Sessions Include:

Dark Clouds, Deep Mercy, Lesson #1
Life in a Minor Key
Psalm 77

Dark Clouds, Deep Mercy, Lesson #2
Bring Your Complaints to God
Psalm 10

Dark Clouds, Deep Mercy, Lesson #3
Ask Boldly
Psalm 22

Dark Clouds, Deep Mercy, Lesson #4
Choose to Trust
Psalm 13

Dark Clouds, Deep Mercy, Lesson #5
Broken World; Holy God
Lamentations 1 - 2

Dark Clouds, Deep Mercy, Lesson #6
Hope Springs from Truth Rehearsed
Lamentations 3

Dark Clouds, Deep Mercy, Lesson #7
Unearthing Idols
Lamentations 5

However, in that journey we also learned that many Christians, like us, were unfamiliar—even uncomfortable—with lament. When occasionally I candidly shared a few of the struggles of my soul, some people reacted with visible discomfort. Others quickly moved to a desperate desire to “find the bright side,” a quick change of the subject, an awkward silence, or even physically excusing themselves to escape the tension.

When people stayed in the conversation, they often responded in unhelpful ways. In moments of attempted comfort, people said things like “I’m sure the Lord will give you another baby,” “Maybe more people will come to faith because of the death of your daughter,” or “The Lord must know he can trust you with this.”

Every person meant well. I appreciated their attempts to address our pain. But it became clear that most people did not know how to join us in our grief.

Lament was just not familiar terrain.

Lament as Grace

As I read books on grief, I discovered many attempts to explain the purpose of pain or to walk readers through the stages of grief. While these are helpful at some level, they frequently missed or ignored the concept of lament. Finding an explanation or a quick solution for grief, while an admirable goal, can circumvent the opportunity afforded in lament—to give a person permission to wrestle with sorrow instead of rushing to end it. Walking through sorrow without understanding and embracing the God-given song of lament can stunt the grieving process.

I came to see lament as a helpful gift from the Lord.

Through this journey, I came to love Psalm 13. I had read it many times before. This time it was personal. It expressed my heart and served as a path for my grief. It kept my soul out of the ditches of despair and denial. I memorized the words. It became a help to my soul and to others in pain.

Mark Vroegop, Dark Clouds, Deep Mercy: Discovering the Grace of Lament(Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2019), 17–19.

Check out our Bible Study on Dark Clouds; Deep Mercy. A bible study on the book of Lamentations as well as some Psalms of Lament.

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