7 days
Psalms for when life is hard
Seven psalms in seven days, for anyone tired, afraid or sad: from 'how long?' to 'the Lord is my shepherd'.
About a third of the psalms are laments. They show that you may come to God with everything, even anger and questions. Read one psalm a day, slowly, and preferably out loud. You don't have to be comforted straight away: the psalms take their time too. If it is really too heavy, talk to someone you trust as well.
0 of 7 days read
- Day 1Read Psalms 13
How long?
Four times David asks 'how long?'. How long will God forget him, how long the worry in his heart? The psalm starts without a polite introduction, and still ends in trust: 'I will sing'. There is no solution in between, only a choice to keep counting on God.
Which 'how long?' would you say to God today?
- Day 2Read Psalms 42
Thirsting for God
A deer panting for water: that is how the poet longs for God. He is far from the temple and people mock: 'Where is your God?' Twice he speaks to himself: why are you so downcast, my soul? Psalm 43 has the same refrain; many interpreters think 42 and 43 were once one song.
The poet talks to his own soul. What would you like to tell yourself today?
- Day 3Read Psalms 77
A sleepless night
Asaph lies awake at night and finds no rest. Has God forgotten his goodness? Then he begins to remember: what God did before, the way through the sea at the exodus. The sorrow is not gone, but his gaze shifts from himself to what God has done.
What has God already done in your life, or in the lives of others?
- Day 4Read Psalms 88
The darkest psalm
This is the only psalm that ends in darkness, without praise or a turn. Heman feels half dead and alone. That such a prayer is in the Bible is a comfort in itself: whoever can only lament is still praying. He keeps saying it to God.
What does it mean to you that the Bible holds a prayer without a happy ending?
- Day 5Read Psalms 130
Out of the depths
A pilgrim song: 'out of the depths I cry to you'. The poet waits for the Lord, more than watchmen wait for the morning. He knows that with God there is forgiveness. Martin Luther made it into one of his best-known hymns ('Aus tiefer Not').
What are you waiting for? And what would it be like to bring that waiting to God?
- Day 6Read Psalms 46
A mighty fortress
Even when the earth shakes and the mountains fall into the sea, God is a refuge and strength. In the middle stands a quiet line: 'Be still, and know that I am God'. Luther wrote 'A mighty fortress is our God' on this psalm.
What would 'being still' mean for you today, in the middle of what is happening?
- Day 7Read Psalms 23
The Lord is my shepherd
The best-known song of the Bible doesn't avoid the valleys: 'though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death'. The Shepherd goes along. At the end he even sets a table while the enemies look on. Jesus later calls himself the good Shepherd (John 10).
Which image from this psalm will you take into the coming week?