Five Minute Friday – Heal

War, famine, and murder of the innocent are familiar tales from the Bible.
And common headlines of today’s news.

All across the globe, hearts are heavy with grief.
Sorrow consumes the best and the worst of us.
And weary souls weep with the weight of it all.

But in a quote from Alistair Begg, I hear a challenge for today:
The sights and sounds and smells that are represented in this scene are not to be run away from by us. The reason that laments are in the Bible, in the Psalms, is because we all face harsh, cruel, devastating bits and pieces of our lives. And the response of belief is to make sure that we do not judge the Lord by our feeble sense, nor that we try to superficially say, “Of course, this does not really affect me.”
It affects us horribly.
It affects us radically.
And so, let’s learn to allow the parts that cause us to wince, to wince for a wee while, to learn from this.

Indeed, let’s not judge the Lord by our feeble sense. Let’s not assume His silence means we have gone unheard. Let’s not race through the pain, but let us linger and wince from its sting. Let’s learn from all the broken bits and pieces of our lives.

Let your heart pause and lament.
Let your soul weep with those who weep.
Let the heartache of others seep into your own heart.

But not so we can mourn as those who have no hope. But so we can look heavenward together, still, through eyes clouded with tears.

Let’s hold each other tightly and share each other’s pain before we flee toward the arms of healing.

Let’s allow the lament to carry our deepest groanings for deliverance.
To recognize the fear we feel.
And carry it.
Together.
To Jesus.

Let’s pour out our hearts before Him and wince at the wounds. Those we have received from others and the ones we have inflicted.

Let’s learn from the loss and sorrow of a people without a Shepherd, recognizing we are not among them only because of grace.

Let us lament before we heal so we refrain from repeating the same sins time and again.
So we stop straying from the path of righteousness.
So we hold onto thankfulness and honor God in His rightful place as King and Lord of all, lest we succumb to sorrow from our own making. Our own choosing.

Let God be the Refuge we seek still.
And the Rock upon which we stand secure.

Here where our lament rises, let us wince for a wee while.
And let the Healer hear.

Trust in Him at all times, O people;
pour out your hearts before Him.
God is our refuge.
– Psalm 62:8

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This post is written in conjunction with https://fiveminutefriday.com/2022/05/26/fmf-writing-prompt-link-up-heal/ Teaming up with an online group of writers who encourage others to share the words God has given them. The gist is to write for five minutes on a one-word prompt, then post your writing and link up with others who do the same — no overthinking, no deep editing, just free-writing in a short amount of time.