Skip to main content

Despair


Despair.

Ugh. This isn't a very fun word of the day. What are we to do with despair? 

Have you ever been there - in a place of despair? What was that like? 

The Psalmists talk about despair in really open and honest ways, "Insults have broken my heart, so that I am in despair. I looked for pity, but there was none; and for comforters, but I found none." (Ps. 69:20)

Ugh again. 

One of the gifts (and challenges!) of the Psalms is that they're raw and honest about the many feelings, emotions, and experiences that we have as humans.

Spend some time with the Psalms this week. What do you notice? What other feelings, emotions, and experiences do the Psalmists talk openly about?

Popular posts from this blog

Curiosity.

  Curiosity.   “There the angel of the Lord appeared to [Moses] in a flame of fire out of a bush; he looked, and the bush was blazing, yet it was not consumed.  Then Moses said, “I must turn aside and look at this great sight and see why the bush is not burned up.” (Exodus 3:2-3)   What are you currently feeling curious about?  When in your life have you experienced the need to “turn aside” and see what is happening? Have you ever had a “burning bush” moment in your life?
Read more

A Presence of Hope

  Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.          Hebrews 11:1 We are called to hope. If you're anything like me, the last months have taken their best shot at your ability to hope. Between sickness, uncertainty, fear of what we don't understand, anxiety over what we can't control, conflicting expectations and uncomfortable recommendations, 2020 has not exactly been conducive to being hopeful. Here we are, months into what every retailer sending emails on Black Friday will once again call "unprecedented times", and so much of our outlook on daily life has been upended. Many of us have had to change and adjust much of our lives in just this past 24 hours, much less the last week or month. No matter how much sleep we get, we somehow still always wake up a bit too tired. Even though we just ate an hour ago, we somehow need another snack or meal already. The activities that we relied upon for rest, relaxation, a...
Read more

Knowing Who You Are

Sometimes it is hard to remember who you are. There is just so much noise. There is just so much to do. There are just so many voices vying for attention. There is just so much negativity. There is just so much to worry about. There are just so many distractions. In the midst of it all, it is really hard to remember who you are. And it all seems to move so fast. In the Gospel of Mark, we have a similar fast moving story that takes the reader through Jesus' baptism, his temptation in the desert, and his proclamation of the kingdom of God. This is where it all begins for the author. Listen to the voice of God through this reading from Mark.  "In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan.  And just as he was coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens torn apart and the Spirit descending like a dove on him.   And a voice came from heaven, 'You are my Son, the Beloved;   with you I am well pleased.' And the Spirit immediatel...
Read more