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I Am the Man Who Has Seen Affliction
It is the cry of an anguished soul. Despondent even. It’s the seemingly hopeless plea of one who feels utterly alone and lost. Experiencing unspeakable hardship with no end on sight.
“I am the man who has seen affliction.”
Everyone experiences some kind of hardship, affliction and suffering. Darkness enveloping one so that the light of day cannot permeate. The prophet Jeremiah was no exception.
“I am the man who has seen affliction under the rod of his wrath; he has driven and brought me into darkness without any light; surely against me he turns his hand again and again the whole day long.”
Lamentations 3.1-3
When sorrows like sea billows roll nothing else matters. Clouds of unspeakable grief. Suffering too terrible to name. Living day by day through the unimaginable. New depths of desperation attained. A jumbled torrent of emotions. Awakening to the stark realization that life is not problem-free. And yet despite the travails that affect us so, we need to be reminded that our Lord invites us to come and air our grievances before Him.
"Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden.”
You see God welcomes our laments. We know this to be true. Examine the various words penned by the psalmist. Hear the cries of anguish by Job. See the heart wrenching struggles of Jeremiah. For they and many others teach us the value and importance of laying our burdens before His throne. Here in the pages of the Holy Writ we find the raw emotions of those who are hurting. Heartfelt protests of those who are at the end of their rope. Who feel the weight of anguish and despair. And moan.
“In the day of my trouble I seek the Lord; in the night my hand is stretched out without wearying; my soul refuses to be comforted.
When I remember God, I moan;”
Psalm 77.2-3b
The Bible reveals the honest spiritual struggles of many. And in its pages, we discover that lament is how one lives between the poles of a difficult life and in trusting the goodness of a Sovereign God. It is a pouring of one’s heart to the Great Redeemer with desperate candor. A prayer of pain that leads to trust. I freely admit that for many (myself included) it has become a neglected dimension of the Christian walk. For don’t we all wrestle with our sorrows? Vocalizing our pain in various ways?
And yet it’s in the darkest moments of our lives when we ought to reflect on the rich reservoir of the immeasurable mercy and grace offered by our Heavenly Father. It is the quest for spiritual survival that should force us to open our hearts to the very One who can provide solace. Helping us to navigate the wilderness of grief. Alas, most of us internalize the pain to our demise. Or search for answers amidst a sea of doubt in places where the Deceiver leads souls astray.
Grief is not tame. No, it can be outright vicious at times. But through biblical lament we find permission in wrestling with our sorrows.
“Consider and answer me, O Lord my God; light up my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death,”
Psalm 13.3
There is indeed redemptive value in it. For it invites us to struggle. And believe. To grieve and to trust. Awkward as it may seem on the surface, lamentations are a divinely given liturgy leading us to mercy. Dirges. The sacred songs of sorrow which provide a ballast for our souls.
Biblical.
Honest.
Redemptive.
God is faithful. That much we know. Trust in His steadfast love. Rejoice in His salvation. Reaffirm your trust in Him. Anchor your life in the Sovereign’s grace.
“The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.”
Job 1:.21b
I am the man who has seen affliction…
“Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail.”
Lamentations 3.21-22
From heartbreak to hope. His compassions never fail. Ever.
