15 He has filled me with bitterness;
he has sated me with wormwood.
16 He has made my teeth grind on gravel;
he has made me cower in ashes;
17 my soul is bereft of peace;
I have forgotten what happiness is;
18 so I say, “Gone is my glory
and all that I had hoped for from the Lord.”
19 The thought of my affliction and my homelessness
is wormwood and gall!
20 My soul continually thinks of it
and is bowed down within me.
Prayer Focus: On a day in which the United States celebrates “Independence Day,” we continue with verses of lament from the Book of Lamentations. There are some who lament a country that no longer exists with the words of verse 18, “Gone is my glory and all that I had hoped for from the Lord.” There are others who lament never knowing what others believe has been lost. Lament does not merely leave us with despair. Lament is a statement of faith because it assumes God hears our prayers. Lament also compels us to action. Perhaps the words of author James Baldwin align with our scripture for this fourth of July: “I love America more than any other country in the world and, exactly for this reason, I insist on the right to criticize her perpetually.”
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