Lament /ləˈment/ noun: a passionate expression of grief or sorrow.
Lamenting used to be a normal and healthy part of the Christian expression of faith. The majority of the Psalms are beautifully honest and raw expressions of anger and disappointment from the author towards God.
But recently I’ve begun to wonder if we have lost the art of lamenting. Most Christian music, for example, focuses on joy, love and devotion. Which is no bad thing. Except when you don’t feel full of joy. Then it’s easy to feel alienated… we begin to questions whether we are allowed to direct our anger, doubt and disappointment towards God. Isn’t he meant to be all loving, all powerful? What does it say about our faith if we feel anything but love towards Him? We our emotions as being in conflict with our faith, so we look elsewhere for understanding.
The Lament Project is an attempt to change that.
I want to rediscover the beauty of authenticity and give permission to Christians to include lamenting as a vital part of their faith.
In fact, I would go one step further, and suggest that we can’t get to personal healing and wholeness in our faith without being honest first. To lament is start the process of having a personal relationship with God.
Who am I?
I am a farther to five (yes, five!) children, a husband and a follower of Jesus. I am also the Director of Development for Mercy UK, a Christian charity that equips people with the tools they need to find freedom from life’s hurts and then navigate their life from this place of wholeness. I work with some amazing people who have such an in-depth knowledge of how to deal with pain and disappointment. While the Lament Project is a personal one, I am so grateful for what I have learnt from them.
If this topic interests you, please get in touch. I’d love to hear from you so that this space can grow to become the resource that so many of us need.
God bless,
Bryn Abbott
P.s. You can connect with me on LinkedIn.