I’m actually a bit aghast that I’m beginning my first blog with such a bleak title. As a tried and tested Charismatic/Pentecostal, writing on any topic other than victory, power and authority could be considered almost sacrilegious, yet here I am addressing the elephant in the room from the get-go.
But then again, why ever not? Jesus, the Man of Sorrows, along with his trusted apostles reminded us that we will all experience sadness, devastation and pain in a fallen world reeling under the cataclysmic contractions of sin and birth pangs.
Also, the wise Solomon once wrote, “The blessing of the Lord makes a person rich, and He adds no sorrow with it”, but when we look around and see darkness furiously trying to blanket the world, those words can have a hollow ring.
We also see Creation groaning and buckling under the weight of depravity, perversion and abuse- which we, the church, haven’t been exempt from either. The fact remains that God ‘makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and He sends rain on the just and the unjust,’ IMPARTIALLY. So how and when did we begin to conclude that we all warrant all of God’s blessings all the time?
Unfortunately over the years we gradually began to believe that if we volunteer in church, pray in tongues loudly, attend all the programs, meetings and courses we can; declare, decree and fall on our knees in front of the camera; raise our hands, stomp our feet and roar with prophetic fervor- then God will be beholden to deliver on our every desire and satisfy our every whim.
Without realizing it we allowed a spirit of entitlement to take up residence in our congregations- thanks to the skewed teachings of the prosperity gospel and the double barrelled warnings to never touch the Lord’s anointed, or to ever hold them accountable for their decisions.
And then, out of the blue, God stepped in and decided to unravel our very own Christian #metoo movement by exposing soul-crunching scandals, heartbreaking abuse and breaches of trust by celebrity pastors and prophets; systematically revealing all the putrid filth that had begun accumulating under the glitz and glitter of the church’s facade.
“It is truly a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the Living God.” (Hebrews 10:3)
So, where does that leave us now? What is God trying to show us? I don’t know about you, but for someone who has lived through a few decades of the glorious church, awesome as an army with banners, I wonder if this could be the season that God wants us to lower our eyes and begin singing songs of lament to Him instead? Perhaps it’s time we turned down our whoops of victory and conquest, and turned up the sorrowful dirges that accompany fallen heroes instead.
Perhaps this is the time to enter into that secret space of sorrow and cry out to God as the prophets of old did- with raw authenticity and heartfelt inquiry, undergirding our prayers with humility, repentance and surrender.
James (Jacob) 4:9 exhorts us to,”Lament and mourn and weep! Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom.”
Lament cleanses our hearts and our spiritual vision. It is a gushing stream that washes away every vestige of pride and arrogance which inhibits the fullness of God’s grace from being fully received.
Lament redirects God’s gaze towards a broken and contrite heart, causing Him to take pause and to listen with compassion. Lament is not accusation, and it is certainly not an expression of faithless frustration with God’s methods and motives. It actually forms a deeper bond of intimacy between the lamenter and the Listener.
I remember going through an intense season of lamentation in my own life a couple of decades ago. It was soon after I had experienced an electrifying Baptism in the Holy Spirit when everything in my cozy world suddenly began to collapse around me. It ultimately resulted in me being banished to my parents’ home in India, cruelly separated from my two young sons and with my marriage on the brink of collapse.
The rejection and heartache I suffered was indescribably agonizing- but then, oh, how the Scriptures (especially the Psalms), suddenly began to take on a life of their own. Copious tears and deep laments rose unceasingly to the Throne Room from my bedroom day and night, and Father God did not get upset or annoyed by my grief-filled incriminations. He didn’t scold me for complaining or not making positive proclamations. Instead, He embraced me with tender compassion and strengthened me with hope to trust Him to work all things out for good.
So I did- and the resultant outcome of that season of apparent defeat and darkness was glorious and still lasting.
Maybe there’s a secret power we all need to discover and harness from the art of anointed lament. Why don’t we begin by first lamenting over the state of our hearts, our homes, our churches and our nations- and then stand back and watch how the Lord responds with His awesome power and glorious might!