Seen Affliction by the Rod

The Storm

This closes the first movement of this book with continued, honest darkness, worth noticing this book of Lamentations, an entire book of scripture devoted to exactly this kind of extended, honest grief, worth holding as significant, comprehensive permission for however long your own overwhelm has genuinely lasted.

Notice brought me into darkness, but not into light, worth holding as honest, present-tense acknowledgment, not yet resolved, worth trusting alongside this book’s own eventual turn, later in this same chapter, toward the great hope this whole devotional’s later movements will also, eventually explore, but not rushed past here.

This closes the loop this whole first movement has traced. Waves and billows honestly named, raw fear voiced, terrors and horror acknowledged, pressure above strength disclosed, overwhelm itself the occasion for crying out, even Jesus’s own exceeding sorrow, Elijah’s it is enough, feared things actually realized, unresolved prayer.

As this movement closes, receive this whole first movement’s honest naming as necessary, not skipped over. Whatever affliction, darkness, or overwhelm you have named across these ten days, carry it honestly into this book’s second movement, not because the darkness is now resolved, but because honest naming was always the necessary beginning.