lamenting with hope

Lamenting with Hope

As I write this, our nation is mourning yet another horrific loss, this time of many children and some adults in Texas.  Several weeks ago, we had a school shooting in our state within an hour of us.

Yesterday, I saw a prayer I wrote, asking God to work in a difficult time in our country.  That prayer was written in 2016.

Evil and sin have existed since Adam and Eve, and sadly will until Christ returns.  Yet, lamenting is appropriate.  An entire book of the Bible is dedicated to the experience of lamenting. There are strong feelings expressed, including bewilderment, anger, and even a sense of hopelessness over events that occurred centuries ago.

Yet, we can experience hope even in our lament. Why? Because . . .

  • This is not the end of the story. Good WILL ultimately triumph.
  • We have a God who is willing to listen to our strong emotions, even if they include being mad at Him
  • In giving us freedom, God allows us to make choices rather than love Him robotically. Sadly, many choices lead down dark paths. He is always ready for us to return.

I encourage you to take some time to read through Lamentations and allow yourself to imagine what the writer was going through. It may help you process tragic events in an authentic, thoughtful way. Listen for what God tells you regarding helping people around you heal.  You may not be able to fix everything, but you can be part of the healing process, and may help prevent someone from going too far down a dark path.

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Thank you for reading my thoughts.  I encourage you to regularly visit my Freebies Page for monthly tips sheets, worksheets related to my four pillars of content, and more.

Image by Trương Hoàng Huy Ngân from Pixabay

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