A Prayer of Lament

A Prayer of Lament

Lord, we come to you in our brokenness.  We faced a week that has given us more questions than answers. More fears than assurance. More insecurities than confidence.  We look at the world around us and see sin’s curse on these vessels of clay. There are those facing an uncertain diagnosis, and we question.  We see friends and loved ones who have chosen self over righteousness, and we are grieved. Children and spouses turned caretakers who are watching their loved ones grow feeble and near the crossing, and we are at a loss for words.  We have seen young lives taken too soon at the hand of an enemy or foe, and we are hurting.  We hurt , we question, and we grieve because we do not understand, and because of the uncertainties that lie ahead of us in the days and weeks ahead.  We weep because we are faced with the hard reality that life is truly fleeting. We weep because we are broken people and we live in a broken world.

But then we take note that we are looking around at our circumstances and not up at the one who ordains them.  God, Loving Father, full of mercy, You will not leave us comfortless.  You are a God who will not leave us in our sins. You are a God who delivers us out of the hands of our enemies.  You are a God who avenges. You are a God who is not far off. Not only do you go before us, but you are with us through the deep waters, through the floods, and through the fire. Given that confidence, I lift up my eyes, oh Thou lifter up of mine head.  The cadence of our heart is steady when we walk in step with your leading. Oh, that we would find a deep-seated peace as we rest in you, the anchor in the storm. My hope is in You and You alone. Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.