What grows in weary lands by Trish Harrison warren
Week 6: Chapter 5 — Lament and the Language of Desolation
Read Chapter 5 of What Grows in Weary Lands by Tish Harrison Warren.
Previewing Week 6 of What grows in weary lands
Read 3 of 8 discussion questions below. Unlock the complete 10-week guide when you’re ready.
Warren takes us into the prayer of lament — the ancient, biblical practice of crying out to God from the middle of darkness — and argues that learning to lament is not a sign of weak faith but of a deeply honest one.
Discussion Questions
8 questions1.Warren argues that the modern church has largely lost the practice of communal lament — that our worship services are almost entirely oriented toward praise and celebration, with very little space for honest grief. Does this diagnosis ring true in your own experience of church? What are the consequences of this omission?
2.She points to the Psalms — roughly a third of which are laments — as evidence that honest, even anguished, address to God is not a spiritual aberration but a central feature of biblical faith. Do you pray the Psalms? Has engaging their rawness ever changed the way you pray?
3.Warren distinguishes between lament and complaint: lament is addressed to God and trusts that he hears; complaint is addressed to no one in particular (or everyone in general) and expects nothing. How do you recognize the difference in your own interior life? Which do you more naturally practice?
a.Think of the last time you were genuinely distressed. Did you lament or complain? What was the result?
b.What would it take to turn a recent complaint into a lament?