LAMENT
Daily Journey 22
LAMENT
When God Feels Absent
Theme
Faith is not pretending the darkness is light. It is continuing to call Him “my God” while asking questions from within the darkness.
Pause
Yesterday was a victory.
Today is anguish.
That contrast matters.
The life of faith contains both.
Psalm 22 does not ask us to rush through pain.
It invites us to bring pain into God’s presence.
If you have ever felt abandoned, unheard, misunderstood, or overwhelmed…
bring that part of yourself today.
Prayer
Father, meet me in the places where You feel distant. Give me courage to speak honestly without walking away. When I cannot feel Your presence, help me remember Your faithfulness. And help me see Jesus—the One who entered suffering completely and understands my pain. Amen.
Scripture
Today’s Psalm invites us to bring our deepest anguish to God and discover that suffering does not mean the story has ended.
Psalm 22
Why Have You Forsaken Me?
To the choirmaster: according to The Doe of the Dawn. A Psalm of David.
My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning?
2 O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer,
and by night, but I find no rest.
3 Yet you are holy,
enthroned on the praises[a] of Israel.
4 In you our fathers trusted;
they trusted, and you delivered them.
5 To you they cried and were rescued;
in you they trusted and were not put to shame.
6 But I am a worm and not a man,
scorned by mankind and despised by the people.
7 All who see me mock me;
they make mouths at me; they wag their heads;
8 “He trusts in the Lord; let him deliver him;
let him rescue him, for he delights in him!”
9 Yet you are he who took me from the womb;
you made me trust you at my mother's breasts.
10 On you was I cast from my birth,
and from my mother's womb you have been my God.
11 Be not far from me,
for trouble is near,
and there is none to help.
12 Many bulls encompass me;
strong bulls of Bashan surround me;
13 they open wide their mouths at me,
like a ravening and roaring lion.
14 I am poured out like water,
and all my bones are out of joint;
my heart is like wax;
it is melted within my breast.
15 my strength is dried up like a potsherd,
and my tongue sticks to my jaws;
you lay me in the dust of death.
16 For dogs encompass me;
a company of evildoers encircles me;
they have pierced my hands and feet[b]—
17 I can count all my bones—
they stare and gloat over me;
18 they divide my garments among them,
and for my clothing they cast lots.
19 But you, O Lord, do not be far off!
O you my help, come quickly to my aid!
20 Deliver my soul from the sword,
my precious life from the power of the dog!
21 Save me from the mouth of the lion!
You have rescued[c] me from the horns of the wild oxen!
22 I will tell of your name to my brothers;
in the midst of the congregation I will praise you:
23 You who fear the Lord, praise him!
All you offspring of Jacob, glorify him,
and stand in awe of him, all you offspring of Israel!
24 For he has not despised or abhorred
the affliction of the afflicted,
and he has not hidden his face from him,
but has heard, when he cried to him.
25 From you comes my praise in the great congregation;
my vows I will perform before those who fear him.
26 The afflicted[d] shall eat and be satisfied;
those who seek him shall praise the Lord!
May your hearts live forever!
27 All the ends of the earth shall remember
and turn to the Lord,
and all the families of the nations
shall worship before you.
28 For kingship belongs to the Lord,
and he rules over the nations.
29 All the prosperous of the earth eat and worship;
before him shall bow all who go down to the dust,
even the one who could not keep himself alive.
30 Posterity shall serve him;
it shall be told of the Lord to the coming generation;
31 they shall come and proclaim his righteousness to a people yet unborn,
that he has done it.
Read It Again
Notice the tension.
David says:
I feel forsaken.
Then:
Yet You were faithful.
He moves between present pain and remembered truth.
Ask:
Where does God feel distant to me?
Can I speak honestly while still trusting Him?
How does this Psalm point toward the suffering of Jesus?
Where does lament eventually begin turning toward praise?
Pursuing His Heart
Today’s Revelation of God’s Heart
God’s heart remains faithful even in suffering that makes Him feel painfully distant.
Psalm 22 refuses to sanitize suffering.
David cries:
Why?
He feels unheard.
Surrounded.
Mocked.
Exhausted.
Yet notice something extraordinary.
He continues saying:
“My God.”
Pain has challenged his understanding.
It has not completely severed his relationship.
Sometimes faith looks like this:
My God…why?
Both belong in the same prayer.
We often think faith means having answers.
Psalm 22 teaches that faith can also mean refusing to let go of God when there are no answers.
And eventually the Psalm moves toward praise.
The pain is real.
But it will not receive the final word.
Seeing Jesus
Psalm 22 reaches its deepest fulfillment at the cross.
Jesus speaks its opening words.
The Gospel accounts echo its descriptions of mockery, suffering, and humiliation.
Jesus did not observe human suffering from a safe distance.
He entered it. Fully.
Because He did, we never have to wonder whether our Savior understands anguish.
And resurrection tells us something else:
The darkness of Psalm 22 is not the end of the story.
Truths to Hold Onto
Lament is biblical.
Feeling abandoned is not the same as being abandoned.
Faith can ask hard questions.
Jesus understands suffering personally.
Remembered faithfulness can sustain us during present pain.
Darkness does not receive the final word.
Life Application
Can you trust God enough to tell Him how you actually feel?
Walking Deeper
Matthew 27:35–46 — The crucifixion echoes Psalm 22 powerfully.
Hebrews 4:15–16 — Jesus understands human weakness and invites us to approach Him for grace.
Revelation 21:4 — God promises a future where suffering and death are finally removed.
Prayer Prompt
My God, I bring You what hurts. When I cannot understand Your silence, help me hold onto Your character. Thank You that Jesus entered suffering and that resurrection guarantees darkness will not win forever. Amen.
Today’s Step
Write your most honest prayer.
Do not edit it to make it sound spiritual.
Tell God the truth.
Then end with two words:
“My God.”
❤️ Heart Check
Head
What does Jesus’ suffering reveal about God’s nearness to mine?
Heart
What pain have I been afraid to voice?
Hands
Who needs me simply to sit beside them without trying to explain away their suffering?
Reflect. Evolve. Lead.
Reflect
God can handle the truth about how I feel.
Evolve
Honest lament can deepen relationships rather than destroy faith.
Lead
Today I will resist giving shallow answers to people carrying deep pain.
Carry This With You
Even when your prayer begins with “Why?” it can still end with “My God.”
Tomorrow’s Journey
Today you walked through one of the darkest Psalms.
Tomorrow comes one of the most beloved.
Psalm 22 asks:
Where are You?
Psalm 23 answers:
I am with you.
Tomorrow, we meet the Shepherd who walks with us through green pastures…
and through the valley of the shadow of death.
Until tomorrow…keep walking with Him.
One Daily Journey. One Psalm. One surrendered heart. One step closer to His heart.
