Prayers for Grief
from the Psalms of Lament
During grief it was difficult for me to find any words to pray. Among other ideas mentioned on this website, I found Nan Merrill's Psalms for Praying a helpful resource to give voice to my feelings. Here are two psalms from her book. Psalm 13 How long, my Beloved?
Will you forget me forever?
How long will you hide your
face from me?
How long must I bear this pain
in my soul,
and live with sorrow
all the day?
How long will fear rule my life Notice my heart and answer me,
O my Beloved;
enlighten me, lest I walk as
one dead to life;
Lest my ego fears say,
"We have won the day;"
Lest they rejoice in their strength. As I trust in your steadfast
Love;
my heart will rejoice,
for in You is freedom.
I shall sing to the Beloved,
who has answered my prayers
a thousand fold!
Come, O Beloved, make your home
in my heart.
Psalm 23 O my Beloved, You are my sheperd,
I shall not want;
You bring me to green pastures
for rest
and lead me beside still waters
renewing my spirit;
You restore my soul.You lead me in the path of
goodness
to follow Love's way. Even though I walk through the
valley of the shadow and
of death
I am not afraid;
For You are ever with me;
your rod and your staff
they guide me,
they give me strength
and comfort. You prepare a table before me
in the presence of all my fears;
you bless me with oil,
my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy will
follow me
all the days of my life;
and I shall dwell in the heart
of the Beloved forever.
Amen. For other ideas on prayers for grief, you might want to look at the section on writing your own laments using grief journaling or look in the photography section.
Learn more about using the Psalms of Lament to pray through grief
Return from Prayers for Grief to Journey-Through-Grief homepage
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