Pastor’s Pen | March 2024

In late February, I received an invitation from Arizona Faith Network to attend a prayer circle at the Arizona State Capitol with faith leaders from around the Phoenix area.

The prayer circle included faith leaders from across traditions—Jewish, Muslim, Christian, “spiritual but not religious”, Indigenous, Catholic—to pray for our state senators as they prepare to review bills related to immigration policy in the state of Arizona.

Now, I know immigration is a tough topic right now. In our community, there are a variety of perspectives represented. My intention is not to spark a political debate here.

My intention is to emphasize the power of prayer in spaces where perhaps we don’t expect prayer to form. As I listened to the prayers and poems of those who were gathered in the circle, it struck me that what we were doing was lamenting. We were bringing our worries, fears, uncertainty, and hope to God with the expectation that God will do something about them. As I listened, I didn’t hear blame or demonizing. I heard the gathered ones of God lament the brokenness of the immigration system and express trust that God will get involved. One faith leader prayed: “We trust you, God. We trust that you hear us. We trust that you will soften the hearts of our leaders and protect those who are suffering.”

Friends, right now, we are gathering on Wednesday evenings to study the biblical language of lament. Sometimes, when we read Scripture, it can feel like we are engaging something ancient and outdated. After joining the prayer circle, though, I discovered that lament is far from old or outdated.

Lament is for us now who are grieving all that has gone wrong in the world and in our lives. Lament is placing our grief before God and expecting God to do something about it. These are the prayers of God’s people today. They are not intellectual, but are expressed from the heart and lived out in community.

Perhaps you might visit the lament psalms in your own study or join on Wednesday evenings to learn more. Perhaps you’ll write your own lament prayer about what’s worrying and disturbing you, and lay it on God’s shoulders. Perhaps you’ll find your way to prayer circle one day. Whether you choose to engage lament or not, I pray for you in your journey of faith and trust you will discover God in places you do not expect to find God.

Praying with you,

Pastor Beth