Fighting negative self-talk is a common issue. The big lie for me is, if my faith in God was strong enough, then I wouldn’t be sad or angry or depressed. But these thoughts don’t line up with what the Bible says about lamenting.
A lament is a passionate expression of grief or sorrow. In an article on Christianity.com, author Jessica Brodie explains, “Lament psalms teach us that it’s never wrong to cry out to God. God hears us in our pain and welcomes us close. As we see in Matthew 27:46 and Mark 15:34, even Jesus, dying on the cross, expressed his own anguish in lament when he echoed these words from Psalm 22:1, “My God, My God, why have you abandoned me?” God is strong enough to handle our questions, our anger, and our doubt. God loves us deeply—and He is always there. We are not alone.”
I realize many of the feelings I have experienced over the last three years are based on grief. Grief can take many forms: the death of family members, changes in relationships, retirement, moving, and leaving a church family. Doing all of this in a brief span of time can feel overwhelming.
In my last post, I described how the waves of grief, one grief after another, washed in and out of my life. I felt afloat and isolated in a great expanse.
I imagined grief like a vast ocean and I was enduring waves of great highs and terrifying lows.
Sailing through the storms of life is hard, but God is there. By staying connected to God, I found the direction I needed. My counselor’s fresh perspective helps me navigate around the reefs of negative self-talk I had formed over the years.
Feeling like I have reached the sandy shore, I am more confident. God is my safe harbor. I did not sink. I survived because God’s promises kept me afloat through the storms. He will do the same for you!
I’m tired of all this—so tired. My bed has been floating forty days and nights on the flood of my tears. My mattress is soaked, soggy with tears. The sockets of my eyes are black holes; nearly blind, I squint and grope.
Psalms 6:6-10 MSG
Get out of here, you Devil’s crew: at last God has heard my sobs. My requests have all been granted, my prayers are answered. Cowards, my enemies disappear. Disgraced, they turn tail and run.
I’ll never forget the trouble, the utter lostness, the taste of ashes, the poison I’ve swallowed. I remember it all—oh, how well I remember—the feeling of hitting the bottom.
But there’s one other thing I remember, and remembering, I keep a grip on hope: God’s loyal love couldn’t have run out, his merciful love couldn’t have dried up. They’re created new every morning. How great your faithfulness! I’m sticking with God (I say it over and over). He’s all I’ve got left.
God proves to be good to the man who passionately waits, to the woman who diligently seeks. It’s a good thing to quietly hope, quietly hope for help from God. It’s a good thing when you’re young to stick it out through the hard times.
Lamentations 3:19-27 NLT
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