READ: Lamentations 4:12-13
The kings of the earth did not believe, nor did any of the peoples of the world,
that enemies and foes could enter the gates of Jerusalem.
But it happened because of the sins of her prophets and the iniquities of her priests,
who shed within he the blood of the righteous.
In the late sixties, the world was in a space race. No, not rocket racing like in Star Wars. While that would be cool, the space race of 1969 was all about national pride. The USA and USSR found themselves in a mad dash to land the first aircraft on the moon. Each nation was investing billions of dollars into programs that would literally propel them past the atmosphere and allow them to plant their flag on a big space rock.
By all accounts, Russia appeared to be the winner. They completed a fancy rocket that had its sights on the moon. The whole nation leaned in with anticipation during a test launch of their N1 Rocket. A disembodied voice on a loudspeaker announced, “pyat, chye-tir-ye, tree, dv, a-deen” (5, 4, 3, 2 ,1). The ground shook and the rocket rumbled before it took off to kiss the sky. Within twenty seconds of takeoff, the ship exploded. Their national pride publicly went down in flames. The ship blew up. A nation mourned.
What caused it? It wasn’t a missile or bomb. A single loose bolt got lodged in the fuel pump. This little piece of metal caused the biggest non-nuclear explosion in human history. If it were not for that bolt, history would read differently. Russia likely would have been the first nation on the moon. This completely preventable catastrophe was caused by a piece of hardware the size of a grape. The explosion of Russia’s N1 wasn’t triggered by external events, but internal problems.
The pages of Lamentations force us to wrestle with a difficult concept. Jeremiah asserts that many of Israel’s problems were their own fault. The religious leaders sinned. They let their guard down, which allowed complacency to seep into their lives. While the Babylonian Siege was external and out of their control, the problems leading up to it were internal and within their control. If they had only taken ownership of these weaknesses, then they could have prevented catastrophe. They were warned about their vulnerabilities countless times, but failed to make changes. The result was their city in ruins.
As you learn to lament, ask yourself, “did I play a role in my ruins?” Some of life’s biggest catastrophes are out of your control. I get that. Although, in many circumstances, we do play a role. It’s possible that Bill was fired because he was lazy. Maybe Kim’s breakup happened because she couldn’t control her temper. Maybe
Edward’s health slowly deteriorated because he ignored the doctor’s pleas. Financial hardship progresses in phases. Addiction develops slowly. Many hardships are the culminations of small habits. It’s possible that you play a role in your ruins.
There is a popular prayer used in counseling and recovery programs called “the serenity prayer.” It reads, “God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.” This prayer should sum up our approach to lamenting. How do you grow through your grief? With acceptance, courage, wisdom, and reflection. As you heal, make this prayer a proclamation. Take responsibility over things you can control and surrender the things you cannot. We develop through distress when we commit to learning something along the way.
How do you need to change? What do you need to accept? Where do you need to surrender?