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  • Beth Girard

Uncomfortable Unity


Let this be written for a future generation, that a people not yet created may praise the Lord: ‘The Lord looked down from his sanctuary on high, from heaven he viewed the earth, to hear the groans of the prisoners and release those condemned to death.’ So the name of the Lord will be declared in Zion and his praise in Jerusalem when the people and the kingdoms assemble to worship the Lord.

- Psalm 102:18-22


As a devout optimist, I have a really hard time being real with God in the valleys of my spiritual life. The degree to which my optimism takes over was evident during my few years playing softball at school. Not being the best player on the team (by a long shot), I spent a lot of games on the bench cheering on my teammates. While on the bench, I would only shout positivity onto the field, even though our reputation as a team was to be mercy ruled time and time again. (Just for reference, scores typically turned out to be 0-20.) This awarded me the “Rainbows and Unicorns Award,” which to this day is one of the awards I am most proud of… you can imagine why. All this to say, lament is really hard for me. It harks upon emotions that I prefer to keep inside. Psalm 102, however, is a call towards leaning into lament. Not the lament that is constant complaining, but the kind that is real with God. Because God does hear, and when God hears, action follows.


The subscript prior to the start of Psalm 102 reminds us that the author of this specific set of verses was one who was afflicted and weak, pouring out a lament before the Lord. Although lament is a good and necessary thing in the life of a believer, sometimes it makes us feel as if everything is hopeless. The psalmist exhibits the strength of being able to lament well while also providing a hint of glowing hope towards the end. This hope is for future generations to praise the Lord as strongly and fervently as the Lord deserves. While the afflicted and downtrodden groan, not only does the Lord hear, he acts, as well. There is a promise of restoration in verse 16, reminding us that the Lord will rebuild Zion - the symbol of hope and strength for the Israelites. However, this rebuilding will not be traditional. The rebuilding begins when the downtrodden and afflicted lament.


Verse 20 explicitly tells us that God specifically hears the “groans of the prisoners.” And not only does God hear, but God “release[s] those condemned to death.” This is the kind of rebuilding that the Lord will bring for Zion - one of restoration and reconciliation rather than that of greed and power. When the people “assemble to worship the Lord” (vs. 22), the full restoration of Zion will be brought to fruition. This new Zion is composed of prior prisoners and death-row inmates, the ones who doubt and lament, and those who find themselves afflicted and weak. When the voices of the children of God unite in worship, we will see Zion restored. Not far off in a city meant for the Israelites, but here. In our own backyards.


I encourage you not to fear this sometimes uncomfortable spiritual practice that breeds unity. This unity is the kind that spreads beyond denominational affiliation, political preference, socioeconomic status, place of birth; it is the kind that unites around a Savior who remains the same now and forevermore. And it begins with lament, encircled around a God who hears and acts on behalf of the afflicted.


~ Beth Girard

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