DARK CLOUDS, DEEP MERCY:
Discovering the Grace of Lament
By Mark Vroegop
Crossway. 224 pages. £11.99
ISBN 978 1 433 561 481
WEEP WITH ME:
How Lament Opens a Door for Racial
Reconciliation
By Mark Vroegop
Crossway. 224 pages. £12.99
ISBN 978 1 433 567 599
‘To cry is human, to lament is Christian’ writes Mark Vroegop, aiming to help Christians ‘find deep mercy in dark clouds’ through practising biblical lament.
Vroegrop, who is lead pastor of College Park Church, Indianapolis and a Gospel Coalition Council Member, writes from personal experience of tragedy, and so shares what the Lord has taught him and his church community about ‘life in minor key’. His aim is to help us: learn to lament, using the Psalms; to learn from lament, using Lamentations; and how to live with lament.
Simple but effective
Vroegop presents a simple but effective Trust. This emerges from his study of the Psalms and his reflection questions encourage readers to put into practice what they’ve just read. I would normally skip over such questions, but I really benefited from taking time to work through them all. The short appendixes list the lament psalms and draw out examples of the complaints they include. The ‘Learning to Lament’ worksheet may seem a little mechanical, but could be helpful for someone learning to pray like this for the first time.
I found the practical nature a real strength of the book, including the desire to apply lament personally and corporately, e.g. in our corporate worship, teaching and congregational prayer.
New ground
However, it was when Vroegop applies lament to racial issues that we break new ground. This is developed in his latest book Weep with Me: How Lament Opens a Door for Racial Reconciliation. Vroegop is worth reading on this subject, not only because he understands lament, but because he has journeyed with Christians from majority and minority cultures – listening and learning when it has been uncomfortable.
In 2020 we have experienced the effects of both natural evil in the Covid-19 pandemic, and moral evil from the George Floyd murder. This pair of books equips the believer with a Biblical response that moves us on from silence and despair into hope and confidence in God.
