Will the Lord walk off and leave us for good?
Will he never smile again?
Is his love worn threadbare?
Has his salvation promise
burned out?
Has God forgotten his
manners?
Has he angrily stomped off
and left us?
“Just my luck,” I said. “The
High God retires
just
the moment I need him.”
(Selections from Psalm 77)
Our God has big shoulders. He is not afraid of our questions. The Psalmist illustrates this without rebuke.
Even the mocking of those who dismiss the prayers of the righteous and brokenhearted have a context. A history. A pattern…
“He saved others; he cannot save himself. He is the King of Israel; let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him. He trusts in God; let God deliver him now, if he desires him. For he said, ‘I am the Son of God.’” (from Matthew 27)
Scripture informs what history unfolds.
Our pain-filled questions have a home. A forum. A platform.
The ridiculed have a community. A home. A companion. An advocate.
A broken world will never fix itself.
And so we lament. We grieve. We ache.
Like Jesus did over the city He loved…
And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it, saying, “Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. (from Luke 19)
Evil had its day. But it also has an expiration date.
A halftime lead doesn’t crown the champion.
Yes, Psalm 77 continues. Authentically. Hopefully…
Once
again I’ll go over what God has done,
lay
out on the table the ancient wonders;
I’ll ponder all the things
you’ve accomplished,
and
give a long, loving look at your acts.
O
God! Your way is holy!
No
god is great like God!
You’re the God who makes
things happen;
you
showed everyone what you can do—
You pulled your people out
of the worst kind of trouble,
rescued
the children of Jacob and Joseph.
Yes, dear God. Rescue us.
Help us to be light in the darkness. A cliché-less comfort to those in pain.
We grieve. We ask questions.
And we hope in you, Jesus. Our Savior. Our God. Our companion in the valley. Our motivation for justice. Our voice for the voiceless.
And our prayer persists…
Lord have mercy on us…
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