Oppressed Prayer

They have heard that I groan; there is no one to comfort me.  Lamentations 1:21

Groan – If this word has never been part of your prayer vocabulary, I wonder if you have really experienced fatal dependence.  Every biblical character whom God used to accomplish His purpose seems to have been intimately familiar with anaw – the groaning prayer.  Even Jesus, who certainly was never outside the will of the Father, had times of praying agony – and not just in the Garden of Gethsemane!  Until our inner spirits confront anaw prayers, we do not come to grips with the desperation of life.

Who groans?  The Bible uses this word when Israel faced oppression and despair in Egypt.  We find the word when the wicked occupy positions of political and social power.  Anaw is the companion of those who are treated unjustly.  It accompanies descriptions of people who are judged by God.  It is the corollary of corruption, addiction and self-serving pleasures.  Animals groan over Man’s wickedness (Joel 1:18).  Even the earth knows anaw  (Romans 8:22).  In a creation subject to futility, anaw hides around every corner.

But that does not mean it is to be avoided.

God uses anaw to bring us to the place where no one can comfort – except the Lord.  Anaw identifies us with the destructive power of sin.  It drives us to brokenhearted pleas for God’s justice.  It reminds us of our constant need of His righteousness.  It destroys our self-confident arrogance.  It unlocks our need for compassion and mercy.  Let the agony come.  Let me sweat drops of blood in the face of a universe gone mad.  Then I will know the heart of my Savior.  I will recognize my desperate undoing.  I will know what the jailer knew – that only God can save.

Anaw is the sister of ‘atsav (sorrow), introduced to us when Man decided to play God in Genesis 3.  When you feel the twinge of anaw and when you know its overwhelming torrent, do not run for cover.  Groan to God.  He listens.