Daily Reading
Reflection
Deserted. Abandoned. Hopeless. A cry so guttural, so definitive, so deep. It is a cry that expresses betrayal. "Why O why have you forsaken me?" Who does the Psalmist accuse? God. Embedded within this cry is the perennial problem of theodicy: In the face of suffering, how do we reconcile the idea of an all-good God with an all-powerful God? The Christian faith embraces both beliefs and yet the seemingly blaring contradiction can be troubling. While we may not be able to definitively solve the theodicy problem, we must recognize the necessity for this cry that proclaims that the world is not as it should be.
Many Christians have difficulty with the expression of doubt and pain in the face of God. To question God is offensive. They interpret it as failure or faithlessness. The biblical narrative gives a very different perspective. Christianity gives validity to the whole of the human experience and expression. Fredrick Buechner defines doubt as the "ants in the pants of faith." What he is alluding to is that doubt has an active place in our faith, that somehow doubt moves our faith along and deepens it. We see there is something so human in the act of questioning God as Jesus echos the Psalmist's cry from the cross. The cry of the Psalmist and the cry of Jesus give us permission to be outraged at the injustice, suffering, and pain that pervades our world. When we experience gut-wrenching events we are given permission to not only feel the full gamut of emotions, but express it as well. We see from both the Psalmist and Jesus that doubt is not evidence of lack of faith, but rather, can be a very deep faith with an attuned sense that the world is not as it should be.
God of Hope, I thank you that you do not see my doubt as failure in my faith. May I be honest with you in every season of my life. If I have doubts, help me to express them and ask the hard questions.
Daily Worship Resources
Daily Office Readings come from the Book of Common Prayer, a schedule of daily Bible reading that accords with the Church year. These readings are great worship resources for personal, family, or group use. Use it along with your City Church Worship Folder as a resource for readings, prayers, and hymns.
Printable Devotion