Since first fully discovering this Psalm of Lament in Jerusalem, it will forever remind me of what my Suffering Savior, Jesus, might’ve prayed in the hours of His Sacred Passion on the eve before He would face Pilate. It is believed to be a messianic psalm of prophecy believed to define the deep desperation Jesus might have expressed as He approached Good Friday with it’s humiliation and crucifixion associated with Him becoming our Sin so we could become His righteousness.
"O Lord, God of my salvation, I cry out to you by day. I come to you at night. Now hear my prayer; listen to my cry. For my life is full of troubles, and death draws near. I am as good as dead, like a strong man with no strength left. They have left me among the dead, and I lie like a corpse in a grave. I am forgotten, cut off from your care. You have thrown me into the lowest pit, into the darkest depths. Your anger weighs me down; with wave after wave you have engulfed me. Interlude You have driven my friends away by making me repulsive to them. I am in a trap with no way of escape. My eyes are blinded by my tears. Each day I beg for your help, O Lord; I lift my hands to you for mercy. Are your wonderful deeds of any use to the dead? Do the dead rise up and praise you? Interlude Can those in the grave declare your unfailing love? Can they proclaim your faithfulness in the place of destruction? Can the darkness speak of your wonderful deeds? Can anyone in the land of forgetfulness talk about your righteousness? O Lord, I cry out to you. I will keep on pleading day by day. O Lord, why do you reject me? Why do you turn your face from me? I have been sick and close to death since my youth. I stand helpless and desperate before your terrors. Your fierce anger has overwhelmed me. Your terrors have paralyzed me. They swirl around me like floodwaters all day long. They have engulfed me completely. You have taken away my companions and loved ones. Darkness is my closest friend." Psalms 88:1-18 NLT
And this song has been cherished by my family in times of suffering. It was the benediction at my Dad’s homegoing funeral service.
Hope Happens HERE!
Presence Matters Most!
No Invisible People! UNITY!
Pastor Kerry Willis
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