Screaming Into the Void
by Rev. Dr. Amy Chilton on 10/12/23
Friends, Israel declared war on Hamas this
past Sunday after Hamas launched an attack over Gaza’s borders. As I write
this, nearly 2,000 people have died - both Palestinians and Israelis. Over
1,000 people died in the earthquakes in Afghanistan this past weekend. Around
200 people have died and about 90,000 ethnic Armenians have fled in the
Nargorono-Karabakh region in the past month.
Part of my work as a pastor and theologian is giving words to how we ought to engage this world in light of our Christian faith. But, friends, this week words have failed me.
I just want to scream into the void.
Perhaps the best I can give right now is permission for you too to open your throats and scream.
Let it out.
God can handle our grief and rage at the many ways this world has gone terribly wrong.
GOD, HOW CAN YOU KEEP LETTING THIS HAPPEN? HOW CAN PEOPLE KEEP DOING THIS?!
One of the Psalmists screamed for us in the 94th Psalm:
YHWH, God our Avenger– reveal yourself, God our avenger! Rise up, judge the earth, and give the arrogant what they deserve! How long will these violent gangs, YHWH, how long will these violent gangs be jubilant? (Psalm 98:1-3, The Inclusive Bible)
Friends, perhaps this is a week where we scream into the void, yell at God to step in and do something, anything, and trust that just as God brought beauty from chaos at creation, God can do that again.
Blessings,
Pastor Amy
A Prayer for Hope amid Despair
O God, here I am again. Hopeless. Overwhelmed. Angry. The world is so broken. People are so cruel. The vulnerable are once again dying, ignored, oppressed.
I want to have hope, but it feels so futile. What good is my hope if nothing seems to change?
God, give me a new heart to love what You love. Give me a new spirit to be faithful as You are faithful. Give me fresh eyes to see how You see.
I want to be a person who is not mired in inaction in the face of despair, but who works to realize Your vision for the world. Who participates in unleashing Your kingdom of peace and gentleness and justice and love.
May I be a person marked by bright hope in the midst of the darkest of hours. May I be an Easter person.
Amen
~ Kate Bowler and Jessica Richie, Good Enough: 40ish Devotionals for a Life of Imperfection, p. 224
