Psalms 88:1-18 ERV Lord God, you are my Savior. I have been praying to you day and night. Please pay attention to my prayers. Listen to my prayers for mercy. My soul has had enough of this pain! I am ready to die. People already treat me like a dead man, like someone too weak to live. Look for me among the dead, like a body in the grave. I am one of those you have forgotten, cut off from you and your care. You put me in that hole in the ground. Yes, you put me in that dark place. Your anger presses down on me like a heavy weight. It’s like one wave after another pounding against me. Selah You made my friends leave me. They all avoid me like someone no one wants to touch. Like a prisoner in my house, I cannot go out. My eyes hurt from crying. Lord, I pray to you constantly! I lift my arms in prayer to you. Do you do miracles for the dead? Do ghosts rise up and praise you? No! Selah The dead in their graves cannot talk about your faithful love. People in the world of the dead cannot talk about your faithfulness. The dead who lie in darkness cannot see the amazing things you do. Those in the world of the forgotten cannot talk about your goodness. Lord, I am asking you to help me! Early each morning I pray to you. Lord, why have you abandoned me? Why do you refuse to listen to me? I have been sick and weak since I was young. I have suffered your anger, and I am helpless. Your anger covers me like a flood. Your attacks are killing me. They surround me on every side. I feel like a drowning man. You caused my friends and loved ones to leave me. Now darkness is my closest friend.
The Darkness Of Despair
Psalm 88 is the prayer of an individual completely engulfed in gloom and despair, The kind of prayer that a person in this condition is call a prayer of lament, a prayer in which we are open with God, we “let it all hang out”, we stop “faking fine”. When we’re open with God, in prayer, about our feelings of sadness, or frustration, even anger our prayer is one of lament. (see This Thanksgiving Stop Faking Fine). Lament is an expression of grief or sorrow. This is not a prayer for the super-spiritual. Lament is a prayer for all of us.
The time when you had no idea how you would pay the mounting medical bills. The appointment where you learned it was cancer. The officer at your door with a bowed head and a tragic report. Your first Christmas without him or her. Have you ever found yourself in that kind of moment?
In your moments of greatest desperation, you’ll discover that you can depend on Jesus. Desperation fosters dependence. So run to Him.
Cry out for Him. You’ll find a friend who sticks closer than a brother. You’ll experience a peace that surpasses your understanding. You’ll climb into a strong refuge and a safe hiding place. You’ll get to know Him as Immanuel, “God with you.” And you’ll learn that He can be depended on when you need Him the most.
Psalms 142:6-7 ERV Listen to my prayer. I am so weak. Save me from those who are chasing me. They are stronger than I am. Help me escape this trap, so that I can praise your name. Then good people will celebrate with me, because you took care of me.
Editor’s Note: Some content from Desperate for Immanuel by Kyle Idleman, from his book Not A Fan
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