Strange thought? How can there even be a question about that?
It’s a unique form of worship known as the lament.
The most common examples of this particular mode of worship is found in the Psalms. Psalm 13 is a great example of David worshiping in lament before the Lord.
In the first 4 verses of this Psalm, David cried out to God and basically asked “Where are you God? And why are you letting all this nonsense go on in my life?“
Have you ever done that? Do you ever feel like crying out to God in anguish because you don’t see Him in your present circumstance?
David knew that God didn’t need His pretense. The Father already knew the pains of the son. David knew God required his honesty not some cheap suck up…or even worse – hiding from what surrounded him. David got real when he questioned what was going on around him.
We can relate. In the midst of a particularly difficult situation, we can identify with what David was feeling here. We can even manage to scrape together the occasional whimper toward God.
The difference is in what happens next. David turns it from whining to worship in verses 5-6. For 4 verses he bares his soul and questions the whereabouts of God, but then David turns on a dime and demonstrates the beauty of the lament.
“But I trust in your unfailing love. I will rejoice because you have rescued me.
I will sing to the Lord because he is good to me.”
David trusts God because he’s been there before! He has seen what God can do. Sure, maybe he doesn’t understand what’s going on right now, but he knows what his Daddy’s capable of! He watched while the God of the Universe showed off before and he offers Him the only conceivable offering worthy of the character of God…WORSHIP!
Why not give that a try? The next time your circumstances cause your heart to ache before the Lord, try this:
- Bare your soul.
- Be honest.
- Worship the Lord for who He is!
I hope you will find the lament to be a vital addition to your private worship!
