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TODAY’S SCRIPTURE

How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and day after day have sorrow in my heart? How long will my enemy triumph over me? Psalms 13:2

Read: Psalm 13
Listen: Psalm 13

TODAY’S MESSAGE

Moses experiences pain, discouragement and disappointment while following God’s plan. God welcomes Moses’s honest questions and emotions. Moses, along with other biblical characters and many Psalms, models bringing our grief and pain to God in lament.

Lament is an honest and painful prayer that states exactly how we feel. It’s a prayer that says, “I’m not okay with this!” The Bible’s spiritual “heavyweights” prayed these prayers, and so can we. They’re necessary AND spiritually healthy. A lament includes three parts. (1) We turn to God with our COMPLAINT. We clearly state the things that grieve, confuse and upset us (Psalm 13:1-2). (2) We REQUEST God to move, see and answer. “Look on me and answer, Lord my God” (Psalm 13:3a). (3) We place our TRUST in God. It doesn’t mean we understand or like what is happening, but we trust God even though we don’t see the resolution yet. “But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation” (Psalm 13:5).

We can lament any situation that causes pain, grief or disappointment. Whether it’s a lost opportunity where someone said “no” and a door didn’t open, declining or struggling health for us or loved ones, or a broken or challenging relationship—God invites us to turn to him in it. We can bring our complaint, request and trust to him even when it’s unresolved.

IN YOUR CHAIR TIME TODAY

Use Psalm 13 as a model to form a lament. Lament something in your life, someone else’s, or the world around you. Write out your lament in your journal or mobile device. Pray this as the situation comes to mind throughout the day.

2023 SPIRITUAL PRACTICES

Join us all of 2023 developing a different spiritual practice each month. SPIRITUAL PRACTICES are intentional regular activities to deepen our relationship with God and mold us to be more like Jesus.

September is COMMUNITY. Keep track of our spiritual practices at beyondtheweekend.org/spiritualpractices.

Download a printable PDF of the BTW week here.