Stop and think about the vast numbers of people who will never darken the doors of the churches that exist in your city. Now ask yourself why. Once you’ve answered that question, you’re halfway to understanding who your church is called to go after, what part of the city it’s called to go to, and what it’s called to do. Everything from the location it meets in, to the time it meets, what people do when they get there, to the way the room is set up will all come into play. (I’d say that for the most part, everybody plants a cookie cutter version of church with hipper music, sexier graphics, and skinnier jeans, thinking that will really reach people. But have you ever noticed that the “stuff Christians like” is often worlds apart from what a lost person really notices or desires when they come to a point of honestly seeking God?) -Peyton Jones, "Reaching the Unreached -Becoming Raiders of the Lost Art"
Audio teaching: Carissa Quinn
Psalm 88
For the worship leader. A song of the sons of Korah accompanied by dance.[a] A contemplative song[b] of Heman the Ezrahite.
*This individual lament was composed by someone afflicted with a grave illness, feeling lonely and abandoned by God. This song is reminiscent of Job’s sufferings. - The Voice
1 O Eternal One! O True God my Savior!
I cry out to You all the time, under the sun and the moon.
2 Let my voice reach You!
Please listen to my prayers!
3 My soul is deeply troubled,
and my heart can’t bear the weight of this sorrow. I feel so close to death.
4 I’m like the poor and helpless who die alone,
left for dead, as good as the unknowable sea of souls lying under our feet,
5-6 Forsaken by Him and cut off from His hand,
abandoned among the dead who rest in their graves.
And You have sent me to be forgotten with them,
in the lowest pits of the earth,
in the darkest canyons of the ocean.
7 You crush me with Your anger.
You crash against me like the relentless, angry sea.
[pause][c]
8 Those whom I have known, who have been with me,
You have gathered like sheaves and cast to the four winds.
They can’t bear to look me in the eye, and they are horrified when they think of me.
I am in a trap and cannot be free.
9 My eyes grow dim, weakened by this sickness;
it is taking my strength from me.
Like a worn cloth, my hands are unfolded before You daily, O Eternal One.
10 Are You the miracle-worker for the dead?
Will they rise from the dark shadows to worship You again?
[pause]
11 Will Your great love be proclaimed in the grave
or Your faithfulness be remembered in whispers like mists throughout the place of ruin?[d]
12 Are Your wonders known in the dominion of darkness,
or is Your righteousness recognized in a land where all is forgotten?
13 But I am calling out to You, Eternal One.
My prayers rise before You with every new sun!
14 Why do You turn Your head
and brush me aside, O Eternal One?
Why are You avoiding me?
15 Since the days of my youth, I have been sick and close to death.
My helpless soul has suffered Your silent horrors;
now I am desperate.
16 Your rage spills over me like rivers of fire;
Your assaults have all but destroyed me.
17 They surround me like a flood, rising throughout the day,
closing in from every direction.
18 You have taken from me the one I love and my friend;
even the light of my acquaintances are darkness.
Video on The Psalms
As you read through Psalm 88, the psalmist does not hold back his grief or anger when he talks to God. How does that sit with you? Do you give yourself the freedom to express all your deepest emotions and thoughts to God. If not, what holds you back?
Have you ever found yourself in a place where the only prayer you can muster is “help?” Have you ever felt that deep loneliness that the psalmist expresses? What are your deepest pain points at the present moment? Write or pray out loud to God, even if your only prayer is “help.”
During the week: Have you ever read through the Psalter, or a group of psalms, looking for how they connect to one another? If you are interested, we’d suggest reading through some psalms and looking for repeated words and themes that link them. Starting with Psalms 1-2 is a great idea, or you could look at 88-90, the psalms brought up in our study today.
Copyright © 2020 The Bible Project 1302 SE Ankeny St Portland,
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
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