PAUSING
Find a quiet place where you can be alone. Take a few seconds or minutes to pause and be still; to breathe deeply, and to re-center any scattered thoughts or desires onto the presence of God.
PRAYING
God of our salvation and restoration, thank You for Your great and beautiful mission int he world. Here I am, Lord, fill me with Your Spirit and send me.
ENCOUNTERING HIS WORD
"The Lord is exalted, for he dwells on high;
he will fill Zion with his justice and righteousness.
He will be the sure foundation for your times,
a rich store of salvation and wisdom and knowledge;
the fear of the Lord is the key to this treasure.
Look, their brave men cry aloud in the streets;
the envoys of peace weep bitterly.
The highways are deserted,
no travelers are on the roads.
The treaty is broken,
its witnesses are despised,
no one is respected.
The land dries up and wastes away,
Lebanon is ashamed and withers;
Sharon is like the Arabah,
and Bashan and Carmel drop their leaves.
“Now will I arise,” says the Lord.
“Now will I be exalted;
now will I be lifted up." - Isaiah 33:5-10
Do you sometimes get frustrated by the state of the world? There's a lot of brokenness in us, and the news is constantly cycling between doom and gloom in our world. It's tempting to feel despair, which in and of itself isn't wrong. Despair is perhaps another word for lament.
Lament is how we bring our sorrow to God. We might have been led to believe that God only deserves our best (which is true), but God only wants our honesty as well. Author Mark Vroegop says that lament is how you live between the poles of a hard life and trusting in God's sovereignty. Lament is complaining, it's crying out, it's pointing fingers, and shaking fists. It's all the things you do when God's leading isn't in alignment with your heart. God doesn't want us to just suck it up and move on. He invites us to be honest with Him and process our pain with Him as his children.
Lament fuels my prayers; it fuels my cry of "Lord, please arise, please be lifted up, please be exalted in our time. Please be what you promised - 'the sure foundation of our times'".
REFLECTING AND PRAYING
Hebron, for the month of February, we are praying for racial reconciliation in our world. John Perkins writes, “There is no institution more equipped and capable of bringing transformation to the cause of reconciliation than the church. But we have some hard work to do.” . . . Lament is where we can begin.
If you've been interested in finding out how to become more involved in matters of justice. Begin by seeing the world with compassion. Then, lament.
GODS PROMISE
"But the Lord is my fortress; my God is the mighty rock where I hide." - Psalm 94:22
Find a quiet place where you can be alone. Take a few seconds or minutes to pause and be still; to breathe deeply, and to re-center any scattered thoughts or desires onto the presence of God.
PRAYING
God of our salvation and restoration, thank You for Your great and beautiful mission int he world. Here I am, Lord, fill me with Your Spirit and send me.
ENCOUNTERING HIS WORD
"The Lord is exalted, for he dwells on high;
he will fill Zion with his justice and righteousness.
He will be the sure foundation for your times,
a rich store of salvation and wisdom and knowledge;
the fear of the Lord is the key to this treasure.
Look, their brave men cry aloud in the streets;
the envoys of peace weep bitterly.
The highways are deserted,
no travelers are on the roads.
The treaty is broken,
its witnesses are despised,
no one is respected.
The land dries up and wastes away,
Lebanon is ashamed and withers;
Sharon is like the Arabah,
and Bashan and Carmel drop their leaves.
“Now will I arise,” says the Lord.
“Now will I be exalted;
now will I be lifted up." - Isaiah 33:5-10
Do you sometimes get frustrated by the state of the world? There's a lot of brokenness in us, and the news is constantly cycling between doom and gloom in our world. It's tempting to feel despair, which in and of itself isn't wrong. Despair is perhaps another word for lament.
Lament is how we bring our sorrow to God. We might have been led to believe that God only deserves our best (which is true), but God only wants our honesty as well. Author Mark Vroegop says that lament is how you live between the poles of a hard life and trusting in God's sovereignty. Lament is complaining, it's crying out, it's pointing fingers, and shaking fists. It's all the things you do when God's leading isn't in alignment with your heart. God doesn't want us to just suck it up and move on. He invites us to be honest with Him and process our pain with Him as his children.
Lament fuels my prayers; it fuels my cry of "Lord, please arise, please be lifted up, please be exalted in our time. Please be what you promised - 'the sure foundation of our times'".
REFLECTING AND PRAYING
Hebron, for the month of February, we are praying for racial reconciliation in our world. John Perkins writes, “There is no institution more equipped and capable of bringing transformation to the cause of reconciliation than the church. But we have some hard work to do.” . . . Lament is where we can begin.
If you've been interested in finding out how to become more involved in matters of justice. Begin by seeing the world with compassion. Then, lament.
- Pray for one situation in our world today where you'd like to see the Lord, "Arise, and be lifted up".
- Pray for one situation in your personal life where you'd like to see the Lord, "be the sure foundation for these times".
GODS PROMISE
"But the Lord is my fortress; my God is the mighty rock where I hide." - Psalm 94:22