A Sacred Sorrow
Reaching Out to God in the Lost Language of Lament
Author – Michael Card
NavPress

The premise of the book is that we have forgotten the lost language of lament. As children and adults, we have grown up trying to control our tears and deny our emotions.

Michael Card uses Godly characters and how they used lament to cry out to God in times of desperation. Three of the four characters come from the Old Testament so I suggest that you have a good background in your Bible studies. (Job, David, and Jeremiah) Without a strong background you may find yourself lost not just in the language of lament, but also in the teachings of Card. At times Card is a very deep writer and knowing the back-story will help.

The final chapters sum up the lost language of lament by example of the Christ. Card points out how the lament of the prior three characters lead up to the ultimate lamentations of the Christ on our behalf. I was most moved by the realization that the greatest answer to lament is the presence of God. Speaking of God, “Rarely does He move to solve the problem. Something else that we don’t understand must be taking place. What lament would have us understand is that the answer is being graciously given: His Presence is always with us.”

The book doesn’t just end there though because there is a sizeable Appendix with Biblical examples of lament, a list of Psalms in lament, and some tips on journaling.

A Sacred Sorrow would be an excellent small group resource for a grief-sharing group. Reading it alone as I have said does require some comprehension of ancient text, but it’s not impossible. I’ve read through Job and David’s lamenting Psalms plenty of times, but I found that the second half of the book spoke to me more effortless.

- Ken W.