffering of those both far away and those sitting right here today. We cry out with and for all those hurting and wounded hearts in our midst who are afraid, who feel hopeless. We choose, Father, to turn towards you in the face of great loss and great pain, rather than turning away.

We remember Jesus, how you told us that in this life we will face trouble. That some of us have pasts in which we were not treated with the dignity and compassion we deserved. That some of our presents are marked by struggle and hardship, that each day feels heavy and hard to slog our way through.  
 

But we remember too this morning, Jesus, that you also tell us to take heart because you have overcome the world. That the suffering we face will not have the final word. That you will one day wipe every tear and right every wrong. Your tenderness towards those who are hurting reminds us of hope and points us to grace. Help us this morning, Father, to extend that same tenderness and grace to everyone we encounter.

Amen
 

Hear this word of assurance from Psalm 46:1-3

God is our refuge and strength,

   an ever-present help in trouble.

Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way

   and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,

though its waters roar and foam

   and the mountains quake with their surging.

- Psalm 46:1-3

*gorgeous florals by Catherine Wayman