The Psalms are a wonderful source of the expression of genuine faith. The 150 Psalms can be divided into three main groups:
- Everything is wonderful, praise the Lord, hallelujah
- Everything is not wonderful, I’m struggling like crazy but the Lord is going to rescue me
- Everything is not wonderful, I’m struggling like crazy, I’m praying hard but God’s not listening in fact I think He’s gone missing.
42 of the 150 Psalms are lament Psalms, including Psalm 88…
Text: Psalm 88
1 Lord, you are the God who saves me;
day and night I cry out to you.
*2 May my prayer come before you;*
turn your ear to my cry.
*3 I am overwhelmed with troubles*
and my life draws near to death.
*4 I am counted among those who go down to the pit;*
I am like one without strength.
*5 I am set apart with the dead,*
like the slain who lie in the grave,
*whom you remember no more,*
who are cut off from your care.
*6 You have put me in the lowest pit,*
in the darkest depths.
*7 Your wrath lies heavily on me;*
you have overwhelmed me with all your waves.
*8 You have taken from me my closest friends*
and have made me repulsive to them.
*I am confined and cannot escape;*
9 my eyes are dim with grief.
*I call to you, Lord, every day;*
I spread out my hands to you.
*10 Do you show your wonders to the dead?*
Do their spirits rise up and praise you?
*11 Is your love declared in the grave,*
your faithfulness in Destruction?
*12 Are your wonders known in the place of darkness,*
or your righteous deeds in the land of oblivion?
*13 But I cry to you for help, Lord;*
in the morning my prayer comes before you.
*14 Why, Lord, do you reject me*
and hide your face from me?
*15 From my youth I have suffered and been close to death;*
I have borne your terrors and am in despair.
*16 Your wrath has swept over me;*
your terrors have destroyed me.
*17 All day long they surround me like a flood;*
they have completely engulfed me.
*18 You have taken from me friend and neighbour—*
darkness is my closest friend.
Psalm title: A song. A psalm of the Sons of Korah. For the director of music. According to mahalath leannoth. A maskil of Heman the Ezrahite.
A song
A psalm of the Sons of Korah (Korah was Moses’ cousin)
For the director of music. According to mahalath leannoth, (A tune, “The Suffering of Affliction”)
A maskil (contemplative poem) of Heman the Ezrahite
According to the Bible, Heman was one of the three Levites assigned by King David to be ministers of music. He was a grandson of Samuel the prophet and went on to become King David’s prophet. He was a wise, talented, accomplished, and blessed man, who had 14 exceptional sons and daughters, served king David and King Solomon, and yet he obviously faced some pretty dark times…
Charles Spurgeon wrote the following about Psalm 88, “In this Psalm, Heman makes a map of his life’s history, he puts down all the dark places through which he has travelled. He mentions his sins, his sorrows, his hopes (if he had any), his fears, his woes, and so on. Now, that is real prayer, laying your case before the Lord.”
In this message I want to outline a couple of healthy ways that we can be courageous in the face of grief.
1. Express Yourself
I.e. we’re still reading Psalm 88 because Heman expressed himself
Heman expressed himself in a community of people who could support him through his grief.
Definition: Grief is emotionally processing a loss
And it is a process with lots of ups and downs
L*oss can be big or small*
Death of a loved one, a friend, or a pet
Ending of a marriage
A miscarriage
Conflict in friendship (loss of a friendship)
Loss of health
Life changes – retirement, moving house
Loss of a dream (Future plans not eventuating)
Loss of identity
Loss of a job
Changes in financial security
Loss of freedom
Loss of safety
The fact that the lament Psalms like Psalm 88 are included in inspired Scripture tells us a lot. It tells us that God is totally okay with human grief and with humans expressing that grief. He’s fine with being questioned, with people being angry with him, with people accusing him. God is not going to smite you, turn away from you, or stop listening to you, and he will not have a holy huff.
The Lord challenged people over many sins such as idolatry and their failure to show justice towards the poor and marginalised. He gets in the face of the hypocrites and the tightwads, but not once does he correct those who vent their frustration at him when they feel he’s disinterested, far away or has abandoned them.
Psalm 34:18, “The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.”
In other words, he is close to those who are courageous in the face of grief:
2. Resist Platitudes
“You can have other children”
“There’s plenty more fish in the sea”
“You’re still young”
“You can always remarry”
“You can get another dog / cat / bird…”
“There’s a reason for everything”
“They’re in a better place”
“Time heals all wounds”
“Try to look for the good”
“Be positive”
“Try not to cry. They wouldn’t want you to cry”
“It’s all happened for the best”
“It’s time to put all this behind you”
“Everything will be okay”
Psalm 88:18, “You have taken from me friend and neighbour—darkness is my closest friend.”
The Hebrew reads like this: “You have put far from me Loved one and friend [And] my acquaintances into darkness.”
Not everything ends well, and a faith that tries to convince you otherwise is a fake faith.
Jesus is a wonderful role model when it comes to being courageous in the face of grief…
“Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows” (Isa 53:4)
“do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope”
1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, “Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. 14 For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. 15 According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so, we will be with the Lord forever.18 Therefore encourage one another with these words.”
The Psalms intertwine joy and grief, rejoicing and mourning. And that’s a very realistic picture of real life.
Psalm 42:11, “Why am I discouraged? Why is my heart so sad? I will put my hope in God! I will praise him again— my Saviour and my God!”
I will be courageous in the face of grief!