Happy Monday ya’ll!! I love blog days more and more every week, and being able to start my week off by diving deep into the Word of God and sharing what I've learned with ya’ll is truly such a blessing. I also just love today's blog so much because it just speaks about real life so much. So, I hope this is an encouragement for you and helps you see how much the Lord hears and cares for you. 

If you know me at all, you know I’m a really big crier. Tears really are how I process any emotion at all. I used to think that this was something to be embarrassed about or that showing emotions through crying was wrong, but that's actually so far from the truth. So many times in the bible it mentions how God's people cried out to Him in times of confusion, distress, and even joy. But today I want to focus on crying out to God in hardship. In Psalm 22: 1-3, David says, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning? O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer, and by night, but I find no rest. Yet you are holy, enthroned on the praises of Israel.” Here David is literally crying out to the Lord with real, messy, and honest emotion in his distress. He feels like the Lord has forgotten him and expresses that to God so clearly. When God tells us to talk to Him, He doesn't say that he wants our cleaned-up, perfect, and emotionally balanced version of our speech. God wants your messy and tear-filled, honest cry too!

When we talk to God this way, He doesn’t get freaked out or overwhelmed by our emotions. He knows that life is hard and that it's impossible for us to keep it together all the time. Jesus literally said the exact same thing that David did in the Psalm while He was on the cross. “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Having real emotion towards the Lord shows us how honest we can be with Him, which is what He wants from us. 

Now when we cry out to God this way, it doesn’t just automatically fix everything. But it is possible for us to hold on to the Lord spiritually while still feeling disconnected emotionally. In our cry out to God, we know that He is still holding onto us and walking with us in the midst of our hardship, but that doesn’t mean the messy feelings of stress or sadness or confusion go away. This is okay! Not everything is imminent and it takes time for our emotions to catch up with what our faith knows to be true: that God is always with us. Your messy dependence and trust in the Lord is still acceptable to Him. You don't have to be perfect or clean up your act to come to the Lord. Life is messy and so are our emotions, so share that with God and be honest with Him. 

But also know that the Lord is good. Verse 3 of this Psalm says, “Yet you are holy…” When you cry out to God in distress, don't sit there. Like David, we also need to recognize that God is still holy and sovereign no matter our situation. God doesn't let go of you when life feels out of control; He’s still always right there holding onto you. I say this a lot, but it's so true: God is good all the time, and all the time God is good. He doesn’t change when our circumstances do. The Lord is constant, holy, and in control. He won't leave you in despair; He will always carry you out. 

So, do you think you can be open and honest before God in prayer? And if you don’t feel you can be, then why not? God wants ALL of you. All your messy, disorganized words and tear-filled prayers. Cry out to God and be honest with Him.