Groaning For Words

“My soul is in deep anguish. How long, LORD, how long?” (Psalm 6:3, NIV)

Which is easier for you to describe: the situation you’re in or the anguish you feel? Perhaps your current story includes disease, disorder, disability, disunity, divorce, depression, or even death itself. While talking about the facts may seem simple enough, articulating how you truly feel about your troubles may present a bigger challenge. Sometimes words aren’t sufficient to explain our inner world. Sometimes our thoughts are so dark and despairing, we dare not try to speak them aloud—let alone speak them to God.

In moments like that, prayer can feel out of reach. Rather than drawing near to the Lord, we may hesitate to approach him at all because we cannot name the “great anxiety and vexation” within us (1 Sam. 1:16). Crying out in faith can feel burdensome, as though God only welcomes tidy prayers and composed hearts.

Thankfully, prayers of lament are not full of pretense. And sometimes, they’re not even full of words! Take Psalm 6, for instance. First, David opens his prayer by addressing the Lord (see verse 1). Next, he tries to express his pain (see verse 2). But by the time he gets to today’s verse, his words have all but sputtered out. So great is his grief, all he can manage to pray is “How long, LORD, how long?”

In the original language, the syntax of verse 3 is just as broken as David is—his cry of faith is incomplete and nonspecific. Yet notice how he remains God-facing. His words fail, but his communion with God persists. Though sorrow leaves David unable to say more in the moment, he continues to engage the Lord through his groan. This is instructive for you today as you come before the Lord in prayer. You can bring your broken cry to God in faith because he knows your heart, even when your words run dry.

Lament is how we pray when trouble renders us speechless.

Whatever you’re facing right now, you don’t have to fully describe how you’re feeling in order to engage the Lord in your sorrow. He’s not waiting for you to find the “right” words to explain your inner turmoil. If all you can manage to pray is a borrowed cry from David’s lament, trust that the Holy Spirit will pick up where you sputter out (see Rom. 8:26). The Lord gave us lament so that we might remain God-facing when anguish leaves us with nothing but groans. You may not know what to say—but he knows what you mean.

Reflection:

• What past or present situation is distressing you today? How would you describe the anguish you feel in response? What is the “How long?” question you most want to bring before the Lord today?
• Do you sometimes feel unsure about talking to God in your grief because you aren’t sure what to say or how to say it? In Matthew 6:6-8, Jesus reminds us that we don’t need to speak “many words” for the Father to hear us and know what we need. How does this truth alleviate the pressure to “perform” in prayer? What might it look like to approach God honestly even when words feel inadequate?