Jeremiah 15:15-21 (NRSV)
Read Jeremiah 15:15-21 on biblegateway.com
Verse 15O Lord, you know; remember me and visit me, and bring down retribution for me on my persecutors. In your forbearance do not take me away; know that on your account I suffer insult. Verse 16Your words were found, and I ate them, and your words became to me a joy and the delight of my heart; for I am called by your name, O Lord, God of hosts. Verse 17I did not sit in the company of merrymakers, nor did I rejoice; under the weight of your hand I sat alone, for you had filled me with indignation. Verse 18Why is my pain unceasing, my wound incurable, refusing to be healed? Truly, you are to me like a deceitful brook, like waters that fail. Verse 19Therefore thus says the Lord: If you turn back, I will take you back, and you shall stand before me. If you utter what is precious, and not what is worthless, you shall serve as my mouth. It is they who will turn to you, not you who will turn to them. Verse 20And I will make you to this people a fortified wall of bronze; they will fight against you, but they shall not prevail over you, for I am with you to save you and deliver you, says the Lord. Verse 21I will deliver you out of the hand of the wicked, and redeem you from the grasp of the ruthless.
Devotion
Jeremiah has more to whine about than I. Nonetheless, I found myself in a whiny mood all spring, aided, undoubtedly, by the dawdling arrival of a Duluth spring. One particularly grumpy Saturday I unfortunately bumped into a church member. Unable to sneak away, I greeted him; he asked how I was, and I told him! I shared my frustrations; I complained about feeling put upon. Like Jeremiah, I bemoaned both people’s and God’s expectations. As we parted, I apologized for whining. He replied, “You’re good at it.” We laughed. The next day, after Sunday worship, I apologized again for my whining. This time he graced me with: “I heard the Spirit groaning.” With that one phrase, he helped reframe my human whine into an act of godly lament. I was re-centered in God, first in worship, and then by his freeing word.
Prayer
Compassionate One, free us to bring our laments, whether small like mine or monumental like Jeremiah’s out into the open. May they be heard by you and your servants who remind us of and return us to the hope we have in you. Amen.